The LIU Sharks football program represents Long Island University in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (formerly Division I-AA) level. The Sharks are members of the Northeast Conference and play their home games in the 6,000 seat Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium.[2]

LIU Sharks football
2024 LIU Sharks football team
First season1928; 96 years ago (1928)[a]
Athletic directorElliott Charles
Head coachRon Cooper
3rd season, 12–22 (.353)
StadiumBethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium
(capacity: 6,000)
Field surfaceField Turf
LocationBrookville, New York
ConferenceNortheast Conference
All-time record422–260–6 (.618)
Bowl record0–1 (.000)
Playoff record0–1
Conference titles18 (14 outright, 4 shared)
ColorsBlue and gold[1]
   
Websitewww.liuathletics.com

History

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Long Island University Blackbirds

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College football was first played at Long Island University's Brooklyn campus for six seasons from the late 1920s to 1940 when the program was suspended "until the world situation stabilized."[3] Under head coach Herbert Raubenheimer, who also coached the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds men's basketball, the team won their opening game on September 29, 1928 against Rider. Clair Bee took over head coaching duties in the 1931 season before the program was suspended during the heart of the Great Depression. Bee remained at the university, coaching basketball and returned to the gridiron to coach the team from 1939 to 1940.[3] After playing at several local venues in the early seasons, the Blackbirds called Ebbets Field home for the 1939 and 1940 seasons.[3] Over the six pre-war seasons the Blackbirds went 9–17–1.[3]

LIU Post Pioneers

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In 1951 LIU purchased the C.W. Post estate to develop a suburban LIU campus due to increased post-war suburban expansion. LIU reinstated the football program in 1957 on the university's new campus in Brookville, New York and football joined the sport offerings at C.W. Post College in the 1957 season.[3]

On October 3, 2018, Long Island University announced that it was unifying the athletic programs of its two campuses into one Division I program, effective with the 2019–20 academic year.[4] The new program's nickname of Sharks was announced on May 15, 2019.[5] The LIU Sharks inherited the Northeast Conference membership of the Brooklyn campus. As part of the merger, football and several other Division II LIU Post teams for sports that had not been sponsored by LIU Brooklyn immediately moved to Division I without the usual transition period for an institution moving to a different division.[6][7][8]

In the final season as the LIU Post Pioneers, the team reached the NCAA Division II Playoffs where they were defeated in the first round by Slippery Rock. They finished ranked at No. 21 in the Division II Coaches' Poll[9] and received the 2019 Division II Lambert Cup from the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) and Metropolitan New York Football Writers, signifying them as the best football team in the East in Division II football.[10]

LIU Sharks

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The Sharks finished winless in their first season. A month after the season ended, starting quarterback Clay Beathard was stabbed to death in Nashville, Tennessee.[11]

Affiliations

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Classifications

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Seasons Division
1928–1931 Independent
1932–1938 Football not a sponsored sport
1939–1940 Independent
1941–1956 Football not a sponsored sport
1957 Independent
1958–1972 NCAA College Division
1973–1974 NCAA Division II
1975–1977 NCAA Division III
1978–1985 NCAA Division II
1986–1992 NCAA Division III
1993–2018 NCAA Division II
2019–present NCAA Division I FCS

Conference memberships

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Seasons Conference
1928–1931 Independent
1932–1938 Football not a sponsored sport
1939–1940 Independent
1941–1956 Football not a sponsored sport
1957–1971 Independent
1972–1976 Metropolitan Intercollegiate Conference
1977–1984 Independent
1985–1992 Liberty Football Conference
1993–1996 Independent
1997–2000 Eastern Football Conference
2001–2007 Northeast-10 Conference
2008–2012 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference
2013–2018 Northeast-10 Conference
2019–present Northeast Conference

Conference championships

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LIU has won 18 conference championships, four shared and 14 outright.[12]

Year Coach Conference Record Conference record
1972 Dom Anile Metropolitan Intercollegiate Conference 6–3 3–0
1973 Dom Anile Metropolitan Intercollegiate Conference 10–1 5–0
1974 Dom Anile Metropolitan Intercollegiate Conference 6–4 4–0
1975 Dom Anile Metropolitan Intercollegiate Conference 9–1 4–0
1976 Dom Anile Metropolitan Intercollegiate Conference 8–2 3–0
1988 Tom Marshall Liberty Football Conference 5–5 5–1 T
1990 Tom Marshall Liberty Football Conference 7–3 5–0
1999 Bryan Collins EFC Atlantic Division 9–2 7–1
2000 Bryan Collins EFC Atlantic Division 8–2 7–1
2001 Bryan Collins Northeast-10 Conference 11–1 9–1
2002 Bryan Collins Northeast-10 Conference 11–1 10–0
2004 Bryan Collins Northeast-10 Conference 8–3 8–1
2005 Bryan Collins Northeast-10 Conference 10–3 8–1
2006 Bryan Collins Northeast-10 Conference 7–3 7–2
2011 Bryan Collins PSAC East Division 7–4 6–1
2014 Bryan Collins Northeast-10 Conference 8–4 7–2
2016 Bryan Collins Northeast-10 Conference 12–1 9–0
2018 Bryan Collins Northeast-10 Conference 10–1 9–0

† Co-champions

Postseason history

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Bowl games

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LIU participated in one NCAA College Division level bowl games, going 0–1.

Season Coach Bowl Opponent Result
1971 Dom Anile Boardwalk Bowl Delaware L 22–72[13]

NCAA Division III Playoffs

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LIU participated in the NCAA Division III Playoffs as C.W. Post.[14]

Season Coach Round Opponent Result
1976 Dom Anile Quarterfinals Towson L 10–14

NCAA Division II Playoffs

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LIU participated in the NCAA Division II Playoffs as LIU Post.[15][16][17]

Season Coach Round Opponent Result
2002 Bryan Collins First round Grand Valley State L 13–62
2004 Bryan Collins First round West Chester L 3–35
2005 Bryan Collins First round
Second Round
Quarterfinals
West Chester
Shepherd
East Stroudsburg
W 24–20
W 28–21
L 28–55
2014 Bryan Collins First round Virginia State L 17–28
2016 Bryan Collins First round
Second Round
Winston-Salem State
Shepherd
W 48–41
L 21–40
2018 Bryan Collins First round Slippery Rock L 14–20

Future non-conference opponents

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Announced schedules as of February 1, 2020.[18]

2024 2025 2026
Albany Eastern Michigan
TCU Rhode Island  
Lehigh Florida  
Rhode Island  
Villanova  
Sacred Heart  

Home stadium

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The Sharks play their home games at Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium in Brookville, New York. The stadium was upgraded to meet NCAA Division I requirements as part of the program's elevation to D-I.[2] The visiting stands were demolished and replaced with larger stands that mirror the home side; the expansion brought the capacity up to 6,000 seats.[8]

Notes and references

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  1. ^ The LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds and LIU Post Pioneers merged into and began competing as the Sharks in the 2019 season; 5 years ago.
  1. ^ Long Island University Style Guide for Print and Visual Application (PDF). July 25, 2019. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  2. ^ a b MacDonald, Sean (October 27, 2019). "Bethpage Federal Credit Union Stadium – LIU Sharks". Stadium Journey. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
  3. ^ a b c d e Luchter, P.S. (May 21, 2010). "Long Island University All-Time Football Records". List Of Amazing Sports Lists. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  4. ^ Butler and Tolentino (October 10, 2018). "Game Changer: Athletics Becomes 'OneLIU'". The Pioneer. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  5. ^ "Welcome to the Shark Tank: Long Island University Chooses the Shark as New Mascot" (Press release). Long Island University. May 15, 2019. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
  6. ^ "LIU combining Post and Brooklyn athletic programs". Newsday. October 3, 2018. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  7. ^ "#OneLIU website". Long Island University. Archived from the original on August 21, 2019. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
  8. ^ a b Schwartz, Peter (August 6, 2019). "LIU Football Ready To Jump To Division 1". NY Sportsday. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  9. ^ "Division II Football Coaches Poll". NCAA.com. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  10. ^ "ECAC Announces 2018 Football Teams of the Year and Lambert Awards". ECACsports.com. January 15, 2019. Retrieved August 2, 2019.
  11. ^ "Brother of NFL quarterback fatally stabbed in Nashville". NBC News. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  12. ^ "Long Island-C.W. Post Composite Championship Listing". Wayback Machine Internet Archive. College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on September 7, 2015. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
  13. ^ "Delaware Humbles Post, 72–22". Asbury Park Sunday Press. December 12, 1971. p. E3 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Long Island-C.W. Post Yearly Results 1975–1979". Wayback Machine Internet Archive. College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on September 6, 2015. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  15. ^ "Long Island-C.W. Post Yearly Results 2000–2004". Wayback Machine Internet Archive. College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on September 7, 2015. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  16. ^ "Long Island-C.W. Post Yearly Results 2005–2009". Wayback Machine Internet Archive. College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on September 6, 2015. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  17. ^ "Long Island-C.W. Post Yearly Results 2010–2014". Wayback Machine Internet Archive. College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on September 7, 2015. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
  18. ^ "LIU Sharks Football Future Schedules". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
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