| Missouri Southern Lions football | |
|---|---|
 | |
| First season | 1968; 57 years ago (1968) |
| Athletic director | Rob Mallory |
| Head coach | Atiba Bradley 4th season, 13–21 (.382) |
| Stadium | Fred G. Hughes Stadium (capacity: 7,000) |
| Year built | 1975 |
| Location | Joplin, Missouri |
| NCAA division | Division II |
| Conference | The MIAA |
| All-time record | 231–270–7 (.462) |
| Claimed national titles | |
| NAIA Div. II: 1 (1972) | |
| Conference titles | |
| 2 (1976, 1993) | |
| Rivalries | Pittsburg State Missouri Western, and University of Central Missouri |
| Colors | Green and gold[1] |
| Fight song | Southern Fight Song |
| Mascot | Roary the Lion |
| Marching band | Lion Pride Marching Band |
| Outfitter | Nike |
| Website | www.mssulions.com |
TheMissouri Southern Lions football program is the intercollegiateAmerican football team forMissouri Southern State University located in the U.S. state ofMissouri. The team competes in theNCAA Division II and are members of theMid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association. The team plays its home games at the 7,000 seatFred G. Hughes Stadium inJoplin, Missouri. Atiba Bradley was named the 14th head football coach in the history of Missouri Southern on February 5, 2021.
The Lions football program began in 1968. Their first head coach was Jim Johnson. Under coach Jim Frazier the Lions won the 1972 NAIA Division II football championship.[2]
From its inaugural season in 1968 until 1975, Missouri Southern played as an independent program. In 1976, it joined the Central States Intercollegiate Conference in which the school won one conference championships before leaving to play as an NCAA Division II member of the Missouri Intercollegiate Athletic Association (later renamed Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association) in 1989, where the Lions have since remained a member and have won one conference championship.
| Season | Coach | Selectors | Record | Bowl | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 | Jim Frazier | NAIA Division II Playoffs | 12–0 | WonNAIA Championship | |
| National Championships | 1 | ||||
| Year | Conference | Coach | Overall record | Conference record | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976† | Central States Intercollegiate Conference | Jim Frazier | 8–2 | 4–1 | ||
| 1993 | Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association | Jon Lantz | 9–1–1 | 9–0 | ||
| Total Conference championships: | 2 | |||||
| † Denotes co-champions | ||||||
Missouri Southern has made one appearance in the NCAA Division II playoffs, with a combined record of 0-1.
| Year | Round | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1993 | First Round | Mankato State | L, 13–34 |
Official record (including anyNCAA imposed vacates and forfeits) against all current MIAA opponents as of the end of the 2015 season:
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Lions has retired only one number.[4]
| Missouri Southern Lions retired numbers | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Player | Pos. | Tenure |
| 9 | Rod Smith | WR | 1988–1993 |
Additionally, Smith was inducted into theCollege Football Hall of Fame in 2009.[4]
| Academics |
|  | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Athletics |
| ||||
| Student life | |||||
Established: 1937 –Students: 5,721 (Fall 2015) | |||||
