1986 Eastern Kentucky Colonels football team

1986 Eastern Kentucky Colonels football
OVC co-champion
NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal, L 10–24 at Arkansas State
Conference	Ohio Valley Conference
Record	10–3–1 (6–1 OVC)
Head coach	Roy Kidd (23rd season)
Home stadium	Hanger Field

1986 Ohio Valley Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 10 Eastern Kentucky ^	6	–	1	–	0			10	–	3	–	1
No. 18 Murray State $^	6	–	1	–	0			7	–	4	–	1
Akron	4	–	3	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Middle Tennessee	4	–	3	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Morehead State	3	–	4	–	0			7	–	4	–	0
Austin Peay	3	–	4	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Youngstown State	2	–	5	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
Tennessee Tech	0	–	7	–	0			0	–	10	–	0
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll

The 1986 Eastern Kentucky Colonels football team represented Eastern Kentucky University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 1986 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by 23rd-year head coach Roy Kidd, the Colonels compiled an overall record of 10–3–1 with a mark of 6–1 in conference play, sharing the OVC title with Murray State. Eastern Kentucky advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA Championship playoffs, where Colonels defeated Furman in the first round and Eastern Illinois in the quarterfinals before losing to Arkansas State in the semifinals.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 13	Chattanooga*	No. 13	Hanger Field Richmond, KY	W 23–3	14,400	[1]
September 20	at Marshall*	No. 11	Fairfield Stadium Huntington, WV	T 13–13		[2]
September 27	Middle Tennessee		Hanger Field Richmond, KY	W 28–3	10,100	[3]
October 4	at Western Kentucky*	No. 20	L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY (rivalry)	L 10–24	9,300	[4]
October 11	at Murray State		Roy Stewart Stadium Murray, KY	L 15–17	7,116	[5]
October 18	No. 19 UCF*		Hanger Field Richmond, KY	W 51–24	12,200	[6]
October 25	Youngstown State		Hanger Field Richmond, KY	W 38–17	16,300	[7]
November 1	at Austin Peay		Municipal Stadium Clarksville, TN	W 27–17		[8]
November 8	Tennessee Tech	No. 18	Hanger Field Richmond, KY	W 42–14		[9]
November 15	at Akron	No. 14	Rubber Bowl Akron, OH	W 27–24		[10]
November 22	Morehead State	No. 12	Hanger Field Richmond, KY (rivalry)	W 23–6		[11]
November 29	at No. 15 Furman*	No. 10	Paladin Stadium Greenville, SC (NCAA Division I-AA First Round)	W 23–10	9,121	[12]
December 6	at No. 3 Eastern Illinois*	No. 10	O'Brien Stadium Charleston, IL (NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal)	W 24–22	4,149	[13]
December 13	at No. 2 Arkansas State*	No. 10	Indian Stadium Jonesboro, AR (NCAA Division I-AA Semifinal)	L 19–24	10,500	[14][15]
*Non-conference game Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee Poll released prior to the game

References

1. "Eastern rips Chattanooga, conjuring thoughts of Auburn". The Courier-Journal. September 14, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "EKU, Marshall stumble to 13–13 tie". Lexington Herald-Leader. September 21, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Eastern numbs mum MTSU". The Tennessean. September 28, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "Western Kentucky upsets Eastern". The Leaf-Chronicle. October 5, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Murray's fuse burns enough to beat EKU". The Paducah Sun. October 12, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "UCF looks for the best and gets the worst in loss". The Orlando Sentinel. October 19, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Eastern rallies to 38–17 win". The Courier-Journal. October 26, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Colonels sink Govs". The Leaf-Chronicle. November 2, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "Colonels clobber Tech 42–14". The Daily News-Journal. November 9, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Eastern Kentucky edges Akron". The Newark Advocate. November 16, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Morehead State out of miracles as dream season ends". Lexington Herald-Leader. November 23, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "Eastern guns down Paladins, will travel". The Courier-Journal. November 30, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Eastern Illinois eliminated when 2-point attempt fails". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. December 7, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
14. "Defense holds off Colonels for ASU". The Commercial Appeal. December 14, 1986. Retrieved March 23, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
15. "Missed opportunities, six turnovers lead to disappointment for Eastern". The Courier-Journal. December 14, 1986. Retrieved October 8, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.