Tarleton State University Athletics

The 1977 Texan football team, coached by Head Coach Buddy Fornes, assistant coaches Ronnie Giles and Joe Gillespie and graduate assistants Russ Crawford and Tommy Grace, won the school's first Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association (TIAA) Conference Championship – marking the first football championship for Tarleton as a senior college. Tarleton clinched the TIAA championship by defeating McMurry College in the final game of the season 27-14. The team finished the season with a record of 7-3 and a perfect 4-0 mark in conference play. In addition to their perfect conference record, the team also picked up a historic win to begin the season by defeating the three-time NAIA National Champions, Texas Lutheran, 17-7. One of their three losses (17-14) was to the NAIA Division I National Runner-up Southwestern Oklahoma State.