1996 Troy State Trojans football team

The 1996 Troy State Trojans football team represented Troy State University—now known as Troy University—as a member of the Southland Football League during the 1996 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by sixth-year head coach Larry Blakeney, the Trojans compiled an overall record of 12–2 with a mark of 5–1 in conference play, winning the Southland title. For the fourth consecutive season, Troy State advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship playoffs, where the Trojans beat Florida A&M in the first round and Murray State in the quarterfinals before losing to Montana in the semifinals. They Trojans finished the season ranked No. 5 in the Sports Network poll.^[1] The team played home games at Veterans Memorial Stadium in Troy, Alabama.

1996 Troy State Trojans football
Southland champion
NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal, L 7–70 at Montana
Conference	Southland Football League
Ranking
Sports Network	No. 5
Record	12–2 (5–1 Southland)
Head coach	Larry Blakeney (6th season)
Offensive coordinator	Don Jacobs (6th season)
Defensive coordinator	Steve Davis (2nd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Veterans Memorial Stadium
Seasons ← 1995 1997 →

1996 Southland Football League standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 5 Troy State $^		5	–	1					12	–	2
No. 19 Nicholls State ^		4	–	2					8	–	4
No. 22 Stephen F. Austin		3	–	3					7	–	4
Northwestern State		3	–	3					6	–	5
Sam Houston State		3	–	3					4	–	7
Southwest Texas State		2	–	4					5	–	6
McNeese State		1	–	5					3	–	8
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from The Sports Network poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
August 31	at Alcorn State*	No. 10	Jack Spinks Stadium Lorman, MS	W 61–7		^[2]
September 7	at No. 10 Eastern Kentucky*	No. 8	Roy Kidd Stadium Richmond, KY	W 40–38
September 21	Nicholls State	No. 4	Veterans Memorial Stadium Troy, AL	W 37–7
September 28	at No. 7 Stephen F. Austin	No. 3	Homer Bryce Stadium Nacogdoches, TX	L 10-13
October 3	Alabama State*	No. 9	Veterans Memorial Stadium Troy, AL	W 37–6		^[3]
October 12	McNeese State	No. 8	Veterans Memorial Stadium Troy, AL	W 16–12	9,500	^[4]
October 19	Southwest Texas State	No. 6	Veterans Memorial Stadium Troy, AL	W 24–13		^[5]
October 26	at Jacksonville State*	No. 4	Snow Stadium Jacksonville, AL (Battle for the Ol' School Bell)	W 31–21	11,500
November 9	at No. 19 Northwestern State	No. 5	Harry Turpin Stadium Natchitoches, LA	W 26–13
November 16	at Sam Houston State	No. 5	Elliot T. Bowers Stadium Huntsville, TX	W 35–14	5,014	^[6]
November 21	Samford*	No. 5	Veterans Memorial Stadium Troy, AL	W 50–10
November 30	No. 12 Florida A&M*	No. 5	Veterans Memorial Stadium Troy, AL (NCAA Division I-AA First Round)	W 29–25
December 7	No. 4 Murray State*	No. 5	Veterans Memorial Stadium Troy, AL (NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal)	W 31–3
December 14	at No. 2 Montana*	No. 5	Washington-Grizzly Stadium Missoula, MT (NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal)	L 7–70	18,367
*Non-conference game Rankings from The Sports Network Poll released prior to the game

References

1. "NCAA I-AA". The Salina Journal. Salina, Kansas. November 26, 1993. p. B2. Retrieved April 29, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. 
2. "Davis leads Troy to rout of Alcorn". The Montgomery Advertiser. September 1, 1996. Retrieved August 27, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Troy State rebounds from loss". The Montgomery Advertiser. October 4, 1996. Retrieved July 29, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "TSU Trojans trick their way to victory". The Montgomery Advertiser. October 13, 1996. Retrieved March 5, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Troy State thumps Southwest Texas State". The Montgomery Advertiser. October 20, 1996. Retrieved March 6, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Trojans bomb Bearkats". The Montgomery Advertiser. November 17, 1996. Retrieved December 18, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.