1983 Howard Bison football team

The 1983 Howard Bison football team represented Howard University as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) during the 1983 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by first-year head coach Joe Taylor, the Bison compiled an overall record of 1–9, with a mark of 1–3 in conference play, and finished tied for third in the MEAC.

1983 Howard Bison football
Conference	Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
Record	1–9 (1–3 MEAC)
Head coach	Joe Taylor (1st season)
Home stadium	Howard Stadium

1983 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 18 South Carolina State $	4	–	0	–	0			7	–	3	–	0
Delaware State	3	–	1	–	0			7	–	3	–	1
Bethune–Cookman	1	–	3	–	0			4	–	4	–	1
North Carolina A&T	1	–	3	–	0			3	–	7	–	1
Howard	1	–	3	–	0			1	–	9	–	0
Florida A&M	0	–	0	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Florida A&M games did not count as conference games Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 3	at Liberty Baptist*	City Stadium Lynchburg, VA	L 10–15	5,321
September 10	at Bucknell*	Memorial Stadium Lewisburg, PA	L 0–12	3,000
September 17	vs. Bethune–Cookman	Gator Bowl Stadium Jacksonville, FL (Gateway Classic)	W 20–17
September 24	No. 1 South Carolina State	Howard Stadium Washington, D.C.	L 7–28	10,000
October 1	Florida A&M	Howard Stadium Washington, DC	L 17–21
October 15	Virginia State*	Howard Stadium Washington, DC	L 14–30
October 22	at North Carolina A&T	Aggie Stadium Greensboro, NC	L 0–22
October 29	Norfolk State*	Howard Stadium Washington, DC	L 12–19
November 12	at Morgan State	Hughes Stadium Baltimore, MD (rivalry)	L 14–15
November 19	at Delaware State	Alumni Stadium Dover, DE	L 20–62	6,001
*Non-conference game Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee Poll released prior to the game