The 1985 Drake Bulldogs football team represented the Drake University as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) during the 1985 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by ninth-year head coach Chuck Shelton, Drake compiled an overall record of 4–7 with a mark of 1–5 in conference play. By mid-October the team was 4–3, a record that included wins over in-state opponents Northern Iowa and Iowa State, but ended the season on a four-game skid. After the season, Drake announced it would drop its football program for the 1986 season and transition to NCAA Division III for the 1987 season.[1]