A Review of the Recent College Sports Realignment News

Editor’s note: This post has been updated as of Tuesday, October 12, 2021, to include corrections and changes. This list will no longer be updated to show future changes. Please click here for a list of changes beginning in the 2022-23 academic year. An updated list of changes beginning in the 2023-24 academic year can be found here. Changes beginning with the 2024-25 academic year can be found here.

It’s been a wild past few months in terms of the college football (and college athletics) realignment landscape. Nearly all of it has focused on the FCS and lower levels of Division I. Below is a recap of the known changes including the old conference, new conference, and the first season in which the change will take effect. If you simply want a list, scroll down to the table below for a summary. More detailed information on each conference and division is provided further down below the table. We include some schools that changed conferences starting in the 2019-20 academic year in the list to show how extensive the changes have been.

There will not be a lot of analysis nor any in-depth look at how the dominoes may fall. We save that thinking for more extensive articles and some examples of those can be found here. We simply wanted to provide a resource for the recent movement throughout the collegiate landscape in all divisions.

American Athletic/Mountain West

The FBS has been untouched by realignment but that might change if recent reports turn out to be true. Boise State and San Diego State have been linked with a move from the Mountain West Conference to the American Athletic Conference. That may set off a smaller chain of events to fill Boise State’s spot as well as the subsequent spots of the teams who leave to fill Boise/SDSU seats. We did not include these teams in the table above but wanted to mention it as the links were heavily reported on at the time though it appears the idea of Boise State leaving for the AAC is dead… for now.

ASUN

The ASUN Conference is one of the beneficiaries of conference realignment. They will add the trio of Central Arkansas, Eastern Kentucky, and Jacksonville State starting in 2021-22. Combined with Kennesaw State and North Alabama from the Big South – both of whom are already in the ASUN for other sports – and the conference will be just one FCS member shy of maintaining an Automatic Qualification (AQ) bid going forward.

Per the ASUN itself, all teams currently have access to an AQ starting in the 2021 fall season due to the “existing and developing agreements” they have (i.e. KSU and UNA in the Big South; UCA, EKU, and JSU in the WAC).

Based on the wording by ASUN Commissioner Ted Gumbart, this appears to be the way it will work for the 2021 fall football season. Gumbart did not give a concrete answer for 2021 as well in this clip. However, none of this was official until February 23 when the ASUN confirmed the partnership with the WAC as well as the 7 teams eligible for the AQ bid.

The second part of the ASUN’s plan is to get North Alabama to finish its transition period two years early by supporting a proposal that changes the timeframe from 4 years to 2 years. If approved, the proposal would mean that UNA is eligible for postseason play starting in 2021-22 for all sports.

That brings us to the addition of Bellarmine. They joined the ASUN starting with the 2020-21 season from the Great Lakes Valley Conference (Division II). As a transitional team, if the new proposal is passed then they would be eligible for postseason play starting in 2022-23 instead of 2024-25. Bellarmine does not sponsor football.

Finally, let’s get down to the last piece of the puzzle and that is the addition of a 6th FCS team (or more). The ASUN laid out some criteria and ruled out some possibilities already. Liberty will remain an FBS Independent as expected and current ASUN member Stetson will not join the conference for football. The Hatters will stay in the non-scholarship Pioneer Football League.

Speculation is rampant on who will be the sixth team including Chattanooga and Valdosta State among many others. Per the ASUN, no current member has plans to add a football team so that rules out an internal option (for the time being as plans can always change).

We’ll wrap the ASUN section up by listing the 12 members of the league starting in 2021-22. They are Bellarmine, Central Arkansas, Eastern Kentucky, Florida Gulf Coast, Jacksonville, Jacksonville State, Kennesaw State, Liberty, Lipscomb, North Alabama, North Florida, and Stetson.

Big Sky

As will be mentioned in the Southland Conference section, Southern Utah will be leaving the Big Sky and joining their new home in the WAC starting with the 2022-23 academic year. No other changes have been reported with the remaining Big Sky membership, which will leave the conference with 12 football members though speculation has mentioned Northern Arizona as a potential future WAC member.

The 12 football schools are UC Davis, Cal Poly, Eastern Washington, Idaho, Idaho State, Montana, Montana State, Northern Arizona, Northern Colorado, Portland State, Sacramento State, and Weber State. The duo of UC Davis and Cal Poly are only associate members of the Big Sky for football as they compete in the Big West for the other sports.

MEAC

The MEAC was part of the changes late in 2020 but the conference was hit hard in 2020 with the news that three teams – Bethune-Cookman, Florida A&M, and North Carolina A&T – would depart. All three are leaving after this current 2020-21 academic year. Bethune-Cookman and FAMU are heading to the SWAC while NCAT will become a member of the Big South. Prior to that, Savannah State left the conference to drop back into Division 2 and join the SIAC after the 2018-19 season.

The MEAC has been left with 8 members – Coppin State, Delaware State, Howard, Maryland-Eastern Shore, Morgan State, Norfolk State, North Carolina Central, and South Carolina State. Of those 8, Coppin State and Maryland-Eastern Shore do not sponsor football.

Ohio Valley

The OVC will lose two members with the departures of Eastern Kentucky and Jacksonville State after the 2020-21 academic year. The two schools will reportedly play one football season as WAC members in 2021-22 followed by the move to their future conference – the ASUN – starting in 2022-23 for football. Both schools will become ASUN members in other sports starting in the 2021-22 academic year.

Seven teams will remain for the OVC football membership barring any additional losses. Those 7 teams are Austin Peay, Eastern Illinois, Murray State, Southeast Missouri State, Tennessee State, Tennessee Tech, and UT Martin. The OVC will also have three additional non-football members in Belmont, Morehead State (they are football members in the non-scholarship Pioneer Football League), and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville.

Like the MEAC and the Southland, the OVC is at a crossroads in attracting new members. Do they focus on building up the basketball side? Or do they try to bring in a football school? Maybe a mixed strategy?

Southland Conference

The biggest shift in Division I realignment has been out west with Southland and WAC. 5 teams will leave the Southland Conference and head to greener pastures. Abilene Christian, Lamar, Sam Houston State, and Stephen F. Austin are joining the WAC while Central Arkansas will move to the Atlantic Sun Conference. All five teams will leave the Southland conference after the current 2020-21 academic year.

The Southland will have 6 football members and 8 members in the Olympic sports. Houston Baptist, Incarnate Word, McNeese, Nicholls, Northwestern State, and Southeastern Louisiana remain for football while New Orleans and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi are the two non-football members.

WAC

The WAC announced in January 2021 that five teams would join the conference with Abilene Christian, Lamar, Sam Houston State, and Stephen F. Austin coming over from the Southland and Southern Utah from the Big Sky. The plans call for the four Southland teams to join in 2021 while Southern Utah will join in 2022. The WAC also intends to pursue the reinstatement of football for the fall 2021 season at the FCS level starting.

Those five schools would join current FCS members Dixie State and Tarleton State both of whom are moving up from the Division II Lone Star Conference. As transitional teams, they are ineligible for postseason play and the AQ status for four years unless the new legislation passes cutting the transition time down to 2 years.

New Mexico State is also a member of the WAC but they are currently an FBS independent. Non-football schools currently in the WAC are California Baptist, Chicago State, Grand Canyon, Seattle, Texas-Rio Grande Valley, and Utah Valley. UTRGV has signaled its intention to start a football program in time for the 2024 season.

In a twist, the WAC will reportedly add the trio of Central Arkansas, Eastern Kentucky, and Jacksonville State in football for only the 2021 season. Those three will then move to the ASUN’s new football conference starting with the 2022 season if the recent rumor mill is correct.

For some slight analysis, this move makes sense for both parties. The WAC can get their Automatic Qualification (AQ) bid in 2021 with 7 members and then retain it in 2022 if they find a sixth team as Dixie State and Tarleton State will not be eligible as Division II transition teams. (This may change for 2022 if the transitional period is shortened from 4 years to 2, which would make both teams eligible for postseason play beginning in 2022-23).

As for the three single-year teams, they can be in a conference that has an AQ instead of hoping the selection committee selects them for an at-large spot, which is always difficult as an FCS Independent. They can then join the ASUN in 2022-23 with what is likely to be a 6 or 7 team conference.

One caveat, however, is the NCAA itself. Whether they actually grant the WAC an AQ for the 2021 fall season is up to an organization that hasn’t always been logical nor rational. So stay tuned on that one.

The other piece of news for the WAC is that Chicago State will leave the conference after the 2021-2022 season. The Cougars have long been a geographic outlier and have failed to field competitive athletic teams. Chicago State intends to remain a Division I program after they leave the WAC, which presents another set of challenges going forward.

Finally, there is speculation that the WAC will ascend from the FCS to the FBS within 5 – 10 years of returning to the football field. That would reunite them with New Mexico State, which would subsequently move from independent status into the WAC. That timeline – as well as any potential additions to the WAC membership – will remain in flux as the realignment game rolls on.

Other Recent Division I Moves

The past 12 months have seen plenty of other changes in conference membership including some non-football playing schools. We will summarize them below and include moves in Division II, Division III, and NAIA.

Cal State Bakersfield left the WAC to become a member of the Big West. UC San Diego also joined the Big West but is moving up from the Division II CCAA. Both teams started their first season in the Big West in 2020-21.

NJIT found a more geographically suitable home in the America East for 2020-21 after being a member of the Atlantic Sun. Connecticut left the American Athletic Conference to re-join the Big East starting this season (2020-21). The Huskies have opted to become an FBS Independent in football.

Merrimack left Division 2’s Northeast-10 Conference and moved to the similarly named Northeast Conference at the Division 1 level starting with the 2019-20 season. Long Island University combined its Brooklyn (D1) and Post (D2) campuses and rebranded simply as Long Island University at the Division I level. They too moved into the NEC starting in 2019-20.

Purdue Fort Wayne moved from the Summit League to the Horizon League. Kansas City went from the WAC back to the Horizon. Robert Morris also moved to the Horizon League from the Northeast Conference. Robert Morris will be a member of the Big South Conference in football. All three made the move in time for the 2020-21 academic year.

Presbyterian’s football team left the Big South Conference to join the non-scholarship Pioneer Football League starting with the 2021-22 season. The other sports will remain in the Big South. They will be joined by St. Thomas in the PFL after the Tommies made the quantum leap from Division III to Division I.

5/6/2021 Addition: Hartford announced in May 2021 that they would drop from Division I to compete at the Division III level starting in 2025. That timeline is subject to approval from the NCAA.

Division II

Now for a host of teams moving up to Division II. D’Youville (Buffalo, New York) has moved up from the D-III Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference to become a member of the Division II East Coast Conference this season.

Two teams are making the move from NAIA to the Division II SIAC. Allen University (South Carolina) already made the move starting with the 2020-21 academic year. In July 2021, the NCAA determined that Allen University had to repeat the first year of the transition for the 2021-22 academic year.

Edward Waters is planning to move up the Division II level from the NAIA’s Gulf Coast Athletic Conference. They have received an invitation from the SIAC and applied to become a Division II member in 2021. The NCAA approved Edward Waters’ application to Division 2, which means they will begin the transition from NAIA starting with the 2021-22 academic year.

Emory and Henry is moving up from the Division III Old Dominion Athletic Conference to become a member of the South Atlantic Conference at the Division II level. They will begin in the SAC starting in 2022-23 after spending the 2021-22 season as a Division II Independent.

The Great Midwest Athletic Conference is seeing some movement in its ranks. Ashland University is moving into the conference from the GLIAC starting with the 2021-22 season. Alderson Broaddus left the GMAC for the Mountain East after the 2019-20 season.

The Mountain East also welcomed Frostburg State from Division III starting in the 2019-20 season. The MEC lost powerhouse Shepherd University to the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference after the 2018-19 season.

4/11/2021 Addition: Bluefield State announced the addition of 12 new sports starting with the 2021-22 academic year. Among those 12 sports is football, which had been on hiatus since 1980. The Big Blue currently plays as a Division 2 Independent and is also a member of the Eastern College Athletic Conference.

5/9/2021 Additions: Concordia College in New York announced they would close after the 2020-21 academic year. Iona College bought the Bronxville campus and will continue teaching the current Concordia students. The athletic teams played in the CACC.

Northwood University is moving from the GLIAC to the GMAC starting with the 2022-23 season. The University of South Carolina-Beaufort is moving from the Sun Conference at the NAIA level to become a Division 2 member and will play in the Peach Belt Conference as soon as the 2022-23 season.

Ohio Valley University will leave NCAA Division 2 and become a member of NAIA starting with the 2021-22 academic year. They will leave the GMAC and join the River State Conference. Paine College will also be leaving the NCAA as a Division 2 member due to loss of accreditation. They will join the NCCAA starting with the 2021-22 season.

The University of the Sciences and St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania signed a letter of intent to explore a merger of the two schools. USciences is a D2 member of the CACC while St. Joe’s is a D1 member of the Atlantic 10 Conference. St Joe’s would become the lone-standing institution of this merger though nothing has been finalized and the specifics of a potential merger remain very fluid.

6/29/21 Additions: The South Atlantic Conference will welcome two affiliate members for football-only for the 2022 and 2023 seasons. The duo of Barton College (Wilson, North Carolina) and Erskine College (Due West, South Carolina) are both members of the Conference Carolinas in other sports. Both schools recently brought back football programs and needed to find a home as Conference Carolinas does not sponsor football.

Converse College is changing its name to Converse University in July 2021 as it moves from a women’s only college to a co-educational university. Converse will also add men’s sports to its offerings starting in 2021-22, which will participate in the Conference Carolinas alongside its women’s sports.

Conference Carolinas will also see two additional members starting with the 2021-22 academic year. Francis Marion (Florence, South Carolina) and UNC Pembroke (Pembroke, North Carolina) will be the two members with both leaving the Peach Belt Conference. Since Conference Carolinas does not sponsor football, UNC Pembroke already plays its games in the Mountain East Conference (Francis Marion does not offer football).

The College of Staten Island moved up from Division III to Division II to join the East Coast Conference starting in the 2020-21 season. They were previously part of the City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC).

Division III

Bob Jones University (Greenville, South Carolina) is moving from the NCCAA to Division III at a yet-to-be-determined time. The Bruins are still searching for a conference but began as a provisional D-III member starting with the 2020-21 academic year. Two teams – Iowa Wesleyan and Louisiana College – will no longer be Division III members as they will join the NAIA starting in 2021-22. Iowa Wesleyan will be an independent NAIA team except in football (North Star) and Wrestling (HAAC).

3/21/2021 Addition: St. Norbert College is moving between conferences at the D3 level. They will move from the Midwest Conference to the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference starting with the 2021-22 season.

Wesley, a Division III football power, was acquired by Delaware State in July 2020 and will become one entity with DSU starting in 2021-22. Another Northeastern school will combine with a large university. Pine Manor College – a small school located outside of Boston – has athletic teams competing as Division III independents. However, the Gators will become part of Boston College starting in 2021-22.

5/9/2021 Additions: Averett University in Danville, Virginia will be changing conferences at the Division 3 level. They will move from the USA South Athletic Conference to the Old Dominion Athletic Conference starting in 2022-23. Elms College will move from the D3 New England College Conference to the fellow D3 league Great Northeast Athletic Conference beginning in 2021-22. Elms College was originally scheduled to start in the GNAC with the 2022-23 season but both parties decided to move the timeline up a year.

St. Thomas (Houston, Texas) moved up from NAIA and the Red River Athletic Conference in 2019-20 to become a member of the NCAA Division 3 level. The Celts joined the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference as the 10th member of the league.

Asbury University will make a trek from the NAIA to the NCAA Division 3 level but hasn’t found a D3 conference yet. Asbury will have a 3-year provisional transition and be a fully eligible D3 member starting with the 2024-25 year. They will have a D3 schedule starting in 2021-22 but will not be eligible for postseason play. As a result, they will compete in postseason tournaments with the NCCAA starting in 2021-22 for the transition period.

Johnson & Wales University Charlotte will be an NCAA Division 3 exploratory member starting in 2021-22. They too will undergo a 3-year transition period in which they will continue to be members of the USCAA. JWU Charlotte will be fully eligible for Division 3 membership starting with the 2024-25 season. JWU Charlotte has not announced which Division 3 conference they will be a member of.

Division 3 member Becker College in Massachusetts announced its closure after the 2020-21 academic year. Becker is a member of the New England Collegiate College in a majority of sports and a football-only member of the Commonwealth Coast Conference. Mills College – based in Oakland, California – announced they would no longer be a degree-granting institution. Instead, they will focus on research after the 2022-23 academic year. Mills is a member of the Division 3 Coast to Coast Conference.

6/29/2021 Additions: Dean College (Franklin, Massachusetts) left the New England Collegiate Conference after the 2019-20 academic year and joined the GNAC the following season. Speaking of the GNAC, they suffered the loss of Suffolk University in Boston after the 2019-20 year as they joined the Commonwealth Coast Conference for the 2020-21 season.

The University of Valley Forge (Phoenixville, Pennsylvania) also left its previous conference – the American Collegiate Athletic Association spanning across the US – to find a new home in the Colonial States Athletic Conference starting with the 2020-21 season.

Keuka College (Keuka Park, New York) left the North Eastern Athletic Conference following the 2019-20 season as well and the Wolves joined the Empire 8 Conference with its full members comprised of only New York schools. York College (Spring Garden Township, Pennsylvania) left the Coast-to-Coast Conference after the conclusion of the 2019-20 season and joined the Middle Atlantic Conference starting in 2020-21.

The North Atlantic Conference welcomed three new members starting with the 2020-21 season. Cazenovia College, SUNY Cobleskill, and SUNY Poly – all from the state of New York – joined after the trio left the NEAC following the 2019-20 academic year. Offsetting those losses, the NEAC welcomed back Penn State Harrisburg in 2019-20 and will also welcome St. Mary’s College of Maryland beginning in 2021-22 with both coming over from the Coast-to-Coast Conference.

The Franciscan University of Steubenville (Ohio) left the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference after the 2019-20 season and joined the Presidents’ Athletic Conference for the 2020-21 season. The Mississippi University for Women announced in June 2021 that they will be leaving Division 3 independent status to join the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference beginning in 2022-23.

Southern Virginia announced a move from the Coast-to-Coast Conference to the USA South Athletic Conference starting in 2021-22. The Knights played football in the ODAC for the 2019 and 2020 seasons and will also move the football team to the USA South as the conference sponsors football.

Saint Scholastica (Duluth, Minnesota) will leave the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference to join the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference starting in 2021-22. Replacing them – for football at least – will be Finlandia (Hancock, Michigan). Finlandia’s football team will be leaving the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association to join the UMAC in football-only starting with the 2021-22 season.

One additional football-only move at the Division 3 level is Austin College joining the American Southwest Conference starting with the 2021-22 season with the agreement lasting at least 4 seasons. The Kangaroos are a full member of the SCAC and previously played football in the SAA.

NAIA

Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College (Saint Mary’s, Indiana) will start its membership at the NAIA level in 2021-22. They will be members of the River States Conference.

Mount Marty University (Yankton, South Dakota) will be taking the football field for the first time starting in 2021. Mount Marty will play its football games as a member of the Great Plains Athletic Conference.

5/13/2021 Addition: Following the approval of the 2021-22 budget in Tennessee, the road has been paved for Martin Methodist College to become part of the University of Tennessee system. The final approval would happen in June 2021 and the college would then be named the University of Tennessee Southern starting with the 2021-22 academic year. MMC currently plays at the NAIA level in the Mid-South Conference and that is expected to continue in the future.

5/27/2021 Addition: The NAIA approved three schools to become members with Ohio Valley previously known and Arkansas Baptist and Johnson University also joining the NAIA. Arkansas Baptist (Little Rock) is transitioning from a junior college and the National Junior College Athletics Association to a 4-year school while Johnson University (Knoxville, Tennessee) is leaving the NCCAA. It is not known at the time of the release which conferences Arkansas Baptist and Johnson University will eventually join as NAIA members.

6/29/2021 Additions: Two schools joined Martin Methodist (now University of Tennessee Southern) in the Mid-South Conference starting in 2020-21. Freed-Hardeman left the American Midwest Conference while Bethel left the SSAC. All three schools are located in Tennessee.

Lewis-Clark State College (Lewiston, Idaho) changed conferences in 2020 moving from the Frontier Conference to the Cascade Collegiate Conference (started in 2020-21).

Two schools will join the California Pacific Conference in 2021-22. Park University Gilbert (Gilbert, Arizona) and Westcliff University (Irvine, California) were admitted to the NAIA in 2020 and will become full members of Cal Pac in 2021-22. Gilbert’s main campus – Parkville University in Missouri – left the American Midwest conference to join the Heart of America Athletic Conference starting in 2020-21.

The Gulf Coast Athletic Conference will see one member return and two members leave after the 2020-21 academic year. Talladega College (Alabama) will join the Southern States Athletic Conference in 2021-22 while Xavier (Louisiana) will join the Red River Athletic Conference in 2021-22. The RRAC previously welcomed new NAIA member Texas A&M-San Antonio in 2020-21. Fisk University (Nashville) announced in 2021 they would re-join the GCAC starting with the 2021-22 season after spending the previous six seasons as an NAIA Independent.

The Southern State Athletic Conference will also welcome Life University (Marietta, Georgia) starting with the 2022-23 season. The Running Eagles will remain a member of the Mid-South Conference until the conclusion of the 2021-22 academic year.

Robert Morris University (Chicago) merged with Roosevelt University (Chicago) early in 2020, which led to Roosevelt adding football for the 2020-21 season. Roosevelt competed in the Mid-State Football Association and the MSFA will also see Judson University (Elgin, Illinois) and Madonna University (Livonia, Michigan) play their first full league schedules in 2021-22. All three schools recently announced new football programs that will play in the football-only conference.

7/10/2021 Addition: Sierra Nevada University will become part of the University of Nevada, Reno as part of an agreement between the two schools. SNU participates at the NAIA level in the Cal Pac Conference. According to the press release from Nevada, this is the first step in the process and nothing will change for the 2021-22 academic year and any changes in athletics or full incorporation into the University of Nevada will happen at a later date.

7/13/2021 Addition: The NAIA’s Association of Independent Institutions will rebrand as the Continental Athletic Conference in time for the 2021-22 season. The 19 member institutions will essentially have many of the benefits of being in a conference without the commitment to only play against fellow independent NAIA schools as would happen in a formal conference. The CAC will also serve as a landing spot for any future teams that wish to be an NAIA independent program or are unable to immediately find a new conference upon joining the NAIA.

Additional Changes

Finally, we come to the unfortunate part with Division II Urbana University in Ohio closing its doors for good in April 2020 after being a member of the Mountain East Conference.

5/9/2021 Additions: College of the Ozarks announced earlier in 2021 they would no longer be a member of the NAIA but would continue to maintain a relationship with the NCCAA. No further details were released including which programs would be impacted by the move. Judson College has announced it will close after the completion of the summer term on July 31, 2021. Judson was a women’s only college in Alabama and a member of the USCAA.

6/29/2021 Addition: Three campus locations of Johnson & Wales saw the discontinuation of sports or the elimination of an entire campus. Denver and North Miami both saw the end of sports while Providence saw 8 teams eliminated. Both the Denver and North Miami locations were later shuttered by JWU.

Final Thoughts

A lot has happened across the college sports landscape and it’s not close to being over. We can expect the ASUN to add at least one FCS team to reach 6 for the AQ and something says the WAC is probably close to another expansion right now given their aggressiveness to potentially obtain the AQ for the 2021 season.

Another interesting aspect to watch is what happens to the conferences currently at 6 or 7 football members? Will we see a Southland + OVC joint conference in football only? Or will the teams in those conferences be picked off with the lure of stability in a new home? Or perhaps a different conference will have a meltdown and set off another chain reaction of moves?

We’ll be here to note any additional moves so be sure to check back for updates and possibly some analysis on the potential changes!

Photo courtesy of Abilene Christian University