1997 Jacksonville State Gamecocks football team

American college football season

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 →

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

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.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance
September 6	7:00 p.m.	Southwest Missouri State*	Paul Snow Stadium Jacksonville, AL	L 42–47	14,023
September 13	7:00 p.m.	at Sam Houston State	Bowers Stadium Huntsville, TX	W 28–21	8,036
September 20	6:00 p.m.	at UAB*	Legion Field Birmingham, AL	L 16–34	23,775
September 27	2:00 p.m.	No. 11 McNeese State	Paul Snow Stadium Jacksonville, AL	L 6–27	3,787
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
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.

v t e Jacksonville State Gamecocks football
Venues	College Field (1929–1946) Burgess–Snow Field at JSU Stadium (1947–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Samford Troy: Battle for the Ol' School Bell
Culture & lore	Cocky 2001 Cumberland game The Marching Southerners
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941–1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
National championship seasons in bold