Tampa Spartans football
| Tampa Spartans football | |
|---|---|
| First season | 1933 |
| Last season | 1974 |
| Stadium | Plant Field (1933–1936) Phillips Field (1937–1966) Tampa Stadium (1967–1974) |
| Location | Tampa, Florida |
| Conference | NAIA (1933–1970) NCAA D-I Ind. (1971–1974) |
| All-time record | 201–160–12 (.555) |
| Bowl record | 3–0 (1.000) |
| Colors | Black, red, and gold |
The Tampa Spartans football program was an intercollegiate American football team for the University of Tampa (UT) located in Tampa, Florida, that began play in 1933. The program competed against other small college programs in the forerunner of today's NCAA Division II for almost forty years before moving to the top level of NCAA Division I as an independent in 1971. Successfully competing against top college programs as a much smaller school put an enormous strain on the university's finances, and the school decided to discontinue football after the 1974 season.