Fall is here, and so is college football season. Exuberant fans paint themselves in their team's colors, cheering crowds flood into massive stadiums, and football players walk out to the sound of an expertly drilled marching band. On other college campuses, this exciting season is in full swing, but UNC Wilmington remains quiet. While UNCW boasts many talented student athletes and championship-winning teams, football is one sport to have never graced our campus. Or has it?

Materials from University Archives reveal that UNC Wilmington once had a thriving football club. This group was not an official team; they weren't members of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), nor were they recognized by the University's athletics department. Although the club may have been informal, student newspapers from our archives show that its members took things seriously. In their first year, the club celebrated a win streak and entered the North Carolina Club Football Association playoffs, according to a November 30, 1977, article in the Seahawk. In September 1985, another Seahawk article reported that the UNCW community needed a football team, stating that "Large crowds at home games show that the student body and community residents enjoy watching football on a fall afternoon."

UNC Wilmington's Student Government Association (SGA) was particularly invested in the Football Club, especially in the possibility of evolving it into something more. In 1979, the SGA conducted a detailed study to determine the feasibility of forming a Division III football team at UNCW, taking into consideration the demand for and cost of such a group. The study was authorized by the University's Board of Trustees, but a team was never approved. In a 1979 memorandum, the Trustees rejected the SGA's proposal due to the exceedingly high costs of creating an NCAA football team. The funding required for training facilities, scholarships, coach and assistant salaries, and insurance would have been immense. Nevertheless, the SGA and other supporters continued to assist the Football Club. In 1980, the club received $5,600 from the Student Senate, and another $2,500 from private donations, according to Board of Trustees meeting minutes. 

Despite these valiant efforts, UNC Wilmington has never had an official, NCAA-backed football team. Many football-loving students have accepted this absence with plenty of humor, however. This 1981 April Fools' edition of the Seahawk, for instance, includes an articles that jokes about the Football Club receiving an enthusiastic Division I invitation from the NCAA. If you ever find yourself dreaming of football players in teal uniforms, remember that our school already has much to offer. UNCW has a plethora of competitive sports teams, student-led sports clubs, and intramural sports (including a flag football group) for everyone to enjoy.

Many of the materials mentioned in this blog post are digitized, if they have a link, and available to view online in the Library's Digital Collections. More complete citation information is below. To view these materials and other non-digitized records in-person, visit the Center's Reading Room on the second floor of Discovery Hall during our open hours. Or, contact us to make an appointment.

Sources

• Club Football to Begin Season (1985 September 9). The Seahawk, page 5. https://digitalcollections.uncw.edu/digital/collection/p17190coll1/id/5076/rec/9.
• Club Nabs State Playoff Berth (1977 November 30). The Seahawk, page 6. https://digitalcollections.uncw.edu/digital/collection/p17190coll1/id/2376/rec/6.
• Committee: Student Affairs, 1978-1999, Box: 4, Folder: 16, University of North Carolina Wilmington Board of Trustees Records UA-RG-02, Center for Southeast North Carolina Archives and History. https://archivesspace.uncw.edu/repositories/4/archival_objects/141133.
• Football Feasibility Study, 1979, Box: 15, Folder: 2, University of North Carolina Wilmington Student Affairs Records UA-RG-11, Center for Southeast North Carolina Archives and History, https://archivesspace.uncw.edu/repositories/4/archival_objects/135959.
• Football gets NCAA Division Invitation (1981 April 1). The Seahawk, page 5. https://digitalcollections.uncw.edu/digital/collection/p17190coll1/id/3667/rec/5.
• Minutes of the meeting, Board of Trustees, University of North Carolina Wilmington (1980 October 8). Board of Trustees, page 7. https://digitalcollections.uncw.edu/digital/collection/bot/id/368/rec/20.