1997 Jacksonville State Gamecocks football team

1997 Jacksonville State Gamecocks football
1997 Jacksonville State Gamecocks football
Conference	Southland Football League
Record	1–10 (1–6 Southland)
Head coach	Mike Williams (1st season);
Offensive coordinator	Doug Meacham (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	Charles Kelly (1st season)
Home stadium	Paul Snow Stadium
	Seasons ← 1996 1998 →

The 1997 Jacksonville State Gamecocks football team represented Jacksonville State University as a member of the Southland Football League during the 1997 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by first-year head coach Mike Williams, the Gamecocks compiled an overall record of 1–10 with a mark of 1–6 in conference play, placing last out of eight teams in the Southland. Jacksonville State played home games at Paul Snow Stadium in Jacksonville, Alabama.

1997 Southland Football League standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 7 McNeese State +^	6	–	1	13	–	2
No. 21 Northwestern State +^	6	–	1	8	–	4
No. 13 Stephen F. Austin	5	–	2	8	–	3
Sam Houston State	3	–	4	5	–	6
Nicholls State	3	–	4	5	–	6
Southwest Texas State	2	–	5	5	–	6
Troy State	2	–	5	5	–	6
Jacksonville State	1	–	6	1	–	10

+ – Conference co-champions ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 6	7:00 p.m.	Southwest Missouri State*	Paul Snow Stadium Jacksonville, AL	L 42–47	14,023	^[1]
September 13	7:00 p.m.	at Sam Houston State	Bowers Stadium Huntsville, TX	W 28–21	8,036	^[2]
September 20	6:00 p.m.	at UAB*	Legion Field Birmingham, AL	L 16–34	23,775	^[3]
September 27	2:00 p.m.	No. 11 McNeese State	Paul Snow Stadium Jacksonville, AL	L 6–27	3,787	^[4]
October 4	2:00 p.m.	at Middle Tennessee*	Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium Murfreesboro, TN	L 16–27	6,911
October 11	2:00 p.m.	at No. 13 Stephen F. Austin	Homer Bryce Stadium Nacogdoches, TX	L 15–41	6,217
October 25	4:00 p.m.	Nicholls State	Paul Snow Stadium Jacksonville, AL	L 14–16	2,352
November 1	1:00 p.m.	at Samford*	Seibert Stadium Birmingham, AL (rivalry)	L 14–17	4,040
November 8	6:00 p.m.	at Northwestern State	Harry Turpin Stadium Natchitoches, LA	L 21–42	5,247
November 15	2:00 p.m.	Southwest Texas State	Paul Snow Stadium Jacksonville, AL	L 27–35	3,208	^[5]
November 20	6:30 p.m.	at Troy State	Veterans Memorial Stadium Troy, AL (Battle for the Ol' School Bell)	L 0–49	8,900
*Non-conference game Rankings from The Sports Network Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

^ "You want excitement, you got it; Williams put stamp on JSU despite loss". The Anniston Star. September 7, 1997. Retrieved June 30, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "'We shocked the world' – Last-minute TD puts JSU atop league standings". The Anniston Star. September 14, 1997. Retrieved December 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Blazers find offense, run around Jax State". The Anniston Star. September 21, 1997. Retrieved December 13, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Cowboys slip, slide on by". The Anniston Star. September 28, 1997. Retrieved March 5, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "SW Texas runs over Gamecocks". The Anniston Star. November 16, 1997. Retrieved March 10, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Final 1997 Jacksonville State Football". jsugamecocksports.com. Retrieved November 29, 2022.