College Sports Established
1923
Location
Beaumont, Texas
College Name
Lamar University
Collegiate History
1973 - Present / NCAA Division I
Conference History
1973 - 1986, 1999 - 2021, 2022 - Present / Southland Conference
2021 - 2022 / Western Athletic Conference
1986 - 1999 / Independent
Nickname
Cardinals - The Lamar Cardinals are a proud NCAA Division I Southland Conference member, and their nickname has an exciting history. This name had known the Cardinals since 1923 when they were founded as the Lamar College Buccaneers. After a few years, it was decided that “Cardinals” would be more appropriate for their team colors (red and white), so they adopted the new moniker in 1926.
The team's mascot is Big Red which came about after an article in The Beaumont Enterprise newspaper described them as "Big Red" during one of their games against Baylor University back in 1927. This nickname has stuck with them ever since then!
In addition to being associated with its red color scheme, there is another reason why Lamar chose to call themselves "Cardinals." According to legend, founder Lutcher Stark wanted his school's teams to represent strength like a cardinal bird, so he opted for such an iconic name!
This connection between birds and athletics dates back even further than just football at Lamar, though; many college teams across America have chosen avian mascots over time due to similar reasons - including Stanford Cardinal (California), Syracuse Orange (New York), Louisville Cardinals (Kentucky) etcetera...
Regardless of how or when it started, though, today, we know these athletes simply as “Lamar Cardinals” – representing prideful tradition from Southeast Texas all around the country!
NCAA Championships
Baseball 0
Men's Basketball 0
Women's Basketball 0
Football 0
Soccer 0
- 1963
- 1987
- 2011
- 2023
-
Lamar Cardinals football team Wins NAIA national championship
In 1963: The Lamar Cardinals football team achieves an undefeated season, finishing with a record of 11-0 and winning the NAIA national championship. -
Lamar University becomes a member of the Southland Conference
In 1987: Lamar University becomes a member of the Southland Conference, an NCAA Division I athletic conference. -
Lamar men’s basketball team wins the Southland Conference
In 2011: The Lamar men’s basketball team wins the Southland Conference regular-season championship, advancing to the National Invitation Tournament (NIT). -
Cardinal baseball team captures the Southland Conference tournament championship
In 2023: The Cardinal baseball team captures the Southland Conference tournament championship and participates in the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship.
To qualify as the greatest player for this team, the player must have played one season for this team. If not, we will remove the player.
* verifies that player has played for this team as an added player by a fan.
History of the Cardinals
The Lamar Cardinals are an NCAA Division I athletics program located in Beaumont, Texas. The team is a member of the Southland Conference and competes in 16 varsity sports including baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golfing soccer, and softball.
The Lamar Cardinals have had a long history of success on the athletic field since their first season as an independent school back in 1923. They won their first conference title with an 11-0-1 record during the 1946 season before joining the Lone Star Conference (LSC) for four seasons from 1948 to 1951 where they went undefeated three times over that span. After leaving LSC following 1951’s championship run they joined up with Gulf States Conference (GSC) until 1967 when GSC disbanded leading them to join Southland Athletics Association which later became known as Southland Football League (SFL). During this time frame from 1968 to 1995, they won numerous SFL titles while also making several appearances at bowl games such as Fiesta Bowls and Alamo Bowls throughout those years.
In 1996 Lamar joined its current home of NCAA Division I FCS/I A Athletics where it has seen consistent success ever since winning multiple conference championships across various sports such as men's basketball & women's volleyball among others while also making several trips deep into postseason play during these recent years including two consecutive trips to semifinals within last decade alone. All things considered, it is safe to say that through all these past decades there has been no shortage of successful moments for this proud institution both on the national stage or otherwise giving fans plenty of reasons to cheer each year!
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