# Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football

The Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks football program is the intercollegiate American football team for Stephen F. Austin State University (SFA) located in the U.S. state of Texas. The team competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) as members of the Southland Conference, which SFA rejoins for the 2024 season after a three-year absence. SFA had played the 2023 season in the United Athletic Conference (UAC), newly formed for the 2023 season as a merger of the football leagues of SFA's previous home of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) and the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN). It replaced an alliance between the two conferences that operated in the 2021 and 2022 seasons.
SFA had long been a member of the Southland Conference (SLC) before joining the WAC in July 2021, the same time that conference relaunched its football league at the FCS level. It returned to the SLC for 2024 and beyond. Stephen F. Austin's first football team was fielded in 1923. The team plays its home games at the 14,575 seat Homer Bryce Stadium in Nacogdoches, Texas.

## Conference championships

| Year | Coach | Conference | Overall record | Conference record |
| 1985† | Jim Hess | Gulf Star Conference | 9–2 | 4–1 |
| 1989 | Lynn Graves | Southland Conference | 12–2–1 | 6–0–1 |
| 1999† | Mike Santiago | Southland Conference | 8–3 | 6–1 |
| 2009† | J. C. Harper | Southland Conference | 10–3 | 6–1 |
| 2010 | J. C. Harper | Southland Conference | 9–3 | 6–1 |
| 2022 | Colby Carthel | Western Athletic Conference | 6–5 | 3–1 |
| Conference championships | Conference championships | Conference championships | 6 | 6 | 6 |
† Co-champions

## Head coaches

* Bob Shelton (1923–1928)
* Gene White (1929–1936)
* Red Willis (1937–1940)
* Maurice A. Baumgarten (1941)
* No team (1942–1945)
* Bill Pierce (1946)
* Ted Jefferies (1947–1955)
* Harold J. Fischer (1956–1958)
* Red Conkright (1959–1961)
* Shorty Hughes (1962–1970)
* John Levra (1971–1974)
* Dick Munzinger (1975)
* Charles Simmons (1976–1981)
* Jim Hess (1982–1988)
* Lynn Graves (1989–1991)
* John Pearce (1992–1998)
* Mike Santiago (1999–2004)
* Robert McFarland (2005–2006)
* J. C. Harper (2007–2013)
* Clint Conque (2014–2017)
* Jeff Byrd (interim) (2018)
* Colby Carthel (2019–present)

## Notable former players

Notable alumni include:

## Postseason history

The Lumberjacks earned a berth in the NCAA Division I FCS playoffs in 2009, the first postseason appearance for the team since 1995. The 2010 season marked the first time that the school had won an outright conference championship since 1989.
The team's only bowl game was the 1973 Poultry Bowl, in which the team defeated Gardner–Webb, 31–10, in Gainesville, Georgia.

### Division I-AA/FCS Playoffs results

The Lumberjacks have appeared in the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs eight times with an overall record of 7–8.
| Year | Round | Opponent | Result |
| 1988 | First round Quarterfinals | Jackson State Georgia Southern | W 24–0 L 6–27 |
| 1989 | First round Quarterfinals Semifinals National Championship Game | Grambling State Southwest Missouri State Furman Georgia Southern | W 59–56 W 55–25 W 21–19 L 34–37 |
| 1993 | First round | Troy State | L 20–42 |
| 1995 | First round Quarterfinals Semifinals | Eastern Illinois Appalachian State Montana | W 34–29 W 27–17 L 14–70 |
| 2009 | First round Quarterfinals | Eastern Washington Montana | W 44–33 L 0–51 |
| 2010 | Second round | Villanova | L 24–54 |
| 2014 | First round | Northern Iowa | L 10–44 |
| 2021 | First round | Incarnate Word | L 28–35 $^{OT}$ |

## Rivalries

The Lumberjacks have active rivalries with the Northwestern State Demons and the Sam Houston Bearkats.

## Future non-conference opponents

Announced schedules as of February 13, 2025.
| 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 | 2030 |
| at Houston | at Abilene Christian | Abilene Christian | at Texas Tech | at Cal Poly | at Louisville |
| at Abilene Christian | at Northern Colorado | | | | |
| Sul Ross State | | | | | |
| Cal Poly | | | | | |