1968 East Texas State Lions football team

1968 East Texas State Lions football
1968 East Texas State Lions football
Conference	Lone Star Conference
Record	7–2–1 (5–1–1 LSC)
Head coach	Ernest Hawkins (5th season);
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium
	Seasons ← 1967 1969 →

1968 Lone Star Conference football standings
v t e	Conf					Overall
Team	W		L		T	W		L		T
No. 2/6 Texas A&I $^	6	–	1	–	0	10	–	2	–	0
East Texas State	5	–	1	–	1	7	–	2	–	1
McMurry	5	–	2	–	0	8	–	2	–	0
Sam Houston State	3	–	3	–	1	5	–	4	–	1
Southwest Texas State	3	–	4	–	0	5	–	5	–	0
Sul Ross	2	–	4	–	1	5	–	4	–	1
Howard Payne	1	–	5	–	1	2	–	7	–	1
Stephen F. Austin	1	–	6	–	0	3	–	7	–	0
Tarleton State *	0	–	0	–	0	2	–	7	–	0
Angelo State *	0	–	0	–	0	2	–	9	–	0

$ – Conference champion ^ – NAIA playoff participant * – did not complete for conference title Rankings from NAIA poll and AP small college poll

The 1968 East Texas State Lions football team represented East Texas State University in the 1968 NAIA football season. They were led by head coach Ernest Hawkins, who was in his fifth season at East Texas State. The Lions played their home games at Memorial Stadium and were members of the Lone Star Conference. The Lions finished second in the conference standings the season with a 7–2–1 record overall and a 5–1–1 record in LSC play. The season highlight was a 35–27 win over the NAIA's # 1 team, Texas A&I Javelinas on October 19, 1968.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Source
September 21	at Abilene Christian*	Shotwell Stadium Abilene, TX	W 29–22	^[1]
September 28	Southwest Missouri State*	Memorial Stadium Commerce, TX	W 52–0	^[2]
October 5	at No. 12 UT Arlington*	Memorial Stadium Arlington, TX	L 30–41	^[3]
October 12	McMurry	Memorial Stadium Commerce, TX	W 20–0	^[4]
October 19	No. 5 Texas A&I	Memorial Stadium Commerce, TX	W 35–27	^[5]
October 26	at Sul Ross	Jackson Field Alpine, TX	T 28–28	^[6]
November 2	Howard Payne	Memorial Stadium Commerce, TX	W 24–14	^[7]
November 9	at Sam Houston State	Pritchett Field Huntsville, TX	L 21–24	^[8]
November 16	Southwest Texas State	Memorial Stadium Commerce, TX	W 51–14	^[9]
November 23	at Stephen F. Austin	Memorial Stadium Nacogdoches, TX	W 28–20	^[10]
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

^[11]

Postseason awards

All-Americans

Chad Brown, First Team offensive tackle
Arthur James, First Team tailback
Tom Black, Honorable Mention tight end
Bruce Butler, Honorable Mention linebacker

All-Lone Star Conference

LSC First Team

Bill Allison, fullback
Arthur James, tailback

LSC Second Team

Chad Brown, offensive rackle
Tom Black, receiver
Bruce Butler, linebacker
Rich Houston, receiver
Don Hynds, defensive end

LSC Honorable Mention

Jack Herrington, offensive tackle
Jay Johnson, defensive tackle
Grady Ivy, linebacker
Ben Kirkland, quarterback
Ralph Weaver, linebacker ^[11]

References

^ "Christians thrown to Lions, 29–22". The Abilene Reporter-News. September 22, 1968. Retrieved August 6, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "East Texas romps, 52–0". The Abilene Reporter-News. September 29, 1968. Retrieved August 6, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "UTA rolls 41–30 as Butler boots 60-yard fielder". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. October 6, 1968. Retrieved August 6, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Lions roar, 20–0". Victoria Advocate. October 13, 1968. Retrieved August 6, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "East Texas upends A&I, 35–27". The Paris News. October 20, 1968. Retrieved August 6, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "East Texas held to tie by Sul Ross". The Tyler Courier-Times. October 27, 1968. Retrieved August 6, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "East Texas dumps Jackets by 24–14". Brownwood Bulletin. November 3, 1968. Retrieved August 6, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "Sam Houston trips Lions from LSC lead". The Paris News. November 10, 1968. Retrieved August 6, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "ETS Lions crush SWT". The Austin American. November 17, 1968. Retrieved August 6, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ "East Texas State edges Lumberjacks". The Tyler Courier-Times. November 24, 1968. Retrieved August 6, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^ ^a ^b "Lion Football History" (Press release). Texas A&M University Commerce Department of Athletics. December 12, 2016. Retrieved August 4, 2023.