1985 Howard Bison football team

The 1985 Howard Bison football team represented Howard University as a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) during the 1985 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by second-year head coach Willie Jeffries, the Bison compiled an overall record of 4–7, with a mark of 0–4 in conference play, and finished fifth in the MEAC.

1985 Howard Bison football
Conference	Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
Record	4–7 (0–4 MEAC)
Head coach	Willie Jeffries (2nd season)
Home stadium	Howard Stadium RFK Stadium

1985 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference football standings

	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. T–12 Delaware State $	4	–	0	–	0			9	–	2	–	0
Bethune–Cookman	3	–	1	–	0			6	–	4	–	0
South Carolina State	2	–	2	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
North Carolina A&T	1	–	3	–	0			6	–	5	–	0
Howard	0	–	4	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Morgan State	0	–	0	–	0			0	–	9	–	0
$ – Conference champion Morgan State games did not count as conference games. Morgan State was classified as NCAA Division II. All the other teams were I-AA. Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 7	at Maine*	Alumni Field Orono, ME	L 12–35
September 14	at Rhode Island*	Meade Stadium Kingston, RI	L 0–46	6,628
September 21	at Bethune–Cookman	Memorial Stadium Daytona Beach, FL	L 14–23
September 28	South Carolina State	Howard Stadium Washington, DC	L 21–27	12,500
October 12	at Winston-Salem State*	Bowman Gray Stadium Winston-Salem, NC	L 7–12
October 19	Virginia State*	RFK Stadium Washington, DC	W 17–7	13,500
October 26	at North Carolina A&T	Aggie Stadium Greensboro, NC	L 14–40
November 2	Norfolk State*	Howard Stadium Washington, DC	W 28–21
November 9	Morehouse*	Howard Stadium Washington, DC	W 35–26
November 16	at Morgan State	Hughes Stadium Baltimore, MD (rivalry)	W 7–3
November 23	at No. 12 Delaware State	Alumni Stadium Dover, DE	L 16–38	6,300
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee Poll released prior to the game