# Nichols Bison football

The Nichols Bison football team represents Nichols College in college football at the NCAA Division III level. The Bison are members of the Conference of New England (CNE), fielding its team in the CNE since 1972 when it was named the New England Football Conference (NEFC). The Bison play their home games at Vendetti Field in Dudley, Massachusetts.
Their head coach is Vinny Marino, who will take over the position for the 2024 season.

## Conference affiliations

* Independent (1932–1942, 1947–1971)
* New England Football Conference (1972–1991)
* Eastern Collegiate Football Conference (1992–1997)
* New England Football Conference / Commonwealth Coast football / Conference of New England (1998–present)

## Championships
### Conference championships

Nichols claims 5 conference titles, the most recent of which came in 2023.
| Year | Conference | Overall Record | Conference Record | Coach |
| 1973 | New England Football Conference | 8–1 | 4–0 | Michael Vendetti |
| 1974 | New England Football Conference | 7–1–1 | 6–0–1 | Michael Vendetti |
| 1975† | New England Football Conference | 6–2 | 6–2 | Michael Vendetti |
| 1976 | New England Football Conference | 8–1 | 7–1 | Michael Vendetti |
| 1978† | New England Football Conference | 6–2 | 6–2 | Michael Vendetti |
† Co-champions

### Division championships

Nichols claims 1 division title, which came in 2001.
| Year | Division | Coach | Overall Record | Conference Record | Opponent | CG result |
| 2001 | NEFC Boyd | Bill Carven | 6–4 | 5–0 | Westfield State | L 0–12 |

## Postseason games
### Bowl games

Nichols has participated in one bowl game, and has a record of 0–1.
| Season | Coach | Bowl | Opponent | Result |
| 2001 | Bill Carven | ECAC Bowl | Western Connecticut | L 10–63 |

## List of head coaches
### Key

Key to symbols in coaches list :
| General | General | Overall | Overall | Conference | Conference | Postseason | Postseason |
| No. | Order of coaches | GC | Games coached | CW | Conference wins | PW | Postseason wins |
| DC | Division championships | OW | Overall wins | CL | Conference losses | PL | Postseason losses |
| CC | Conference championships | OL | Overall losses | CT | Conference ties | PT | Postseason ties |
| NC | National championships | OT | Overall ties | C% | Conference winning percentage | | |
| † | Elected to the College Football Hall of Fame | O% | Overall winning percentage | | | | |

### Coaches

List of head football coaches showing season(s) coached, overall records, and conference records :
| No. | Name | Season(s) | GC | OW | OL | OT | O% | CW | CL | CT | C% |
| 1 | Unknown | 1932–1942 | — | — | — | — | — | – | – | – | – |
| 2 | Hal Chalmers | 1947–1958 | 68 | 25 | 38 | 5 | 0.404 | – | – | – | – |
| 3 | Harry Gaffney | 1959–1961 | 17 | 7 | 10 | 0 | 0.412 | – | – | – | – |
| 4 | Michael Vendetti | 1962–1985 | 191 | 103 | 83 | 5 | 0.552 | 65 | 43 | 2 | 0.600 |
| 5 | Jack Charney | 1986–1992 | 63 | 34 | 28 | 1 | 0.548 | 20 | 20 | 1 | 0.500 |
| 6 | Jim Crowley | 1993–1995 | 27 | 3 | 24 | 0 | 0.111 | 2 | 17 | 0 | 0.105 |
| 7 | Jim Foster | 1996–1998 | 29 | 9 | 20 | 0 | 0.310 | 5 | 12 | 0 | 0.294 |
| 8 | Bill Carven | 1999–2010 | 115 | 51 | 64 | 0 | 0.443 | 34 | 41 | 0 | 0.455 |
| 9 | Kevin Loney | 2011–2013 | 29 | 2 | 27 | 0 | 0.069 | 1 | 20 | 0 | 0.048 |
| 10 | Dale Olmsted | 2014–2023 | 90 | 30 | 60 | 0 | 0.333 | 12 | 44 | 0 | 0.214 |
| 11 | Vinny Marino | 2024–present | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | 0 | – |

## Year-by-year results since 1947

| National champions | Conference champions | Bowl game berth | Playoff berth |
| Season | Year | Head coach | Association | Division | Conference | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Record | Postseason | Final ranking |
| Season | Year | Head coach | Association | Division | Conference | Overall | Overall | Overall | Conference | Conference | Conference | Conference | | | Postseason | Final ranking |
| Season | Year | Head coach | Association | Division | Conference | Win | Loss | Tie | Finish | Win | Loss | Tie | Postseason | Final ranking |
| Nichols Bison |||||||||||||||
| 1947 | 1947 | Hal Chalmers | NCAA | — | Independent | 2 | 2 | 3 | | | | | — | — |
| 1948 | 1948 | Hal Chalmers | NCAA | — | Independent | 5 | 1 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1949 | 1949 | Hal Chalmers | NCAA | — | Independent | 6 | 0 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1950 | 1950 | Hal Chalmers | NCAA | — | Independent | 1 | 5 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1951 | 1951 | Hal Chalmers | NCAA | — | Independent | 5 | 0 | 1 | | | | | — | — |
| 1952 | 1952 | Hal Chalmers | NCAA | — | Independent | 1 | 6 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1953 | 1953 | Hal Chalmers | NCAA | — | Independent | 1 | 4 | 1 | | | | | — | — |
| 1954 | 1954 | Hal Chalmers | NCAA | — | Independent | 1 | 4 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1955 | 1955 | Hal Chalmers | NCAA | — | Independent | 0 | 4 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1956 | 1956 | Hal Chalmers | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 1 | 5 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1957 | 1957 | Hal Chalmers | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 0 | 3 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1958 | 1958 | Hal Chalmers | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 2 | 4 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1959 | 1959 | Harry Gaffney | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 3 | 3 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1960 | 1960 | Harry Gaffney | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 2 | 4 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1961 | 1961 | Harry Gaffney | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 2 | 3 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1962 | 1962 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 3 | 3 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1963 | 1963 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 0 | 6 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1964 | 1964 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 4 | 2 | 1 | | | | | — | — |
| 1965 | 1965 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 6 | 1 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1966 | 1966 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 3 | 3 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1967 | 1967 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 2 | 5 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1968 | 1968 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 4 | 4 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1969 | 1969 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 0 | 7 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1970 | 1970 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 3 | 4 | 0 | | | | | — | — |
| 1971 | 1971 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | College Division | Independent | 4 | 3 | 1 | | | | | — | — |
| 1972 | 1972 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | College Division | NEFC | 5 | 2 | 1 | 4th | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 1973 | 1973 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1st | 4 | 0 | 0 | Conference champions | — |
| 1974 | 1974 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1st | 6 | 0 | 1 | Conference champions | — |
| 1975 | 1975 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 6 | 2 | 0 | T–1st | 6 | 2 | 0 | Conference co-champions | — |
| 1976 | 1976 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1st | 7 | 1 | 0 | Conference champions | — |
| 1977 | 1977 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 5 | 4 | 0 | T–5th | 4 | 4 | 0 | — | — |
| 1978 | 1978 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 6 | 2 | 0 | T–1st | 6 | 2 | 0 | Conference co-champions | — |
| 1979 | 1979 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 6 | 3 | 0 | T–2nd | 6 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 1980 | 1980 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 3 | 5 | 1 | 8th | 3 | 5 | 1 | — | — |
| 1981 | 1981 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 5 | 4 | 0 | T–4th | 5 | 4 | 0 | — | — |
| 1982 | 1982 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 5 | 4 | 0 | 5th | 5 | 4 | 0 | — | — |
| 1983 | 1983 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 7 | 2 | 0 | 3rd | 7 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 1984 | 1984 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 2 | 7 | 0 | T–7th | 2 | 7 | 0 | — | — |
| 1985 | 1985 | Michael Vendetti | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 1 | 7 | 0 | 10th | 1 | 7 | 0 | — | — |
| 1986 | 1986 | Jack Charney | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 3 | 6 | 0 | 7th | 3 | 6 | 0 | — | — |
| 1987 | 1987 | Jack Charney | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 5 | 4 | 0 | 3rd (North) | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 1988 | 1988 | Jack Charney | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3rd (North) | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 1989 | 1989 | Jack Charney | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 4 | 5 | 0 | 4th (North) | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 1990 | 1990 | Jack Charney | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 5 | 4 | 0 | 4th (North) | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 1991 | 1991 | Jack Charney | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 4 | 5 | 0 | T–3rd (North) | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 1992 | 1992 | Jack Charney | NCAA | Division III | ECFC | 7 | 1 | 1 | T–2nd | 4 | 1 | 1 | — | — |
| 1993 | 1993 | Jim Crowley | NCAA | Division III | ECFC | 1 | 8 | 0 | 7th | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | — |
| 1994 | 1994 | Jim Crowley | NCAA | Division II | ECFC | 2 | 7 | 0 | 5th | 2 | 4 | 0 | — | — |
| 1995 | 1995 | Jim Crowley | NCAA | Division II | ECFC | 0 | 9 | 0 | 9th | 0 | 7 | 0 | — | — |
| 1996 | 1996 | Jim Foster | NCAA | Division II | ECFC | 2 | 8 | 0 | 8th | 2 | 5 | 0 | — | — |
| 1997 | 1997 | Jim Foster | NCAA | Division III | ECFC | 2 | 7 | 0 | 4th | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 1998 | 1998 | Jim Foster | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5th (Blue) | 2 | 4 | 0 | — | — |
| 1999 | 1999 | Bill Carven | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 6 | 3 | 0 | 4th (Blue) | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 2000 | 2000 | Bill Carven | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 7 | 3 | 0 | T–2nd (Boyd) | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 2001 | 2001 | Bill Carven | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 6 | 4 | 0 | 1st (Boyd) | 5 | 0 | 0 | Division champions | — |
| 2002 | 2002 | Bill Carven | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 5 | 4 | 0 | T–2nd (Boyd) | 3 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 2003 | 2003 | Bill Carven | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 6 | 4 | 0 | T–2nd (Boyd) | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | — |
| 2004 | 2004 | Bill Carven | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 4 | 6 | 0 | T–4th (Boyd) | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 2005 | 2005 | Bill Carven | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 0 | 9 | 0 | 7th (Boyd) | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | — |
| 2006 | 2006 | Bill Carven | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 5 | 4 | 0 | T–3rd (Boyd) | 4 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 2007 | 2007 | Bill Carven | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 5 | 4 | 0 | T–3rd (Boyd) | 4 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 2008 | 2008 | Bill Carven | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 2 | 8 | 0 | 8th (Boyd) | 0 | 7 | 0 | — | — |
| 2009 | 2009 | Bill Carven | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 4 | 6 | 0 | T–4th (Boyd) | 3 | 4 | 0 | — | — |
| 2010 | 2010 | Bill Carven | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 1 | 9 | 0 | 7th (Boyd) | 1 | 6 | 0 | — | — |
| 2011 | 2011 | Kevin Loney | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 0 | 10 | 0 | 8th (Boyd) | 0 | 7 | 0 | — | — |
| 2012 | 2012 | Kevin Loney | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 1 | 9 | 0 | T–6th (Boyd) | 1 | 6 | 0 | — | — |
| 2013 | 2013 | Kevin Loney | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 1 | 8 | 0 | 8th | 0 | 7 | 0 | — | — |
| 2014 | 2014 | Dale Olmsted | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 1 | 9 | 0 | 8th | 0 | 7 | 0 | — | — |
| 2015 | 2015 | Dale Olmsted | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 1 | 9 | 0 | 8th | 0 | 7 | 0 | — | — |
| 2016 | 2016 | Dale Olmsted | NCAA | Division III | NEFC | 6 | 4 | 0 | 4th | 4 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 2017 | 2017 | Dale Olmsted | NCAA | Division III | CCC Football | 2 | 8 | 0 | 6th | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | — |
| 2018 | 2018 | Dale Olmsted | NCAA | Division III | CCC Football | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4th | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| 2019 | 2019 | Dale Olmsted | NCAA | Division III | CCC Football | 6 | 4 | 0 | T–3rd | 4 | 3 | 0 | — | — |
| No team in 2020 due to COVID-19. |||||||||||||||
| 2021 | 2021 | Dale Olmsted | NCAA | Division III | CCC Football | 2 | 8 | 0 | 7th | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | — |
| 2022 | 2022 | Dale Olmsted | NCAA | Division III | CCC Football | 4 | 6 | 0 | T–6th | 1 | 5 | 0 | — | — |
| 2023 | 2023 | Dale Olmsted | NCAA | Division III | CCC Football | 3 | 7 | 0 | T–5th | 0 | 5 | 0 | — | — |