1981 Southeastern Louisiana Lions football team

The 1981 Southeastern Louisiana Lions football team was an American football team that represented Southeastern Louisiana University as an independent during the 1981 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by second-year head coach Oscar Lofton, the Lions compiled an 8–3 record.

1981 Southeastern Louisiana Lions football
Conference	Independent
Record	8–3
Head coach	Oscar Lofton (2nd season)
Home stadium	Strawberry Stadium

1981 NCAA Division I-AA independents football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 8 Lafayette			–					9	–	2	–	0
No. 7 Delaware ^			–					9	–	3	–	0
No. 6 Tennessee State ^			–					9	–	3	–	0
Southeastern Louisiana			–					8	–	3	–	0
Lehigh			–					8	–	3	–	0
Nicholls State			–					5	–	5	–	1
Northwestern State			–					4	–	6	–	0
Bucknell			–					4	–	6	–	0
Northeastern			–					3	–	7	–	0
James Madison			–					3	–	8	–	0
^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 5	at Texas Southern	Robertson Stadium Houston, TX	W 31–24
September 12	at Southwestern Louisiana	Cajun Field Lafayette, LA (rivalry)	W 7–0	19,522
September 19	at Southwest Texas State	Bobcat Stadium San Marcos, TX	L 10–35	10,000
September 26	at Stephen F. Austin	Lumberjack Stadium Nacogdoches, TX	W 33–24
October 3	No. 4 Jackson State	Strawberry Stadium Hammond, LA	L 14–51	12,000
October 10	at Troy State	Veterans Memorial Stadium Troy, AL	W 22–21	6,000
October 17	Tennessee–Martin	Strawberry Stadium Hammond, LA	W 13–10	8,500
October 24	Northeast Louisiana	Strawberry Stadium Hammond, LA	W 50–47	8,000
October 31	Northwestern State	Strawberry Stadium Hammond, LA (rivalry)	W 21–16	6,000
November 7	at Southern	BREC Memorial Stadium Baton Rouge, LA	W 28–27	22,018
November 14	Nicholls State	Strawberry Stadium Hammond, LA (rivalry)	L 17–29	6,500
Homecoming Rankings from Associated Press Poll released prior to the game