In the fall of 1963, Lamar moved into Division I and joined the Southland Conference. However, it has not all been smooth sailing since.
For 20 years starting in 1990, the Beaumont, Texas school that is McNeese State’s biggest rival dropped football and became a basketball brand nationally.
Then, in the fall of 2010, the school brought back football and quickly rejoined the Southland. The Cardinals have had some tough times from there, making the FCS playoffs just once, a first-round 16-13 loss at Northern Iowa in 2018…