Professional football (gridiron) oldest existing professional football club is the Arizona Cardinals, a current member of the National Football League. The Cardinals organization, which was originally based on Racine Street in Chicago, has operated near-continuously since 1913, but counts an earlier team that played from 1898 to 1906 as part of its history. The Watertown Red & Black is the oldest semi-professional club, tracing its history to 1896. While the practice of professional and semi-pro teams playing college and amateur teams was common in the 1890s, the Amateur Athletic Union began pressuring and threatening college teams with the loss of amateur status if
Lamar Cardinals football Lamar participated in two NCAA College Division level bowl games, going 1–1. Lamar participated in the FCS Playoffs for the first time in 2018. Source: Below is a list of the Cardinals best-attended home games (all at Provost Umphrey Stadium). Below is the Cardinals' home attendance since program reinstatement. The two teams have met 35 times on the football field, with McNeese State currently holding a 24–10–1 edge in the all-time series. The rivalry has been expanded from football to head-to-head competition in all sports under a joint agreement with the two universities and Verizon Wireless. The first Sabine Shoe