Princeton Tigers football

The Princeton Tigers football team represents Princeton University and plays at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level. They are part of the Ivy League, a group of universities known for their strong academic and athletic programs.

Football at Princeton has a long history. Along with the football program at nearby Rutgers University, Princeton's team started in 1869. This early game is often seen as one of the first examples of American football.

The team is led by Coach Bob Surace, and they work hard to build a tradition of excellent play and sportsmanship on the field.

History

See also: List of Princeton Tigers football seasons

First football game

Main article: 1869 Princeton vs. Rutgers football game

In 1869, students from Princeton University went to play against Rutgers College in what is considered the first American college football game. They used rules that allowed only kicking the ball. Rutgers won that game 6–4. A week later, they played again, and this time Princeton won 8–0.

Early history

Because they helped start the sport, Princeton was very successful early on, winning many early national titles. As the game changed and more schools joined in, Princeton's dominance lessened. Their last national championship was in 1950.

Formation of the Ivy League

In 1955, Princeton and several other schools formed the Ivy League. The league's rules did not allow teams to play in postseason games. This kept Princeton out of the national spotlight. Until the 2025 season, Ivy League teams were not allowed to play postseason games.

NCAA Division I subdivision split

In 1978, the NCAA split its top level of college football into two groups. The Ivy League did not move to the higher level and instead joined the smaller group in 1982. This allowed them to continue competing together. Despite often having good seasons, Princeton could not play in the championship game because of Ivy League rules. Starting in 2025, Ivy League teams became eligible for the championship.

Recent history

Since the Ivy League began, Princeton has had success, winning many league championships. In 2018, under coach Bob Surace, Princeton had an undefeated season. The Ivy League did not play in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but returned in 2021.

Championships

Princeton has won 28 national championships, which were decided by important selectors at the time. These titles were claimed in seasons from 1869 to 1899, before modern polls like the Associated Press began. Sometimes, Princeton shared these championships with other teams.

The team has also won 12 conference championships, with four of them won alone and eight shared with other teams.

Rivalries

Harvard

Main article: Harvard–Princeton football rivalry

Princeton has played many games against Harvard and leads with more wins.

Penn

Main article: Penn–Princeton football rivalry

Rutgers

Main article: Princeton–Rutgers rivalry

Princeton has a long history of playing Rutgers from 1869 to 1980.

Yale

Main article: Princeton–Yale football rivalry

Stadium and facilities

Palmer Stadium

In 1914, Princeton built Palmer Stadium, which was one of the first college football stadiums ever made. It could hold 45,750 fans and looked like an ancient Greek stadium. In the 1990s, the university decided to tear it down to build a new stadium instead of fixing it up.

Princeton Stadium

Main article: Powers Field at Princeton Stadium

While the new stadium was being built, the team played most of their games away from home, with one special game at Giants Stadium in 1997. Princeton Stadium opened in 1998 and can seat 27,773 fans. In 2006, they put in an artificial playing surface called FieldTurf and named the field “Powers Field” to honor William C. Powers, a former player who gave $10 million to help the team.

Practice facilities

The practice fields near the university stadium have artificial turf too. These fields cover almost 1,600 square feet and include two full football fields and spaces for lacrosse.

Future non-conference opponents

Here are the future non-conference games planned for the Princeton Tigers football team, as announced on January 22, 2026.