Template:Infobox sports award
The Lambert Trophy is an annual award given to the best team in the East in Division I FBS (formerly I-A) college football .
In affiliation with the Metropolitan New York Football Writers (founded 1935), the Lambert Trophy was established by brothers Victor and Henry Lambert in memory of their father, August. The Lamberts were the principals in a distinguished Madison Avenue jewelry house and were prominent college football boosters. The trophy , established in 1936 as the "Lambert Trophy" to recognize supremacy in Eastern college football, has since grown to recognize the best team in the East in Division I FBS. A set of parallel trophies collectively known as the Lambert Cup is awarded to teams in Division I FCS (formerly I-AA), Division II, and Division III. The Metropolitan New York Football Writers, owned and operated by American Football Networks, Inc., took the administration of the Lambert Meadowlands Awards back from the New Jersey Sports & Exhibition Authority in 2011.
Since 1936, there have been 19 different winners in Division I-A/FBS. To be eligible for the Lambert Award, a school must be located in the "East." Teams in the "East" include teams located in New York , New Jersey , New England , Pennsylvania , Maryland , Virginia , West Virginia , Delaware and the District of Columbia (although there are no FBS teams in Delaware nor Washington D.C., there are teams that compete at lower levels that can win the various Lambert Cup awards for their levels). Additionally, while the Big East Conference was a football conference, members of that conference outside of the "East" were also made eligible if at least half their schedule was against Lambert-eligible teams.
Lambert Trophy winners [ ]
By year [ ]
By team [ ]
School
Total
Years won
Penn State
31
1947, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1981, 1982, 1985, 1986, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2013, 2016, 2017
Army
8
1944, 1945, 1946, 1948, 1949, 1953, 1958, 2018
Syracuse
6
1952, 1956, 1959, 1966, 1987, 1992
Pittsburgh
6
1936, 1937, 1955, 1976, 1979, 1980
Navy
5½
1943, 1954, 1957, 1960 (½), 1963, 2015
Boston College
5
1940, 1942, 1983, 1984, 2004
Miami (FL)
4
2000, 2001, 2002, 2003
West Virginia
4
1988, 1993, 2007, 2011
Dartmouth ^
2
1965, 1970
Princeton ^
2
1950, 1951
Virginia Tech
2
1995, 1999
Carnegie Tech †
1
1938
Cincinnati
1
2012
Connecticut
1
2010
Cornell ^
1
1939
Fordham ^
1
1941
Louisville
1
2006
Rutgers
1
2014
Yale ^
½
1960 (½)
^ Now a member of the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).
† Now a member of NCAA Division III .
Lambert Cup [ ]
[ ]
Year
School
Record
Playoff Results
2001
Lehigh
11–1
Quarterfinals
2002
Villanova
11–4
Semifinals
2003
Delaware
15–1
National Champions
2004
James Madison
13–2
National Champions
2005
New Hampshire
11–2
Quarterfinals
2006
Massachusetts
13–2
Championship Game
2007
Delaware
11–4
Championship Game
2008
James Madison
12–2
Semifinals
2009
Villanova
14–1
National Champions
2010
Delaware
12–3
Championship Game
2011
Lehigh
11–2
Quarterfinals
2012
Old Dominion
11–2
Quarterfinals
2013
Towson
13–3
Championship Game
2014
New Hampshire
12–2
Semifinals
2015
Dartmouth /Harvard /Penn
9–1/9–1/7–3
Did not play (Ivy)
2016
James Madison
14–1
National Champions
2017
James Madison
14–1
Championship Game
2018
Colgate [2]
10–2
Quarterfinals
NOTE: The Ivy League, and until 1997, the Patriot League, do/did not participate in the NCAA Division I Football Tournament.
[3]
Most FCS Lambert Cups [ ]
School
Total
Years won
Delaware
8
1982, 1991, 1995, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2007, 2010
Holy Cross
5
1983, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989
James Madison
5
1994, 2004, 2008, 2016, 2017
Villanova
3
1992, 2002, 2009
Lehigh
2
2001, 2011
Massachusetts †
2
1998, 2006
New Hampshire
2
2005, 2014
Rhode Island
2
1984, 1985
William & Mary
2
1990, 1996
Boston University ‡
1
1993
Colgate
1
2018
Fordham
1
2015
Hofstra ‡
1
1999
Old Dominion †
1
2012
Towson
1
2013
† Now a member of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).
‡ Discontinued football
Division II [ ]
Year
School
Record
Playoff Results (Start 1973)
1957
Lehigh
8–1
No Playoffs
1958
Buffalo
8–1
Tangerine Bowl (refused)
1959
Delaware
8–1
No Playoffs
1960
Bucknell
7–2
No Playoffs
1961
Lehigh
7–2
No Playoffs
1962
Delaware
7–2
No Playoffs
1963
Delaware
8–0
National Champions
1964
Bucknell
7–2
No Playoffs
1965
Maine
8–2
Tangerine Bowl (L)
1966
Gettysburg
7–2
Tangerine Bowl (refused)
1967
West Chester
1968
Delaware
8–3
Boardwalk Bowl
1969
Delaware
9–2
Boardwalk Bowl
Wesleyan
1970
Delaware
9–2
Boardwalk Bowl
1971
Delaware
10–1
National Champions
1972
Delaware
10–0
National Champions
1973
Delaware
8–4
Quarterfinals
Lehigh
7–4–1
Quarterfinals
1974
Delaware
12–2
Championship Game
1975
Lehigh
9–3
Quarterfinals
1976
Delaware
8–3–1
Quarterfinals
1977
Lehigh
12–2
National Champions
1978
Massachusetts
9–4
I-AA Championship Game
1979
Delaware
13–1
National Champions
1980
Lehigh
9–1–2
I-AA Semifinals
1981
Shippensburg
12–1
Div II Semifinals
1982
East Stroudsburg
1983
Towson State
10–2
Quarterfinals
1984
Towson State
9–4
Semifinals
1985
Bloomsburg
12–1
Semifinals
1986
Towson State
8–3–1
Quarterfinals
Year
School
Record
Playoff Results
1987
Indiana (Pa.)
10–2
Quarterfinals
1988
Millersville
1989
Indiana (Pa.)
11–2
Semifinals
1990
Indiana (Pa.)
12–2
Championship Game
1991
Indiana (Pa.)
12–1
Semifinals
1992
New Haven
12–1
Semifinals
1993
Indiana (Pa.)
13–1
Championship Game
1994
Indiana (Pa.)
10–3
Semifinals
1995
New Haven
10–1–1
Quarterfinals
1996
Clarion
1997
New Haven
12–2
Championship Game
1998
Slippery Rock
1999
Indiana (Pa.)
9–4
Semifinals
2000
Bloomsburg
12–3
Championship Game
2001
Indiana (Pa.)
8–2
First Round
2002
Indiana (Pa.)
11–2
Quarterfinals
2003
Indiana (Pa.)
10–1
No Playoffs
2004
West Chester
2005
East Stroudsburg
2006
West Chester
2007
California (Pa.)
2008
West Chester
2009
California (Pa.)[1]
2010
Mercyhurst
10–3
Quarterfinals
2011
New Haven
11–2
Quarterfinals
2012
Indiana (Pa.)
12–2
Quarterfinals
2013
West Chester
13–2
Semifinals
2014
Bloomsburg
11–2
Quarterfinals
2015
Shepherd
13–1
Championship Game
2016
Shepherd
13–1
Semifinals
2017
Indiana (Pa.)
13–1
Semifinals
2018
LIU Post [2]
10–1
1st Round
Most D-II Lambert Cups [ ]
School
Total
Years won
Indiana (PA)
12
1987, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2012, 2017
Delaware †
11
1959, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1969(½), 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973(½), 1974, 1976, 1979
Lehigh †
5½
1957, 1961, 1973 (½), 1975, 1977, 1980
West Chester
5
1967, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2013
New Haven
4
1992, 1995, 1997, 2011
Bloomsburg
3
1985, 2000, 2014
Towson State †
3
1983, 1984, 1986
Bucknell †
2
1960, 1964
California (PA)
2
2007, 2009
East Stroudsburg
2
1982, 2005
Shepherd
2
2015, 2016
Buffalo ‡
1
1958
Clarion
1
1996
Gettysburg ^
1
1966
LIU Post
1
2018
Maine †
1
1965
Massachusetts ‡
1
1978
Mercyhurst
1
2010
Millersville
1
1988
Shippensburg
1
1981
Slippery Rock
1
1998
Wesleyan ^
½
1969 (½)
‡ Now a member of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).
† Now a member of the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).
^ Now a member of Division III .
Division III [ ]
Year
School
1999
Rowan
2000
Widener
2001
Rowan
2002
Brockport
2003
Rensselaer
2004
Rowan
2005
Rowan
2006
St. John Fisher
2007
Wesley
2008
Cortland State
2009
Wesley[1]
2010
Wesley
2011
Wesley
2012
Hobart
2013
St. John Fisher
2014
Wesley
2015
Wesley
Most D-III Lambert Cups [ ]
School
Total
Years won
Rowan
8
1993, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2004, 2005
Ithaca
7½
1974, 1975, 1978, 1980, 1984 (½), 1985, 1988, 1991
Wesley
6
2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2015
Alfred
2
1971, 2016
Brockport
2
2002, 2017
C.W. Post ‡
2
1973, 1976
St. John Fisher
2
2006, 2013
Wagner †
2
1967, 1987
Washington & Jefferson
2
1992, 1994
Widener
2
1981, 2000
Wilkes
2
1966, 1968
Union
1½
1984 (½), 1989
Allegheny
1
1990
Carnegie Mellon
1
1979
Cortland State
1
2008
Edinboro ‡
1
1970
Franklin & Marshall
1
1972
Hobart
1
2012
Hofstra ^
1
1983
Johns Hopkins
1
2018
Lycoming
1
1997
Merchant Marine
1
1969
Plymouth State
1
1982
Rensselaer
1
2003
Salisbury State
1
1986
Westminster
1
1977
† Now a member of the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).
‡ Now a member of Division II .
^ Discontinued football
References [ ]