Chief Caddo

Chief Caddo
Sport Football
First meeting September 14, 1957
Northwestern State 20, Stephen F. Austin 7
Latest meeting November 19, 2016
Stephen F. Austin 45, Northwestern State 31
Next meeting November 2017
Trophy Chief Caddo
Statistics
Meetings total 52
All-time series Northwestern State leads, 30–20–2
Largest victory Northwestern State, 52–0 (1991)
Longest win streak Northwestern State, 7 (1976–1982)
Current win streak Stephen F. Austin, 1 (2016–present)

Chief Caddo is the name of the statue given to the winner of the annual football game between Southland Conference members Northwestern State University (NSU) of Natchitoches, Louisiana and Stephen F. Austin State University (SFA) of Nacogdoches, Texas.

Made of solid wood, Chief Caddo is the largest trophy in college football, standing 2.3-metre (7.5 ft) and weighing in excess of 150-kilogram (330 lb).

History

The idea of the statue was created in 1960 when longtime rivals NSU and SFA decided to award the winner of the game a trophy. The two schools settled on a wooden statue (both schools are located in heavily forested areas) of a legendary Indian chief whose tribe (the Caddo) was responsible for settling the locations that became the cities in which university was located (both of which are named for branches of the tribe).[1] Under the agreement, based on the results of the 1961 football game, the losing school would chop down a tree from one of its nearby forests, while the winning school would receive the log and carve the statue from it.

NSU won the 1961 game 35-19; thus, SFA delivered a 2,000-pound black gum log to NSU. Woodcarver Harold Green spent some 230 hours fashioning the statue. He was named Chief Caddo to honor the Indian tribe that not only settled the two communities, but provided safety for the early white settlers in the area.

In June 2010, after years of transportation to and from games had left Chief Caddo in poor condition, the trophy was given a much needed refurbishing. The project, headed by Bill Flynn (Flynn Paint & Decorating of Nacogdoches), undertook the restoration of the trophy. Among the many restorations to the trophy were: the repairing of the base, the construction and replacement of feathers in the headdress, the restaining and repainting of the entire trophy, and intricate detailing.

NSU and SFA have been playing for Chief Caddo since 1961 and NSU has a 29–15–1 advantage in the trophy game.[2]

Currently Chief Caddo resides at Stephen F. Austin University after the Jacks beat the Demons 45–31 at Homer Bryce Stadium.

Importance of the Caddo Tribe

Historians say had it not been for the Caddo Indians, the Spanish and French colonists who came to the area would not have survived the onslaughts of Apache and Comanche warriors from the west, and the Natchez from the east. In addition, French and Spanish writers of the time said it was certain, wise Caddo chiefs made it possible for the colonists to live as neighbors while their mother countries were at war against each other.

Nacogdoches and Natchitoches both received their names from Caddo place names. In Caddo language "Na" simply means "place of." Nacogdoches is thought to mean "the place of places." Two myths exist about how the cities got their names. Both versions of the myth agree that an Indian chief with two sons sent one east and the other west, and they traveled the same distance and established villages. As for the folklore in question:

One version, as reported by historian Samuel Stewart Mims in "Rios Sabinas", credits the chief of an Adae Indian village on the Sabine River. The village was overpopulated and the chief ordered his two grown sons to report to him precisely at sunrise. He told one son to walk east and the other to walk west until the very moment of sunset. The sons were to establish a village at the place they reached. The son who went west wound up in a grove of persimmon trees, and named his village Nacogdoches, meaning persimmon. The eastbound son reached a grove of papaw trees and named his village Natchitoches, meaning papaw.

Another version says that the chief had twin sons, Nacogdoches and Natchitoches, and could not decide who would lead the tribe following his death. The chief split the tribe between them and sent each in different directions. They traveled for three days, one eastbound and one westbound, and wound up where the cities are located today.

Game results

Northwestern State victories
Stephen F. Austin victories
Tie games
# Date Location Winner Score Series
NSU SFA
1 September 14, 1957 Shreveport, LA Northwestern State207 NSU 1–0
2 September 12, 1959 Shreveport, LA Tied1414 NSU 1–0–1
3 September 17, 1960 Shreveport, LA Northwestern State140 NSU 2–0–1
4 September 16, 1961 Shreveport, LA Northwestern State3519 NSU 3–0–1
5 September 15, 1962 Shreveport, LA Northwestern State236 NSU 4–0–1
6 September 14, 1963 Shreveport, LA Stephen F. Austin010 NSU 4–1–1
7 September 19, 1964 Shreveport, LA Northwestern State3414 NSU 5–1–1
8 September 18, 1971 Nacogdoches, TX Northwestern State187 NSU 6–1–1
9 September 16, 1972 Natchitoches, LA Northwestern State207 NSU 7–1–1
10 September 21, 1974 Natchitoches, LA Stephen F. Austin1314 NSU 7–2–1
11 September 20, 1975 Nacogdoches, TX Stephen F. Austin1317 NSU 7–3–1
12 September 18, 1976 Natchitoches, LA Northwestern State470 NSU 8–3–1
13 September 24, 1977 Nacogdoches, TX Northwestern State206 NSU 9–3–1
14 September 16, 1978 Nacogdoches, TX Northwestern State2114 NSU 10–3–1
15 September 15, 1979 Natchitoches, LA Northwestern State2721 NSU 11–3–1
16 September 20, 1980 Nacogdoches, TX Northwestern State223 NSU 12–3–1
17 September 19, 1981 Natchitoches, LA Northwestern State4213 NSU 13–3–1
18 September 18, 1982 Nacogdoches, TX Northwestern State2814 NSU 14–3–1
19 October 1, 1983 Natchitoches, LA Stephen F. Austin2527 NSU 14–4–1
20 November 17, 1984 Nacogdoches, TX Stephen F. Austin1822 NSU 14–5–1
21 November 23, 1985 Natchitoches, LA Stephen F. Austin1019 NSU 14–6–1
22 November 22, 1986 Nacogdoches, TX Stephen F. Austin1428 NSU 14–7–1
23 November 21, 1987 Natchitoches, LA Northwestern State3321 NSU 15–7–1
24 November 19, 1988 Nacogdoches, TX Northwestern State2017 NSU 16–7–1
25 September 18, 1989 Natchitoches, LA Tied1717 NSU 16–7–2
26 November 17, 1990 Natchitoches, LA Northwestern State203 NSU 17–7–2
27 November 23, 1991 Natchitoches, LA Northwestern State520 NSU 18–7–2
28 November 21, 1992 Nacogdoches, TX Northwestern State2410 NSU 19–7–2
29 November 20, 1993 Natchitoches, LA Stephen F. Austin2051 NSU 19–8–2
30 November 19, 1994 Nacogdoches, TX Stephen F. Austin1334 NSU 19–9–2
31 November 16, 1995 Natchitoches, LA Stephen F. Austin2025 NSU 19–10–2
32 November 23, 1996 Nacogdoches, TX Northwestern State1710 NSU 20–10–2
33 November 20, 1997 Natchitoches, LA Northwestern State3824 NSU 21–10–2
34 November 21, 1998 Nacogdoches, TX Northwestern State3521 NSU 22–10–2
35 November 20, 1999 Natchitoches, LA Stephen F. Austin1429 NSU 22–11–2
36 November 18, 2000 Nacogdoches, TX Stephen F. Austin317 NSU 22–12–2
37 November 17, 2001 Natchitoches, LA Northwestern State3117 NSU 23–12–2
38 November 23, 2002 Nacogdoches, TX Northwestern State4235 NSU 24–12–2
39 November 22, 2003 Natchitoches, LA Stephen F. Austin1444 NSU 24–13–2
40 November 20, 2004 Nacogdoches, TX Northwestern State3716 NSU 25–13–2
41 November 17, 2005 Natchitoches, LA Northwestern State4121 NSU 26–13–2
42 November 16, 2006 Nacogdoches, TX Stephen F. Austin1120 NSU 26–14–2
43 November 17, 2007 Natchitoches, LA Northwestern State3112 NSU 27–14–2
44 November 22, 2008 Nacogdoches, TX Northwestern State3424 NSU 28–14–2
45 November 21, 2009 Natchitoches, LA Stephen F. Austin1019 NSU 28–15–2
46 November 20, 2010 Nacogdoches, TX Stephen F. Austin1336 NSU 28–16–2
47 November 19, 2011 Natchitoches, LA Stephen F. Austin033 NSU 28–17–2
48 November 17, 2012 Nacogdoches, TX Stephen F. Austin1734 NSU 28–18–2
49 November 23, 2013 Natchitoches, LA Northwestern State4027 NSU 29–18–2
50 November 22, 2014 Nacogdoches, TX Stephen F. Austin2427 NSU 29–19–2
51 November 21, 2015 Natchitdoches, LA Northwestern State3317 NSU 30–19–2
52 November 19, 2016 Nacogdoches, TX Stephen F. Austin3145 NSU 30–20–2
Total NSU 30–20–2

[3]

References

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