The 1975 North Alabama Lions football team represented the University of North Alabama as a member of the Gulf South Conference (GSC) during the 1975 NAIA Division I football season. Led by third-year head coach Mickey Andrews, the Lions compiled an overall record of 6–4 with a mark of 4–4 in conference play, finishing sixth in the GSC. North Alabama played home game at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Alabama.
| 1975 North Alabama Lions football | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Gulf South Conference |
| Record | 6–4 (4–4 GSC) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive coordinator | Richie Gaskell (3rd season) |
| Defensive coordinator | Mike Dean (3rd season) |
| Captains |
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| Home stadium | Braly Municipal Stadium |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nicholls State $ | 7 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 8 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 6 Livingston ^ | 6 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 11 Jacksonville State | 5 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Troy State | 5 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Delta State | 5 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| North Alabama | 4 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mississippi College | 2 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 6 | – | 5 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Southeastern Louisiana | 2 | – | 6 | – | 0 | 4 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tennessee–Martin | 1 | – | 7 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Schedule
edit| Date | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 13 | at Southeastern Louisiana | L 15–28 | 8,300 | [1] | |
| September 13 | Livingston | L 7–14 | 7,500 | [2] | |
| October 4 | Delta State |
| L 9–21 | 7,500 | [3] |
| October 11 | at Alabama A&M* | W 48–29 | 6,800 | [4] | |
| October 18 | Austin Peay* |
| W 23–6 | 3,000 | [5] |
| October 25 | at Troy State | W 49–26 | 9,000 | [6] | |
| November 1 | Mississippi College |
| W 41–14 | 4,000 | [7] |
| November 8 | at Nicholls State | L 28–27 | 7,500 | [8] | |
| November 15 | at Tennessee–Martin | W 30–20 | 5,000 | [9] | |
| November 22 | Jacksonville State |
| W 21–14 | 5,000 | [10] |
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Offseason
editSpring Game
editThe annual spring intrasquad matchup took place on Tuesday, April 1st, at Braly Stadium. The game saw the team split into both Gold and Purple squads. The Golds, led by Steve Clark and Jerry Mizell, defeated the Purples 26-21.[14]
The game also saw honorary head coaches for both teams: Miss UNA Susie Vaughan for the Purple team and Miss Alabama Pam Long for the Gold team.[15]
GSC Summer Meeting
editFrom June 12th to 15th, the Gulf South Conference summer meeting was held in Birmingham, Alabama. During the meeting, several topics were discussed. Due to multiple schools in the league holding dual membership in both the NCAA and NAIA, a recommendation was brought forward that any school must accept an invitation to any NCAA postseason tourney. The NCAA Division II-only schools of the league brought forth the idea to create a committee to look at the possibility of moving the conference up to Division I.[16]
Other decisions made during the meeting were to forbid exchanging football film with non-conference teams and to reduce football rosters from 55 to 50 players.[17]
Conference Realignment
editOn July 4th, it was announced that Northwestern State would be leaving the GSC to join the Southland Conference. The school listed poor attendance for conference games and the proposed plan to reduce Division II scholarship limits from 70 to 55. They believed this would give nearby Division I schools a recruiting advantage.[18]
Preseason conference poll
editThe Gulf South Conference released their preseason coaches' poll on August 3. The poll still includes Northwestern State despite their departure from the conference in July. [19]
| GSC coaches' poll | ||
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacksonville State | 87 (7) |
| 2 | Southeastern Louisiana | 70 (1) |
| 3 | Delta State | 56 |
| Livingston | 56 | |
| 5 | Troy State | 55 (1) |
| 6 | North Alabama | 44 |
| 7 | Nicholls State | 37 |
| 8 | Northwestern State | 21 |
| 9 | Mississippi College | 17 |
| Tennessee-Martin | 17 | |
References
edit- ^ "SE Louisiana Bounces North Alabama, 28-15". Times Daily. Florence. September 14, 1975. p. 19. Retrieved September 5, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ Stout, Harold (September 21, 1975). "Livingston Holds Off Lions in GSC Battle". Times Daily. Florence. p. 27. Retrieved September 5, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ Stout, Harold (October 5, 1975). "Delta State Spoils Lions' Homecoming". Times Daily. Florence. p. 27. Retrieved September 5, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ Stout, Harold (October 12, 1975). "UNA Decks Alabama A&M". Times Daily. Florence. p. 23. Retrieved September 5, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ Carpenter, Gary (October 19, 1975). "Lions Bounce Austin Peay". Times Daily. Florence. p. 25. Retrieved September 6, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ "North Alabama Lions Ramble over Troy, 49-26". Times Daily. Florence. October 26, 1975. p. 23. Retrieved September 6, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ Stout, Harold (October 26, 1975). "UNA Rolls Over Choctaws, 41-14". Times Daily. Florence. p. 19. Retrieved September 6, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ "UNA Falls to Nicholls". Times Daily. Florence. November 9, 1975. p. 21. Retrieved September 6, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ "Injuries Dull UNA's Victory". Times Daily. Florence. November 17, 1975. p. 7. Retrieved September 6, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ "Late Lion score beats Jacksonville". The Montgomery Advertiser. November 23, 1975. Retrieved September 6, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Final 1975 Cumulative Football Statistics Report". National Collegiate Athletic Association. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
- ^ Thomas, Ronnie (1975). "1975 Football Guide" (PDF). RoarLions.com. North Alabama Athletics. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
- ^ Thomas, Ronnie (1976). "1976 Football Guide" (PDF). RoarLions.com. North Alabama Athletics. Retrieved September 6, 2024.
- ^ Stout, Harold (April 2, 1975). "Lions 'Much Improved'". Times Daily. Florence. p. 9. Retrieved September 25, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ "UNA Lions' Spring Game Set for Tuesday". Times Daily. Florence. March 31, 1975. p. 8. Retrieved September 25, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ "GSC starts meeting today". Gadsden Times. Gadsden. June 12, 1975. Retrieved September 25, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ "GSC Presidents End Annual Summer Meeting". Times Daily. Florence. June 15, 1975. p. 16. Retrieved September 25, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ "Northwestern Leaving GSC". Times Daily. Florence. July 4, 1975. p. 24. Retrieved September 25, 2024 – via Google News Archive.
- ^ "Defending Champ Jax State Picked to Claim GSC Again". Times Daily. Florence. August 3, 1975. p. 21. Retrieved September 25, 2024 – via Google News Archive.