The Howard Bison football team represents Howard University in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC).
Contents
History
First FBS Victory
On September 2, 2017, Howard football reached a milestone by defeating their first FBS opponent in program history. The Bison defeated the UNLV Rebels 43–40 in Sam Boyd Stadium. As of September 2017, Howard's victory against UNLV is the biggest point-spread upset in college football history, with UNLV being a 45.5 point favorite.
Classifications
1937–1972: NCAA College Division
1973–1977: NCAA Division II
1978–present: NCAA Division I–AA/FCS
Conference memberships
1893–1911: Independent
1912–1970: Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association
1971–present: Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
Championships
Conference championships
See Note A
Bowl games
The Bison have appeared in four bowl games, with a current record of 1–3.
Division I-AA/FCS playoffs results
The Bison have appeared in the I-AA/FCS playoffs one time with an overall record of 0–1.
College Football Hall of Fame members
Willie Jeffries
Doug Porter
Alumni in the NFL
Over 20 Howard alumni have played in the NFL, including:
Ron Bartell
Antoine Bethea
Marques Douglas
Omar Evans
Derrick Faison
Rupert Grant
Gary Harrell
John Javis
Billy Jenkins
Jimmie Johnson
Troy Kyles
Greg Pope
Herman Redden
Robert Sowell
Leonard Stephens
Elijah Thurmon
Brandon Torrey
Sean Vanhorse
Jay Walker
Tim Watson
David Westbrook
Jose White
Tracy White
Gary Willingham
Marques Ogden
Chris Rogers
Steve Wilson
Howie Williams
Rivals
Howard's top rival is Hampton University. The two schools call their intense rivalry Battle of "The Real HU".
Howard also has a strong rivalry with Morgan State University in the Howard–Morgan State football rivalry.
Another of Howard's historic rivals is Morehouse College, more popularly known as the Howard/"Spel-House" rivalry due to Morehouse's close association with the all-women's HBCU Spelman College. This rivalry is not often played because Morehouse is a Division II athletic program, while Howard is Division I.