Delta Devils

In 1984 Mississippi Valley State reached the FCS playoffs for the only time in its history and ran into Louisiana Tech, which sent the Delta Devils home 66–19.

Willie Totten threw to Jerry Rice through the early 1980s, and Rice went on to the Pro Football Hall of Fame and a retired number 88; the stadium itself, opened in 1958 as Magnolia Field, now carries both their names as Rice–Totten Stadium.

The Delta Devils colours, forest green and white, have covered a small SWAC programme that built its identity less on standings than on the players it sent forward. Parnell Dickinson's number 18 hangs retired alongside Totten's 10.

None of that has softened the rivalry with Alcorn State. The Braves remain the team Mississippi Valley State measures itself against, a fixture on the schedule.