| Currentseason: | 2024 Lincoln Oaklanders football team |
| Teamname: | Lincoln Oaklanders football |
| Athleticdirector: | Desmond Gumbs |
| Headcoach: | Desmond Gumbs |
| Headcoachyear: | 4th |
| Hcwins: | 3 |
| Hclosses: | 28 |
| Stadium: | None |
| Location: | Oakland, California |
| Conference: | Independent |
| Atwins: | 3 |
| Atlosses: | 28 |
| Atties: | 0 |
| Conftitles: | None |
| Mascotdisplay: | Oaklander |
| Marchingband: | Oaklander Marching Band |
| Websitename: | athletics.lincolnuca.edu |
| Websiteurl: | athletics.lincolnuca.edu/# |
The Lincoln Oaklanders are the college football team representing Lincoln University of Oakland, California. The team is Independent and plays as a traveling team. The school's first football team was fielded in 2021. Athletic director Desmond Gumbs has been the head football coach since the 2021 season.
The Oaklanders began play in the 2021 season as an independent, hoping to join the NCAA by 2022.[1] [2]
Athletic director Desmond Gumbs was named head coach for the Oaklanders' inaugural season, while former Super Bowl XLV champion Desmond Bishop served as defensive coordinator.[3] On September 11, 2021, the Oaklanders made their debut against the Whitworth Pirates where they were defeated 29–31. Lincoln earned their first win as a program the following week defeating Willamette 34–9. Lincoln proceeded to lose the following seven games, ending their season with a 1–8 record.
In 2022, the Oaklanders faced a Southland Conference opponent, losing to Texas A&M Commerce,[4] as well as a Big Sky Conference opponent, falling to Portland State,[5] and then a WAC opponent, losing to Southern Utah.[6] The Oaklanders showed slight improvement, finishing the season 2–8. In week 6, they set a program record by scoring 70 points in a 70–0 shutout win against Hilbert College. Lincoln's other win came in week 9 against Bluefield State University where they defeated the Big Blues 20–17.
The early portion of the 2023 season saw Lincoln play its first in-state game,[7] taking on a Big Sky program for a second time in its history when facing Cal Poly. Led by upperclassmen including former Ohio State defensive back Amir Riep, former UTEP quarterback T.J. Goodwin, and former North Dakota running back Otis Weah,[8] the Oaklanders briefly held a first-half lead before the Mustangs rallied to ultimately win 41–20.[9]
During its first three unaffiliated seasons, Lincoln played its games exclusively as the visitor. In the offseason of 2023, following the departure of the nearby Oakland Raiders, columnist Omar-Rashon Borja of Redshirt Sports opined that RingCentral Coliseum ought to be repurposed into a facility to host Lincoln games.[10]
On February 2, 2024, USA Today published an article critical of the Oaklanders football program, largely characterizing it as being ill-prepared to compete against either NCAA or NAIA schools (as the Oaklanders do not belong to either association and are thus not regulated by any set of outside standards) and having inadequate player support systems and facilities. School officials pushed back against allegations of neglect or fraud by some former players, stating that the problems surrounding the program were due to a lack of resources.[11]
| Desmond Gumbs | Independent | 1–8 | ||
| 2–8 | ||||
| 0–12 | ||||
| 2024 | 0–0 | |||
| Totals | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|