1986 Lamar Cardinals football team

1986 Southland Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 2 Arkansas State $^	5	–	0	–	0	12	–	2	–	1
North Texas State	3	–	2	–	0	6	–	4	–	0
Louisiana Tech	3	–	2	–	0	6	–	4	–	1
Northeast Louisiana	3	–	2	–	0	5	–	6	–	0
McNeese State	1	–	4	–	0	2	–	9	–	0
Lamar	0	–	5	–	0	2	–	9	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll

The 1986 Lamar Cardinals football team represented Lamar University in the 1986 NCAA Division I-AA football season as a member of the Southland Conference. The Cardinals played their home games at Cardinal Stadium now named Provost Umphrey Stadium in Beaumont, Texas. Lamar finished the 1986 season with a 2–9 overall record and a 0–5 conference record. The season marked the first year with Ray Alborn as Lamar Cardinals head football coach. The 1986 season was also the Cardinals' last season as a member of the Southland Conference in football until the 2010 season. Lamar joined the non–football American South Conference as a charter member along with fellow SLC members, Louisiana Tech and Arkansas State and three other universities.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 6	at Rice*	Rice Stadium Houston, TX	L 14–28
September 20	at San Houston State*	Bowers Stadium Huntsville, TX	L 13–24	7,800	^[1]
September 27	at Stephen F. Austin*	Homer Bryce Stadium Nacogdoches, TX	L 25–38
October 4	No. 2 (D-II) Texas A&I*	Cardinal Stadium Beaumont, TX	L 10–35
October 11	at Northeast Louisiana	Malone Stadium Monroe, LA	L 21–22		^[2]
October 18	Southwest Texas State*	Cardinal Stadium Beaumont, TX	W 17–3		^[3]
October 25	North Texas State	Cardinal Stadium Beaumont, TX	L 13–33	3,121	^[4]
November 1	Louisiana Tech	Cardinal Stadium Beaumont, TX	L 20–39	3,225	^[5]
November 8	Central State (OK)*	Cardinal Stadium Beaumont, TX	W 47–23
November 15	at No. 2 Arkansas State	Indian Stadium Jonesboro, AR	L 7–56		^[6]
November 23	at McNeese State	Cowboy Stadium Lake Charles, LA (rivalry)	L 7–38		^[7]
*Non-conference game Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee Poll released prior to the game

^ "Sam Houston runs past Lamar, 24–13". Abilene Reporter-News. September 21, 1986. Retrieved December 16, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "NLU Indians top Lamar". The Shreveport Times. October 12, 1986. p. 2C. Retrieved January 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Smith sparks Lamar over SW Texas". The Shreveport Times. October 19, 1986. Retrieved March 5, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "NTSU romps to win over Lamar, 33–13". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. October 26, 1986. Retrieved October 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "La. Tech 30, Lamar 20". New Braunfels Herald-Zeitung. November 2, 1986. Retrieved July 6, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Arkansas State 56, Lamar 7". Abilene Reporter-News. November 16, 1986. Retrieved October 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "McNeese defeats Cards to finish long season". The Daily Advertiser. November 23, 1986. Retrieved March 4, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "2015 Lamar University Football". Lamar University Athletics. pp. 109–110. Retrieved March 28, 2016.