1961 Northwestern State Demons football team
American college football season
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The 1961 Northwestern State Demons football team was an American football team that represented Northwestern State College of Louisiana (now known as Northwestern State University) as a member of the Gulf States Conference (GSC) during the 1961 college football season. In their fifth year under head coach Jack Clayton, the Demons compiled a 7–3 record (3–2 in conference games) and tied for third place in the GSC.[1]
- Jack Clayton (5th season)
| 1961 Northwestern State Demons football | |
|---|---|
| Conference | Gulf States Conference |
| Record | 7–3 (3–2 GSC) |
| Head coach |
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| Home stadium | Demon Stadium |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 7 Southeastern Louisiana + | 4 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 1 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 10 McNeese State + | 4 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northwestern State | 3 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 3 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Louisiana Tech | 3 | – | 2 | – | 0 | 5 | – | 4 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northeast Louisiana State | 1 | – | 4 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 7 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Southwestern Louisiana | 0 | – | 5 | – | 0 | 2 | – | 8 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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On October 27, the Demons were tied for No. 7 in the AP small college football rankings with Hofstra.[2] They lost three of their last four games and dropped out of the rankings.
The team played its home games at Demon Stadium in Natchitoches, Louisiana.
Schedule
| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 16 | 8:00 p.m. | vs. Stephen F. Austin* | W 35–19 | 6,000 | [3][4] | ||
| September 23 | Mexico Polytechical Institute* |
| W 55–8 | >6,000 | [5] | ||
| September 30 | 8:00 p.m. | at Louisiana College* |
| W 7–6 | 8,000 | [6][7] | |
| October 7 | Northeast Louisiana State |
| W 28–7 | 6,000 | [8] | ||
| October 14 | Corpus Christi* |
| W 57–6 | 4,000 | |||
| October 21 | vs. Louisiana Tech |
| W 19–7 | 22,000–27,000 | [9][10] | ||
| October 28 | at Arkansas* | No. T–7 | L 7–42 | 31,500 | |||
| November 4 | McNeese State |
| L 14–28 | 7,000 | [11] | ||
| November 11 | at Southwestern Louisiana | W 27–14 | 6,000–6,500 | [12] | |||
| November 18 | at No. 9 Southeastern Louisiana | L 0–19 | 6,500 | [13] | |||
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Statistics
The Demons gained 2,657 yards of total offense (265.7 per game), consisting of 1,703 rushing yards (170.3 per game) and 954 passing yars (95.4 per game). On defense, they allowed opponents to gain 2,290 yards (229.0 per game), including 1,404 rushing yards (140.4 per game) and 886 passing yards (88.6 per game).[1]
Halfback Kenny Thompson led the team with 363 rushing yards on 58 carries. He also led the team in total offense and scoring (48 points on eight touhdowns).[1]
Quarterback Don Beasley completed 25 of 67 passes for 316 yards with three touchdowns and six interceptions. He ranked second on the team with 349 yards of total offense (316 passing yards, 33 rushing yards).[1]
Halfback Gary Moore led the team in receiving with eight catches for 152 yards and two touchdowns.[1]
Steve Murphy punted 52 times for an average of 34.2 yards per punt.[1]
Awards and honors
Halback Kenny Thompson received first-team honors on the 1961 All-Gulf States Conference football team. Tackle Octave Bernard and guard Jerry Fowler were named to the second team.[15]
