The Grand Valley State Lakers football program, 1980–1989 represented Grand Valley State University (GVSU), known as Grand Valley State College prior to 1988, during the 1980s in NCAA Division II college football as a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC). The team was led by head coaches Jim Harkema (1973–1982), Bob Giesey (1983–1984), and Tom Beck (1985–1990).
The team played its home games at Lubbers Stadium, named after former university president Arend Lubbers, located on GVSU's main campus in Allendale, Michigan.
1980
The 1980 Grand Valley State Lakers football team represented Grand Valley State University (GVSU) as a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) during the 1980 NCAA Division II football season. In their eighth year under head coach Jim Harkema, the Lakers compiled a 7–3 record (4–2 in conference games), finished in second place in the GLIAC, and outscored opponents by a total of 290 to 166.
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1981
The 1981 Grand Valley State Lakers football team represented Grand Valley State University (GVSU) as a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) during the 1980 NCAA Division II football season. In their ninth year under head coach Jim Harkema, the Lakers compiled a 7–2 record (6–0 in conference games), won the GLIAC championship, and outscored opponents by a total of 309 to 131.
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1982
The 1982 Grand Valley State Lakers football team represented Grand Valley State University (GVSU) as a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) during the 1982 NCAA Division II football season. In their tenth and final year under head coach Jim Harkema, the Lakers compiled a 7–3 record (5–1 in conference games), finished in second place in the GLIAC, and outscored opponents by a total of 310 to 213.
Harkema left GVSU after the 1982 season to become head coach at Eastern Michigan. In ten years at GVSU, he had compiled a 68-29-1 record with three GLIAC championships.
Schedule
1983
The 1983 Grand Valley State Lakers football team represented Grand Valley State University (GVSU) as a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) during the 1983 NCAA Division II football season. In their first year under head coach Bob Giesey, the Lakers compiled a 4–6 record (3–3 in conference games), tied for fourth place in the GLIAC, and were outscored by a total of 238 to 227.
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1984
The 1984 Grand Valley State Lakers football team represented Grand Valley State University (GVSU) as a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) during the 1984 NCAA Division II football season. In their second and final year under head coach Bob Giesey, the Lakers compiled a 0–10 record (0–6 in conference games), finished in last place in the GLIAC, and were outscored by a total of 301 to 99.
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1985
The 1985 Grand Valley State Lakers football team represented Grand Valley State University (GVSU) as a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) during the 1985 NCAA Division II football season. In their first year under head coach Tom Beck, the Lakers compiled a 6–5 record (4–2 in conference games), tied for third place in the GLIAC, and were outscored by a total of 237 to 213.
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1986
The 1986 Grand Valley State Lakers football team represented Grand Valley State University (GVSU) as a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) during the 1986 NCAA Division II football season. In their second year under head coach Tom Beck, the Lakers compiled a 9–2 record (4–1 in conference games), finished in second place in the GLIAC, and outscored opponents by a total of 325 to 171.
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1987
The 1987 Grand Valley State Lakers football team represented Grand Valley State University (GVSU) as a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) during the 1987 NCAA Division II football season. In their third year under head coach Tom Beck, the Lakers compiled a 7–4 record (4–1 in conference games), finished in second place in the GLIAC, and outscored opponents by a total of 276 to 234.
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1988
The 1988 Grand Valley State Lakers football team represented Grand Valley State University (GVSU) as a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) during the 1988 NCAA Division II football season. In their fourth year under head coach Tom Beck, the Lakers compiled a 7–4 record (3–2 in conference games), finished in third place in the GLIAC, and outscored opponents by a total of 276 to 234.
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1989
The 1989 Grand Valley State Lakers football team represented Grand Valley State University (GVSU) as a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) during the 1989 NCAA Division II football season. In their fifth year under head coach Tom Beck, the Lakers compiled an 11–1 record (5–0 in conference games), won the GLIAC championship, and outscored opponents by a total of 514 to 182. The team lost to in the first round of the NCAA Division II playoffs. On October 28, the Lakers defeated Valparaiso, 91–0, the worst defeat in Valparaiso football history.
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References