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The Delaware State University Hornets football team compete in Division I FCS, and are full-members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. They are a four-time conference champion and made their first-ever FCS playoff appearance in 2007. They play at the 7,193-seat Alumni Stadium located in Dover, Delaware. The facility opened in 1957 as a multi-purpose for football, and track and field. ==History== On November 9, 1980, Delaware State took on QB Neil Lomax and the Portland State Vikings and were defeated 105-0 in the most lopsided loss in Division I-AA Football history. This was marked as the low point for the team and with the help of new coach Joe Purzycki the Hornets rebuilt their program. He was hired as Delaware State's head coach in 1981, and compiled a 21-21-1 overall record, including a 15-5-1 mark in his last two seasons. Bill Collick, who was Purzycki's defensive coordinator, took over the program in 1985. He led the Hornets to the team's first MEAC championship in his first season.〔 〕 After 2003's 1-10 debacle, Delaware State hired Alton "Al" Lavan as their new head football coach with the task of rebuilding the program once again. When Lavan was hired as head coach of the Hornets in January 2004, he promised to bring championship football back to Delaware State. Lavan brought more than 30 years of professional and collegiate coaching experience to Delaware State. During his first season at Delaware State in 2004, Lavan led the Hornets to a 4-7 overall record and a 4-3 mark in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), DSU’s first winning record in conference play since 2000. The highlight of the 2004 season was Lavan’s first DSU victory, a 28-23 upset of eventual MEAC champ Hampton, the Pirates ‘only loss in a 10-1 regular season. More than the on-field improvement, Lavan has brought a change of attitude to the program. In addition to installing the first comprehensive strength and conditioning program in team history, he spearheaded changes in the team’s academic, recruiting, practice and discipline policies. The team is also benefiting from new audio/visual and computer equipment, thanks to a generous donation from prominent alumni spurred by Lavan’s outreach efforts to university supporters. Lavan has also demonstrated concern for his players by initiating a program to bring local and nationally recognized speakers before the team to share their stories. Among the prominent individuals offering words of wisdom are former Hornet offensive lineman Matt Horace, currently an agent with the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms; Joe Purzycki, former DSU head football coach and current bank executive; former pro quarterback and current NFL executive James Harris; and former Heisman Trophy winner Herschel Walker. Lavan’s 2005 squad posted the Hornets’ first winning season since 2000. The team was 7-4 overall, and third in the MEAC with a 6-2 record. Delaware State was picked to finish sixth in the 2005 pre-season MEAC poll. The 2005 season also marked the first time since 1985 that the Hornets posted an undefeated record at home (5-0). In 2006, the Hornets were 8-3 overall and 6-2 in the MEAC. It marked the first time that DSU posted back-to-back winning seasons since 1994-95, while the eight wins were the most by the team since 1991. Delaware State also appeared in the SportsNetwork Division I-AA Top 25 poll for the first time since 1992, coming in at No. 23 in week ten. In the 2007 season he led the Hornets to a school-record 10 wins, their first Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) championship since 1991 and first ever appearance in the NCAA playoffs. In addition, the 2007 Hornets were ranked as high as No. 10 in the weekly SportsNetwork Football Championship Subdivision poll and were No. 15 in the final poll. Delaware State was recognized as 2007 American Sports Wire Division I Black College National Champions and No. 2 in the final Sheridan Broadcast Network poll of Historically Black College & University teams. Lavan was honored as the 2007 Pigskin Club of Washington, D.C., MEAC Coach-of-the-Year and Football Championship Subdivision Region II Coach-of-the-Year. He was second in the voting for the 2007 Eddie Robinson Award, recognizing the top Football Championship Subdivision coach, and was awarded the 2008 Making A Difference Award by the DSU Alumni Association. Lavan was also selected as head coach for the 2008 American Heritage Bowl/Navy-Marine Corps All-Star Classic in San Clemente, Calif. He guided the Northeast All-Stars to a 24-7 victory in the contest. In four seasons at DSU, Lavan has posted an overall record of 29-16, including a 24-7 mark in MEAC contests. He has led the team to winning records in each of the last three seasons. In the three years prior to his arrival, the Hornets were 10-24 overall and 6-17 in the league. Delaware State had just one winning season in the eight years before Lavan took the job. Lavan has 31-17 career record as a head coach, including a 2-1 mark during an interim stint at Eastern Michigan in 2003. After three straight losing seasons, Al Lavan was fired from Delaware State on December 2, 2010.〔() DSU fires football coach Lavan〕 Kermit Blount was head coach for the 2011-2014 seasons. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Delaware State Hornets football」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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