Alabama A&M Bulldogs football

The Alabama A&M Bulldogs are the college football team representing the Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University. They play in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) as a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference.

Alabama A&M Bulldogs football
2023 Alabama A&M Bulldogs football team
First season1912
Head coachConnell Maynor
5th season, 29–20 (.592)
StadiumLouis Crews Stadium
(capacity: 21,000)
Field surfaceArtificial Turf
LocationNormal, Alabama
ConferenceSWAC
DivisionEast
All-time record444–421–35 (.513)
Bowl record0–2 (.000)
Claimed national titles1 Black college football national championship (2020)
Conference titles14 (12-SIAC: 1962, 1963, 1966, 1971, 1972, 1981, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991; 2-SWAC: 2006, 2020)
Current uniform
ColorsMaroon and white[1]
   
Marching bandMarching Maroon & White
Websiteaamusports.com

Rivalries

Alabama State
Main article: Magic City Classic

The Alabama State Hornets are A&M's arch-rival as the teams play annually in the Magic City Classic on the last Saturday in October at Birmingham's Historic Legion Field. A&M and State first played each other in 1924, though the annual classic began November 9, 1940 in Birmingham. The game has grown at Legion Field, a neutral site roughly halfway between the two campuses. The schools competed from 1947 to 1975 in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The rivalry has intensified since A&M joined State as a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference in 1999, with the two teams regularly in contention for the Eastern Division Crown. A&M leads the overall series 44–40–3 and holds a 44–34–3 edge over State in Birmingham. A&M holds a 16–7 advantage as SWAC opponents, with one of State's wins vacated due to NCAA violations. State won the first eight contests, holding the longest streak in the series. A&M longest win streak is seven from 1960 to 1966 coinciding with the arrival of Coach Louis Crews.

Tuskegee

A&M's other in-state rivalry is with the Tuskegee Golden Tigers. The Bulldogs and Tigers began their series in 1932 and would not meet on the gridiron for another 20 years. They played annually from 1963 to 1999 including 35 years as conference rivals in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The series was discontinued in 2000 as A&M moved up to Division I after joining the SWAC in 1998. A&M and Tuskegee played a two-game set from 2008 to 2009, and renewed their rivalry again from 2011 to 2014. The two teams last met in Mobile for the 2021 Gulf Coast Challenge, with A&M leading the series 29–20–3.

Championships

National championships

In 2020–21, A&M was voted consensus black college football national championship[2] as the only undefeated HBCU football team in the country. The Bulldogs were voted #1 in both BOXTOROW HBCU Coaches and Media Polls as well as the historic SBN (Sheridan Broadcasting Network) Sports Poll.[3] This is the A&M's first national championship and the third for Coach Maynor, who was voted #1 by SBN in 2011 at Winston-Salem State.

Year Coach National Championship Selectors Record
2020Connell MaynorSBN Sports Poll, BOXTOROW Coaches Poll, BOXTOROW Media Poll, Black College Sports Page[4] 5–0

Conference championships

A&M has won or shared a total of 14 league titles in football including two undefeated seasons. The Bulldogs have won two Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) championships, after claiming 12 conference crowns as a member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) from 1947 to 1997.

Alabama v Grambling State game in 2014
Season Conference Coach Overall record Conference record
1962Southern Intercollegiate Athletic ConferenceLouis Crews8–26–0
19638–07–0
19668–16–0
1971†5–64–3
1972†7–1–16–0–1
1979Ray Greene8–34–0
19818–24–1
1987†7–46–1
1988†7–36–1
1989George Pugh8–46–0
19906–56–1
1991†Ray Bonner5–65–2
2006Southwestern Athletic ConferenceAnthony Jones9–36–3
2020Connell Maynor5–03–0
Conference Championships: 14

† Co-champions

Postseason

Bowl games

Alabama A&M participated in two NCAA College Division bowl games as members of the SIAC.

Season Coach Bowl Game Opponent Result Location
1966Louis CrewsOrange Blossom ClassicFlorida A&ML 26–43Miami, FL
1971Louis CrewsAzalea ClassicJackson StateL 21–40Mobile, AL

Playoffs

A&M has participated in the NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs twice, with a 1–2 record in three games. Each loss came against the eventual national runner-up.

Season Coach Playoff Round Opponent Result Location
1979Ray GreeneD-II First RoundMorgan StateW 27–7Huntsville, AL
1979Ray GreeneD-II SemifinalsYoungstown StateL 52–0Youngstown, OH
1989George PughD-II First RoundJacksonville StateL 33–9Jacksonville, AL

SWAC Championship Game

The Bulldogs have represented the SWAC East in seven conference championship games, the most of any team in the division. Both wins have come against

Season Division Coach Record Result Attendance
2000SWAC EastRon Cooper7–5 (5–2)L 14–6 Grambling State34,687
2002SWAC EastAnthony Jones8–4 (6–1)L 31–19 Grambling State23,727
2005SWAC EastAnthony Jones9–3 (7–2)L 45–6 Grambling State20,612
2006SWAC EastAnthony Jones9–3 (6–3)W 22–13 Arkansas-Pine-Bluff30,213
2009SWAC EastAnthony Jones7–5 (4–3)L 30–24 Prairie View A&M20,218
2011SWAC EastAnthony Jones8–4 (7–2)L 16–15 Grambling State23,476
2020SWAC EastConnell Maynor5–0 (3–0)W 40–33 Arkansas Pine-Bluff17,248

Notable players

Players of the Year
Award Player Position Statistics
2002 SWAC Defensive Player of the Year[5]Robert MathisDE58 TAC, 20 SAC, 32 TFL, 10 FF, 1 FUM RET TD
2019 Phil Steele's SWAC Offensive Player of the Year[6]Jordan BentleyRB272 ATT, 1417 YDS, 5.2 AVG, 18 TD, 2 REC TD
2020 Black College Football Player of the Year[7]

2020 BOXTOROW HBCU National Player of the Year[8]

2020 SWAC Offensive Player of the Year[9]

 Aqeel GlassQB57.6% CMP, 1355 YDS, 16 TD, 4 INT, 158.0 RTG
2021 Black College Football Player of the Year[10]

2021 BOXTOROW HBCU National Player of the Year[11]

2021 SWAC Offensive Player of the Year[12]

2021 Phil Steele's SWAC Offensive Player of the Year[13]

 Aqeel GlassQB62.6% CMP, 3568 YDS, 36 TD, 7 INT, 160.8 RTG

Hall of Fame Inductees
Player Position Tenure Hall of Fame Inducted
John StallworthWR1971–1974Pro Football2002
Black College2014
Barry WagnerWR/DB1986–1989Arena Football2011
Robert MathisDE1999–2002Black College2020

Retired numbers
Main article: List of NCAA football retired numbers
Number Player Position Tenure Year Retired Reference
22
John StallworthWR1971–19741974[14]
55
Robert MathisDE1999–20022012[15]

Alumni in the NFL

Over 16 Alabama A&M alumni have played in the NFL,[16] including:

Notable coaches
Coach Seasons Games Record Win % Notes
George H. Hobson1942–195913745–81–11.371First A&M coach to win Magic City Classic
Louis Crews1960–197515094–53–3.637All-time leader in wins and games coached
Ray Greene1979–1983, 1986–19888554–27–4.659All-time leader in winning percentage
Ron Cooper1998–20014523–22.511Transitioned program to Division I
Anthony Jones2002–201314083–57.593All-time leader in Division I wins and SWAC wins

Won A&M's First SWAC Conference Championship

Connell Maynor2018–Present4728-19.596Won A&M's First Black College National Championship

References
  1. Alabama A&M University Style Manual (PDF). Retrieved September 11, 2016.
  2. "BOXTOROW | BOXTOROW Polls: Alabama A&M claims first ever HBCU national championship - BOXTOROW". 3 May 2021.
  3. Football records 2022
  4. "Alabama A&M wins SWAC title, 40–33: Bulldogs rally to knock off Arkansas–Pine Bluff, claim final BCSP No. 1 spot". Black College Sports Page (vol. 27, no. 40). May 4, 2021.
  5. "#SWAC100 Alumni Spotlight: Robert Mathis Alabama A&M - Southwestern Athletic Conference".
  6. "Jordan Bentley & Abdul Fatai-Ibrahim receive top honors on Phil Steele's All-SWAC Team | rocketcitynow.com". 10 January 2020.
  7. "ALABAMA A&M QB AQEEL GLASS WINS DEACON JONES TROPHY AS THE SPRING 2021 BLACK COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYER OF THE YEAR | BCFHOF".
  8. "Alabama A&M's Glass Garners Program's First Ever BoxToRow Player of the Year; Highlights Six All-Americans - Alabama A&M Athletics".
  9. "Aqeel Glass Named SWAC Player Of The Year | WHNT.com". 30 April 2021.
  10. "Aqeel Glass Won His 2nd Black College Football Player of the Year Award".
  11. "Alabama A&M's Glass Becomes Just Third Individual to Repeat as BOXTOROW National Player of the Year - Alabama A&M Athletics".
  12. "Glass Repeats As SWAC Offensive Player of the Year - Alabama A&M Athletics".
  13. "Alabama A&M's Glass Headlines 10 Phil Steele All-SWAC Selections as Offensive Player of the Year - Alabama A&M Athletics".
  14. Biography at John Stallworth.com
  15. Robert Mathis has jersey retired at Alabama A&M by Mark McCarter at Alabama.com, 4 Mar 2012
  16. "Alabama A&M Players/Alumni | Pro-Football-Reference.com". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
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