1997 Grambling State Tigers football team

The 1997 Grambling State Tigers football team represented Grambling State University as a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) during the 1997 NCAA Division I-AA football season. The Tigers were led by head coach Eddie Robinson in his 55th year and finished the season with a record of three wins and eight losses (3–8, 2–5 SWAC). The Tigers offense scored 187 points while the defense allowed 258 points.^[1]

1997 Grambling State Tigers football
Conference	Southwestern Athletic Conference
Record	3–8 (2–5 SWAC)
Head coach	Eddie Robinson (55th season)
Home stadium	Eddie G. Robinson Memorial Stadium
Seasons ← 1996 1998 →

1997 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 12 Southern $		8	–	0					11	–	1
No. 14 Jackson State ^		7	–	1					9	–	3
Arkansas–Pine Bluff		6	–	2					8	–	3
Texas Southern		4	–	4					5	–	6
Alcorn State		4	–	4					4	–	7
Mississippi Valley State		3	–	5					4	–	6
Alabama State		2	–	6					3	–	8
Grambling State		2	–	6					3	–	8
Prairie View A&M		0	–	8					0	–	9
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network Poll

This was Eddie Robinson's final season as head coach.^[2] Robinson spent fifty-six years as the head coach at historically black Grambling State University in Grambling in Lincoln Parish in northern Louisiana, from 1941 through 1997.^[2]

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 6	at Alcorn State	Jack Spinks Stadium Lorman, MS	L 20–44		[3]
September 20	at Langston*	Taft Stadium Oklahoma City, OK	W 20–0	20,000	[4]
September 27	vs. Hampton*	Giants Stadium East Rutherford, NJ (Urban League Classic)	L 7–42	49,156	[5]
October 4	vs. Prairie View A&M	Cotton Bowl Dallas, TX (rivalry)	W 33–6	55,119	[6]
October 11	Mississippi Valley State	Eddie G. Robinson Memorial Stadium Grambling, LA	W 20–13		[7]
October 18	vs. Arkansas–Pine Bluff	Independence Stadium Shreveport, LA (Red River Classic)	L 16–22	13,004	[8]
October 25	at No. 20 Jackson State	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS	L 0–23	35,430	[9]
November 1	Texas Southern	Eddie G. Robinson Memorial Stadium Grambling, LA	L 16–21		[10]
November 9	at Alabama State	Cramton Bowl Montgomery, AL[A 1]	L 13–20		[12]
November 15	North Carolina A&T*	Eddie G. Robinson Memorial Stadium Grambling, LA	L 35–37		[13]
November 29	vs. Southern	Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, LA (Bayou Classic)	L 7–30		[14]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from The Sports Network Poll released prior to the game

^[1]

Team players in the NFL

• None of the players from the Tigers were drafted in the 1998 NFL draft.^[15]

Notes

1. This game was originally scheduled to be played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, but moved to Montgomery due to low ticket sales and a lack of up-front money from the promoters.^[11]

References

1. DeLassus, David. "Grambling State Yearly Results: 1995–1999". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved October 25, 2013.
2. "Ex-Grambling coach Robinson dead at 88". ESPN.com. Associated Press. April 4, 2007. Retrieved October 25, 2013.
3. "Robinson drops his final opener". The News Journal. September 7, 1997. Retrieved March 19, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Grambling defense dominates". The Daily Oklahoman. September 21, 1997. Retrieved March 19, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Hampton U. rumbles past Grambling". Daily Press. September 28, 1997. Retrieved March 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Grambling finds familiar success against Prairie View". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. October 5, 1997. Retrieved March 19, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Grambling survives late Valley rally". The Clarion-Ledger. October 12, 1997. Retrieved March 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Lions spoil Tigers' night". The Shreveport Times. October 19, 1997. Retrieved March 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "JSU gives Robinson early gift, late pain". The Clarion-Ledger. October 26, 1997. Retrieved March 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Texas Southern beats Grambling". The Shreveport Times. November 2, 1997. Retrieved March 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Grambling–Alabama State is moved from Rose Bowl". Los Angeles Times. LATimes.com. Associated Press. September 18, 1997. Retrieved October 25, 2013.
12. "Farewell, Coach Rob". The Montgomery Advertiser. November 10, 1997. Retrieved March 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Robinson bids farewell to Grambling faithful". The Charlotte Observer. November 16, 1997. Retrieved March 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
14. "Bayou good-bye". The Philadelphia Inquirer. November 30, 1997. Retrieved March 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
15. "1998 NFL Draft". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 25, 2013.