Chief Caddo is a carved wooden statue of a Native American that was created in 1962 to be presented each year to the winner of the Northwestern State-Stephen F. Austin football game.
The concept for the statue originated in 1961 when the schools agreed that the loser of the football game that year would provide the tree for the trophy and the winner would arrange to have it sculpted.
Northwestern won the game, and Stephen F. Austin soon delivered to the NSU campus a black gum tree trunk that was 30 inches in diameter and weighed more than a ton.
Harold Green of Logansport was commissioned by NSU to carve the trophy which was eight feet tall and weighed 400 pounds when completed. It became widely recognized as the world’s largest sports trophy.
The statue was named Chief Caddo in recognition of the rich history of the Caddo Confederacy of Indigenous peoples in East Texas and West Louisiana where the two universities are located.
In a spirit of respect for the Caddo Nation, officials and students of the schools discontinued the presentation of the trophy after the 2019 game.
Northwestern and Stephen F. Austin played for the trophy 54 times. NSU won 32 of the games, SFA won 21, and one game ended in a tie. Stephen F. Austin won the last game in the series in 2019.
On September 13, 2023, a joint statement made by NSU and SFA officially confirmed the retirement of Chief Caddo.
