Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens football
The Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens football team represents the University of Delaware (UD) in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) college football as a member of CAA Football, the technically separate football arm of UD's full-time home of the Coastal Athletic Association. The team is currently led by head coach Ryan Carty and plays on Tubby Raymond Field at 18,500-seat Delaware Stadium located in Newark, Delaware. The Fightin' Blue Hens have won six national titles in their 117-year history – 1946 (AP College Division), 1963 (UPI College Division), 1971 (AP/UPI College Division), 1972 (AP/UPI College Division), 1979 (Division II), and 2003 (Division I-AA). They returned to the FCS National Championship game in 2007 and 2010.
| Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens football | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
| First season | 1889 | ||
| Athletic director | Christine Rawak | ||
| Head coach | Ryan Carty 2nd season, 17–9 (.654) | ||
| Stadium | Delaware Stadium (capacity: 18,080) | ||
| Field | Tubby Raymond Field | ||
| Year built | 1952 | ||
| Field surface | FieldTurf | ||
| Location | Newark, Delaware, U.S. | ||
| NCAA division | I FCS (FBS in 2025) | ||
| Conference | CAA Football (CUSA in 2025) | ||
| All-time record | 730–483–44 (.598) | ||
| Bowl record | 8–3 (.727) | ||
| Playoff appearances | 24 | ||
| Playoff record | 26–18 (Div. I FCS) 7–4 (Div. II) | ||
| Claimed national titles | 6 (Div. II): 1946, 1963, 1971, 1972, 1979 (Div. I FCS): 2003 | ||
| Conference titles | 17 | ||
| Rivalries | Villanova (rivalry) Delaware State (rivalry) James Madison (rivalry) William & Mary (rivalry) | ||
| Colors | Royal blue and gold | ||
| Fight song | "The Delaware Fight Song" | ||
| Mascot | YoUDee | ||
| Marching band | Fightin' Blue Hen Marching Band | ||
| Outfitter | Adidas | ||
| Website | BlueHens.com | ||
The program has produced five NFL quarterbacks: Rich Gannon, Joe Flacco, Jeff Komlo, Pat Devlin, and Scott Brunner. The Blue Hens are recognized as a perennial power in FCS football and Delaware was the only FCS program to average more than 20,000 fans per regular-season home game for each season from 1999 to 2010. In 2023, the program announced it will move into Conference USA and the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) prior to the 2025 season.