Delaware Fighting Blue Hens football

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The University of Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens are an NCAA Division I-AA football program in the Colonial Athletic Association.
The University of Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens are an NCAA Division I-AA football program in the Colonial Athletic Association.

Currently led by head coach K.C. Keeler, the Blue Hens play on Tubby Raymond Field at 22,000-seat Delaware Stadium located in Newark, Del. Delaware football has won six national titles in its 116-year history - 1946 (AP College Div.), 1963 (UPI College Div.), 1971 (AP/UPI College Div.), 1972 (AP/UPI College Div.), 1979 (D-II) and 2003 (I-AA).

The Blue Hens are recognized as a perennial power in I-AA football and are the only I-AA program to average more than 20,000 fans per regular season game for each of the past seven years. Delaware football is the biggest college football attraction in the Philadelphia metropolitan area, outdrawing Division I-A Temple and I-AA programs Villanova and Penn by a meaningful margin.

Contents

[edit] History

The program's long history began in the late 1800's, but the tradition did not truly begin to take shape until the arrival of Bill Murray in 1940. During his 11 seasons at the helm, the Fightin' Blue Hens compiled a record of 49-16-2 with 1 National Championship in 1946. That was good for an impressive .747 winning percentage. After Murray departed to take over at Duke University in 1950, David M. Nelson came on board as head coach. In his 15 years from 1951-1965, the Hens compiled an 84-42-2 record with one National Championship in 1963. That was good for a .664 winning percentage. Nelson's contributions went well beyond wins and losses. During his years at UD Nelson developed the Delaware Wing-T offensive system. This system, strongly rooted in running the football and deceptive fake hand-offs, became the identity of Delaware football for nearly 50 years. Nelson stepped down as football coach in 1965. In 1966 an assistant football and baseball coach named Harold "Tubby" Raymond took over and after a rocky start (the team recorded a 2-7 record in his second season) became the face of Delaware Football for 36 seasons. While David Nelson developed the Delaware Wing-T, Tubby perfected it. In 36 seasons, The Fightin' Blue Hens were always sure to provide an excitement filled gameday experience for their fans. When he retired in 2001, Tubby had racked up 300 wins against 119 losses and 3 ties, good for a .714 win percentage. His teams earned 14 Lambert Cup Trophies (as the best team in the east in a particular division), 4 national semi-finals, and 3 National Championships in 1971, 1972, and 1979. His 300 wins account for nearly half of the 613 football victories in school history. These three men are all in the College Football Hall of Fame. Georgia Tech is the only other school to place three consecutive coaches into the College Football Hall of Fame.

The team has had much success on the field. In addition to the national championships listed above, notable program victories include multiple wins over Navy (including a win at Navy's Homecoming game during a year when they went to a bowl game). Speculation regularly exists regarding whether the Blue Hens will "move up" to Division I-A at some point, joining a league such as the Big East Conference. However, whereas most I-AA schools move up because of the perception of increased money and prestige, UD has an extremely profitable football program, and it is already well-regarded academically and athletically.

UD football is more than just X's and O's on a chalkboard. Although the Blue Hens play in the Colonial Athletic Association) at the I-AA level, they have a fan following that is just as loyal as many major I-A programs. While most schools at the I-AA level can expect 8,000-10,000 fans for a football game on a good day, The Fightin' Blue Hens can expect sellout crowds of over 22,000 at every home contest each season. They have been among the top programs in attendance for over 30 years. Since the Stadium opened, in 1952, it has undergone four major expansions to come to its current capacity of 22,000 (in the 1970's it actually seated over 23,000, but subsequent modifications have reduced the capacity to the current number). The home attendance record was set in 1973 on October 27 against Temple University with a number of 23,619 fans, and attendance has exceeded 22,000 fans more than 32 times. Delaware's fan support is so impressive, that opposing coaches have said that playing Delaware at Delaware Stadium is the highlight of many of their players collegiate careers.

[edit] Blue Hens in the pros

[edit] Active

  • DB Mike Adams - Cleveland Browns
  • LB Mondoe Davis - Montreal Alouettes (CFL)
  • WR Jamin Elliot - Georgia Force (AFL)
  • OL/DL Joe Minucci - Nashville Kats (AFL)
  • QB Matt Nagy - Columbus Destroyers (AFL)

[edit] Inactive

The most famous National Football League player to come out of UD is quarterback Rich Gannon, who went on to become the NFL's Most Valuable Player and a four-time Pro Bowler.

[edit] Draft Picks

[edit] The Coaching Legacy

[edit] Former UD coaches in the CFHOF

[edit] 2007 Tentative Schedule

Date- Opponent - Time/Results
Aug. 30: at William &Mary, tba
Sept. 8: West Chester (Sponsored by Coca-Cola), tba
Sept. 15: *Rhode Island (Freshman Parents Weekend), tba
Sept. 22: at *Towson, 6 p.m.
Sept. 29: Monmouth (Band Day), tba
Oct. 6: at *New Hampshire, tba
Oct. 13: *Northeastern (Homecoming), tba
Oct. 27: at Navy, tba
Nov. 3: *James Madison (Parents & Family Weekend), tba
Nov. 10: *Richmond (Hall of Fame Weekend), tba
Nov. 17: at *Villanova, tba

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