Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football

Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders
Current season
First season	1911
Athletic director	Chris Massaro
Head coach	Rick Stockstill
	5th year, 33–30  (.524)
Home stadium	Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium
Stadium capacity	31,000
Stadium surface	Sportexe PowerBlade turf
Location	Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Conference	Sun Belt
All-time record	500–358–28 (.580)
Postseason bowl record	2–2–0 (.500)
Colors	Royal Blue and White
Fight song	MTSU Fight Song
Mascot	Lightning
Marching band	Band of Blue
Website	GoBlueRaiders.com

The Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team represents Middle Tennessee State University in NCAA Division I FBS football competition. The Blue Raiders, a member of the Sun Belt Conference, play their home games at Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

Rick Stockstill has finished his 5th year as head coach of the Blue Raiders.

Nickname

The nickname of the Middle Tennessee male athletic teams is the Blue Raiders. Female teams are known as the Lady Raiders. The nickname's origin goes back to a 1934 newspaper contest. An MTSU football player, Charles Sarver, won $5 from Murfreesboro's The Daily News Journal with his winning entry "Blue Raiders", which he later admitted borrowing from Colgate University, whose teams were known as "Red Raiders" at the time. No official nickname existed prior to 1934, when teams were called "Normalites", "Teachers", and "Pedagogues".^[1]

Colors and mascot

MTSU is represented by the colors white and royal blue, described as PMS 301 by the university.^[2]

Lightning is the mascot of both the Middle Tennessee men and women's sports teams.^[1]

Bowl games

MTSU appeared twice in the Tangerine Bowl (now the Capital One Bowl). The first game, played January 1, 1960, against Presbyterian College, resulted in a 21-12 win. The second game, against Lamar University on December 29, 1961, was a 21-14 loss.

The Blue Raiders were invited to the Motor City Bowl in 2006 after a shared conference title with Troy University. Troy had won the conference with a tie-breaker, but MTSU was invited due to the Big Ten having two teams in the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) and thus being unable to fulfill their bowl contract for the Motor City Bowl. MTSU played Central Michigan University in the game and were defeated 31-14.

MTSU finished the 2009 regular season with a 9-3 record and was invited to play in the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl on December 20, 2009. The team played against the University of Southern Mississippi, defeating them 42-32. This was MTSU's second bowl game and first bowl win since joining the Division I FBS. Quarterback Dwight Dasher was named as the game's MVP after rushing and passing for two touchdowns each.^[3]

MTSU was defeated in the 2011 GoDaddy.com Bowl in Mobile, Alabama by the Miami University RedHawks.

Seasons (2006-present)

• 2006 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team
• 2007 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team
• 2008 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team
• 2009 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team
• 2010 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team
• 2011 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Stone, India (June 20, 2003). "The Heritage of Champions". GoBlueRaiders.com. http://www.goblueraiders.com/content.cfm/id/2079. Retrieved January 8, 2010. 
2. ^ Staff (August 1, 2008). "Blue Raider Logos". GoBlueRaiders.com. http://www.goblueraiders.com/content.cfm/id/143. Retrieved January 8, 2010. 
3. ^ Staff (December 20, 2009). "Blue Raiders power past Southern Miss to win New Orleans Bowl Championship, 42-32". GoBlueRaiders.com. http://www.goblueraiders.com/content.cfm/id/42984. Retrieved January 8, 2010. 

External links

• Official website