1966 Tennessee A&I Tigers football team
The 1966 Tennessee A&I Tigers football team was an American football team that represented Tennessee Agricultural & Industrial State College as a member of the Midwest Athletic Association (MAA) during the 1966 NCAA College Division football season. In their fourth season under head coach John Merritt, the Tigers compiled a perfect 10–0 record, won the MAA championship, shut out five of ten opponents, defeated Muskingum in the 1966 Grantland Rice Bowl, and outscored all opponents by a total of 410 to 51. The Tigers compiled a 24-game unbeaten streak that encompassed the 1965 and 1966 seasons.
| 1966 Tennessee A&I Tigers football | |
|---|---|
Black college national champion MAA champion | |
Grantland Rice Bowl, W 34–7 vs. Muskingum | |
| Conference | Midwest Athletic Association |
| Record | 10–0 (2–0 MAA) |
| Head coach |
|
| Home stadium | Hale Stadium |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | T | W | L | T | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 1 Tennessee A&I $ | 2 | – | 0 | – | 0 | 10 | – | 0 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lincoln (MO) | 1 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 7 | – | 2 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Central State (OH) | 1 | – | 1 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 5 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Kentucky State | 0 | – | 3 | – | 0 | 3 | – | 4 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The team was also recognized as the 1966 black college national champion and was ranked No. 2 in the final small college rankings issued by the Associated Press and No. 3 in the final poll issued by the United Press International. The team's No. 2 ranking was the highest achieved by a black college team to that point in time. The Pittsburgh Courier called the 1966 Tennessee A&I team as "the finest force yet produced by Negro college football."
On October 22, the Tigers became the first team to defeat the Florida A&M Rattlers in Bragg Memorial Stadium and the first team to shut out the Rattlers in 16 years.
Three Tennessee A&I players were selected as first team players on the Pittsburgh Courier's 1966 All-America team: quarterback Eldridge Dickey, fullback Bill Tucker, and defensive tackle Claude Humphrey. Other key players included halfback Noland Smith and split end Johnnie Robinson.