Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

For the defunct league that was also called the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, see Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association.

The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Formed in 1913, it consists mostly of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs), with all but one member located in the Southern United States.

Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

Association	NCAA
Founded	1913
Commissioner	Dr. Anthony L. Holloman (since September 2022)
Sports fielded	14 men's: 8 women's: 6
Division	Division II
No. of teams	15
Headquarters	Atlanta, Georgia
Region	Southeastern United States and Ohio
Official website	www.thesiac.com
Locations

The SIAC has led all NCAA Division II conferences in football attendance.^[1]

History

Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

 

[Interactive fullscreen map + nearby articles]

Location of SIAC members:   current, east division   current, west division

Only three charter members are still part of the conference—Clark Atlanta University (formerly Clark College), Tuskegee University, and Morehouse (which briefly left before returning). Before 2014, all members had been southern HBCUs, but four of the SIAC's five newest members include its only non-HBCU, Spring Hill College (joined in 2014), and its only member outside the South, Central State University of Ohio (joined in 2015). Their last three recent members were former member schools in their first stints: Savannah State University returned to the SIAC in 2019 after a 19-year absence, Allen University returned to the SIAC in 2020 after a 51-year absence, and Edward Waters University returned to the SIAC in 2021 after a nearly 86-year absence. The U.S. Army's 24th Infantry Division teams competed as members of the SIAC from 1930 until 1935.^{[citation needed]}

On March 31, 2021, Paine College left the SIAC and the NCAA and joined the NCCAA.^[2]

Chronological timeline

• 1913 - The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) was founded as the Southeastern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SEIAC). Charter members involved Lincoln Junior College (now Alabama State University), Atlanta University, Clark College, Fisk University, Jackson College (now Jackson State University), Morris Brown College, Morehouse College, Talladega College, and Tuskegee University beginning the 1913-14 academic year.
• 1914 - Jackson State left the SIAC after spending just one season after the 1913-14 academic year.
• 1920 - Florida Agricultural and Mechanical College (now Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University), Knoxville College, and Tennessee Agricultural & Industrial State Normal College (now Tennessee State University) joined the SIAC in the 1920-21 academic year.
• 1927 - Miles Memorial College (now Miles College) joined the SIAC in the 1927-28 academic year.
• 1929 - Atlanta University left the SIAC after the 1928-29 academic year.
• 1929 - The SEIAC has been rebranded as the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) in the 1929-30 academic year.
• 1929 - Lane College joined the SIAC in the 1929-30 academic year.
• 1930 - Tennessee State left the SIAC after the 1929-30 academic year.
• 1930 - Edward Waters College (now Edward Waters University) joined the SIAC in the 1930-31 academic year.
• 1932 - Benedict College and LeMoyne College (now LeMoyne–Owen College) joined the SIAC in the 1932-33 academic year.
• 1935 - Edward Waters left the SIAC after the 1934-35 academic year.
• 1935 - The Normal Industrial Agricultural and Mechanical College of South Carolina (now South Carolina State University) and Xavier University of Louisiana joined the SIAC in the 1935-36 academic year.
• 1941 - Talladega left the SIAC after the 1940-41 academic year.
• 1941 - Fort Valley State College (now Fort Valley State University) joined the SIAC in the 1941-42 academic year.
• 1947 - Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical College (now Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University) and Allen University joined the SIAC in the 1947-48 academic year.
• 1950 - Bethune–Cookman College (now Bethune–Cookman University) joined the SIAC in the 1950-51 academic year.
• 1960 - Xavier (La.) left the SIAC after the 1959-60 academic year.
• 1969 - Allen left the SIAC after the 1968-69 academic year.
• 1969 - Albany State College (now Albany State University) and Savannah State College (now Savannah State University) joined the SIAC in the 1969-70 academic year.
• 1971 - South Carolina State left the SIAC after the 1970-71 academic year.
• 1976 - Alabama State left the SIAC after the 1975-76 academic year.
• 1978 - Rust College and Stillman College joined the SIAC in the 1978-79 academic year.
• 1979 - Bethune–Cookman and Florida A&M left the SIAC to join the MEAC after the 1978-79 academic year.
• 1983 - Fisk left the SIAC after the 1982-83 academic year.
• 1985 - Paine College joined the SIAC in the 1985-86 academic year.
• 1988 - Rust left the SIAC after the 1987-88 academic year.
• 1990 - Knoxville left the SIAC after the 1989-90 academic year.
• 1997 - Kentucky State University joined the SIAC in the 1997-98 academic year.
• 1998 - Alabama A&M left the SIAC to join Division I ranks of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) after the 1997-98 academic year.
• 1999 - Stillman left the SIAC to join the NCAA Division III ranks and the Great South Athletic Conference (GSAC) after the 1998-99 academic year.
• 2000 - Morris Brown and Savannah State left the SIAC to become NCAA D-II Independents after the 1999-2000 academic year.
• 2002 - Stillman re-joined the SIAC in the 2002-03 academic year.
• 2008 - Claflin University joined the SIAC in the 2008-09 academic year.
• 2013 - Central State University joined the SIAC as an associate member for football in the 2013 fall season (2013-14 academic year).
• 2014 - Spring Hill College joined the SIAC in the 2014-15 academic year.
• 2015 - Central State had upgraded to join the SIAC for all sports in the 2015-16 academic year.
• 2016 - Stillman left the SIAC for a second time to join the Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) ranks after the 2015-16 academic year.
• 2018 - Claflin left the SIAC to join the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) after the 2017-18 academic year.
• 2019 - Savannah State re-joined the SIAC as a provisional member in the 2019-20 academic year.
• 2020 - Allen re-joined the SIAC as a provisional member in the 2020-21 academic year (later full member status in 2022-23).
• 2021 – Paine left the SIAC and the NCAA to join as an Independent within the National Christian Collegiate Athletic Association (NCCAA) after the 2020-21 academic year.
• 2021 - Edward Waters re-joined the SIAC as a provisional member in the 2021-22 academic year (later full member status in 2022-23).

Member schools

Current members

The SIAC currently has 15 full members; all but five are private schools. Reclassifying members listed in yellow.

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined	Colors
Albany State University	Albany, Georgia	1903	Public	6,228	Golden Rams	1969
Allen University	Columbia, South Carolina	1870	AME Church	657	Yellow Jackets	1947; 2020^[a]
Benedict College	Columbia, South Carolina	1870	Baptist	1,840	Tigers	1932
Central State University	Wilberforce, Ohio	1887	Public	5,434	Marauders & Lady Marauders	2015^[b]
Clark Atlanta University	Atlanta, Georgia	1865	United Methodist	4,000	Panthers	1913
Edward Waters University	Jacksonville, Florida	1866	AME Church	1,181	Tigers	1930; 2021^[c]
Fort Valley State University	Fort Valley, Georgia	1895	Public	2,182	Wildcats	1941
Kentucky State University	Frankfort, Kentucky	1886	Public	1,726	Thorobreds & Thorobrettes	1997
Lane College	Jackson, Tennessee	1882	CME Church	1,010	Dragons	1929
LeMoyne–Owen College	Memphis, Tennessee	1862	United Church of Christ	609	Magicians	1932
Miles College	Fairfield, Alabama	1898	CME Church	1,500	Golden Bears	1927
Morehouse College^[d]	Atlanta, Georgia	1867	Nonsectarian	2,260	Maroon Tigers	1913
Savannah State University	Savannah, Georgia	1890	Public	2,945	Tigers	1969; 2019^[e]
Spring Hill College	Mobile, Alabama	1830	Catholic	1,439	Badgers	2014
Tuskegee University	Tuskegee, Alabama	1881	Nonsectarian	2,570	Golden Tigers	1913

Notes

1. Allen left the SIAC after the 1968–69 school year; but re-joined in the 2020–21 school year.
2. Central State competed in the SIAC as an affiliate member for football from the 2013 to 2014 fall seasons (2013–14 to 2014–15 school years).
3. Edward Waters left the SIAC after the 1934–35 school year; but re-joined in the 2021–22 school year.
4. This institution is a men's college, therefore it does not field women's sports.
5. Savannah State left the SIAC after the 1999–2000 school year; but re-joined in the 2019–20 school year.

Former members

The SIAC has 17 former full members, all but six were private schools:

Institution	Location	Founded	Affiliation	Enrollment	Nickname	Joined	Left	Current conference
Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical University	Normal, Alabama	1875	Public	6,172	Bulldogs & Lady Bulldogs	1947	1998	Southwestern (SWAC)^[a]
Alabama State University	Montgomery, Alabama	1867	Public	4,190	Hornets	1913	1976	Southwestern (SWAC)^[a]
Atlanta University	Atlanta, Georgia	1865	AMA	N/A	Panthers	1913	1929	N/A^[b]
Bethune–Cookman University	Daytona Beach, Florida	1904	Nonsectarian	2,901	Wildcats	1950	1979	Southwestern (SWAC)^[a]
Claflin University	Orangeburg, South Carolina	1869	United Methodist	1,978	Panthers	2008	2018	Central (CIAA)
Fisk University	Nashville, Tennessee	1866	United Church of Christ	910	Bulldogs	1913	1983	Gulf Coast (GCAC)^[c]
Florida A&M University	Tallahassee, Florida	1887	Public	9,626	Rattlers	1920	1979	Southwestern (SWAC)^[a]
Jackson State University	Jackson, Mississippi	1877	Public	7,080	Tigers	1913	1914	Southwestern (SWAC)^[a]
Knoxville College	Knoxville, Tennessee	1875	Presbyterian	11	Bulldogs	1920	1990	N/A^[d]
Morris Brown College	Atlanta, Georgia	1881	AME Church	42	Wolverines	1913	2000	N/A^[e]
Paine College	Augusta, Georgia	1882	UMC & CME Church	453	Lions	1985	2021	NCCAA Independent
Rust College	Holly Springs, Mississippi	1866	United Methodist	900	Bearcats	1978	1988	Gulf Coast (GCAC)^[c]
South Carolina State University	Orangeburg, South Carolina	1896	Public	2,479	Bulldogs	1935	1971	Mid-Eastern (MEAC)^[a]
Stillman College	Tuscaloosa, Alabama	1874	Presbyterian	1,000	Tigers	1978 2002	1999 2016^[f]	Southern States (SSAC)^[c]
Talladega College	Talladega, Alabama	1867	United Church of Christ	600	Tornadoes	1913	1941	Continental Athletic (CAC)^[c]
Tennessee State University	Nashville, Tennessee	1912	Public	8,775	Tigers	1920	1930	Ohio Valley (OVC)^[a]
Xavier University of Louisiana	New Orleans, Louisiana	1925	Catholic	3,200	Gold Rush & Gold Nuggets	1935	1960	Red River (RRAC)^[c]

Notes

1. Currently an NCAA Division I athletic conference.
2. Atlanta University and Clark College merged in 1988 to become Clark Atlanta University.
3. Currently an NAIA athletic conference.
4. Knoxville dropped its athletics program after the 1996–97 school year.
5. Morris Brown dropped its athletics program after the 2002–03 school year.
6. Stillman withdrew from the SIAC from 1999–2000 to 2001–02.

Membership timeline

 Full member (all sports)   Full member (non-football)   Associate member (football-only)   Associate member (sport) 

Conference facilities

 

Old SIAC logo

School	Football		Basketball
	Stadium	Capacity	Arena	Capacity
Albany State	Albany State University Coliseum	11,000	HPER Gym Complex	4,000
Allen	Various	Varies	John Hurst Adams Gym	N/A
Benedict	Charlie W. Johnson Stadium	11,000	Benjamin E. Mays Arena	3,500
Central State	McPherson Stadium	7,000	Beacom/Lewis Gymnasium	N/A
Clark Atlanta	Panther Stadium	6,000	L. S. Epps Gym	1,800
Edward Waters	Nathaniel Glover Community Field & Stadium	N/A	John Hurst Adams-Jimmy R. Jenkins Community Sports & Music Complex	1,950
Fort Valley State	Wildcat Stadium	10,000	Health and Physical Education Complex (FVSU)	5,100
Kentucky State	Alumni Field	5,000	William Exum HPER Center	2,750
Lane	Rothrock Stadium	3,500	J.F. Lane Center	2,500
LeMoyne–Owen	non-football school		Bruce Hall	1,000
Miles	Alumni Stadium	8,500	Knox-Windham Gym	2,000
Morehouse	B. T. Harvey Stadium	9,850	Forbes Arena	6,000
Savannah State	Ted Wright Stadium	8,500	Tiger Arena	5,000
Spring Hill	non-football school		Arthur R. Outlaw Recreation Center	2,000
Tuskegee	Abbott Memorial Alumni Stadium	10,000	James Center Arena	5,000

Conference sports

The SIAC currently sponsors 14 sports, eight for men and six for women. Men's volleyball became the 14th SIAC sport in the 2020–21 school year; play was intended to start in January 2021^[3] but was delayed to 2022 due to COVID-19 issues.

A divisional format is used for baseball, men's and women's basketball, softball, and women's volleyball.
East Albany State Allen Benedict Clark Atlanta Edward Waters Fort Valley State Morehouse Savannah State	West Central State Kentucky State Lane LeMoyne–Owen Miles Spring Hill Tuskegee

Conference sports

Sport	Men's	Women's
Baseball	Y
Basketball	Y	Y
Cross country	Y	Y
Football	Y
Golf	Y
Softball		Y
Tennis	Y	Y
Track & Field Outdoor	Y	Y
Volleyball	Y	Y

Men's sponsored sports by school

School	Baseball	Basketball	Cross Country	Football	Golf	Tennis	Track & Field Outdoor	Volleyball^[a]	Total SIAC Sports
Albany State	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y		Y		6
Allen		Y	Y	Y			Y		4
Benedict	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	8
Central State		Y	Y	Y			Y	Y	5
Clark Atlanta	Y	Y	Y	Y					4
Edward Waters	Y	Y	Y	Y			Y	Y	6
Fort Valley State		Y	Y	Y		Y	Y	Y	6
Kentucky State	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y		Y	Y	7
Lane	Y	Y	Y	Y		Y	Y		6
LeMoyne–Owen	Y	Y	Y		Y	Y			5
Miles	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y				5
Morehouse	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	8
Savannah State	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y		Y		6
Spring Hill	Y	Y	Y		Y	Y	Y		6
Tuskegee	Y	Y	Y	Y		Y	Y		6
Totals	12	15	15	13	8	7	12	6	89

1. De facto Division I sport. The NCAA sponsors a combined national championship for Divisions I and II.

Women's sponsored sports by school

School	Basketball	Cross Country	Softball	Tennis	Track & Field Outdoor	Volleyball	Total SIAC Sports
Albany State	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	6
Allen	Y	Y	Y		Y	Y	5
Benedict	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	6
Central State	Y	Y			Y	Y	4
Clark Atlanta	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	6
Edward Waters	Y	Y	Y		Y	Y	5
Fort Valley State	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	6
Kentucky State	Y	Y	Y		Y	Y	5
Lane	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	6
LeMoyne–Owen	Y	Y	Y	Y		Y	5
Miles	Y	Y	Y		Y	Y	5
Savannah State	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	6
Spring Hill	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	6
Tuskegee	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y	6
Totals	14	14	13	9	13	14	77

Other sponsored sports by school

School		Men				Women
		Soccer	Track & Field Indoor	Wrestling		Beach Volleyball^[a]	Golf	Soccer	Track & Field Indoor
Albany State								PBC
Allen				CC				IND
Benedict			IND						IND
Central State			PBC						PBC
Edward Waters			IND				IND	IND	IND
Kentucky State			IND						IND
Savannah State							IND
Spring Hill		GSC				IND	GSC	GSC

1. De facto Division I sport. The NCAA sponsors a single championship event open to members of all three divisions.

Championships

See also: SIAC men's basketball tournament and SIAC women's basketball tournament

Commissioner's All-Sports

Year School 2012-2013 Albany State (W) Morehouse (M) 2013-2014 Albany State (W) Morehouse (M) 2014-2015 Benedict (W) Benedict (M) 2015-2016 Benedict (W) Benedict (M) 2016-2017 Benedict (W) Albany State (M) 2017-2018 Albany State (W) Albany State (M) 2018-2019 Spring Hill College (W) Albany State and Miles (M)

Men's sports

Last three years of champions.

Year	Football	Cross Country	Basketball (Tournament)	Baseball	Tennis	Track & Field Outdoor	Golf	Volleyball
2020–21	Canceled due to COVID	Canceled due to COVID	Canceled due to COVID	Canceled due to COVID	Canceled due to COVID	Canceled due to COVID	Canceled due to COVID	Canceled due to COVID
2021–22	Albany State	Benedict	Savannah State	Spring Hill	Benedict	Benedict	Spring Hill	Central State (Inaugural season)
2022–23	Benedict	Morehouse	Miles	Spring Hill	Spring Hill	Benedict	Spring Hill	Edward Waters

• Golf returned as a conference sport in 2008. The first SIAC Intercollegiate Golf Championship was held at Tuskegee in 1938. The SIAC stopped Golf as a sport due to World War II but restarted in 1947 as an official conference sport until 1980 when golf was discontinued.

Women's sports

Last three years of champions.

Year	Volleyball	Cross Country	Basketball (Tournament)	Softball	Tennis	Track & Field Outdoor
2020–21	Canceled due to COVID	Canceled due to COVID	Canceled due to COVID	Canceled due to COVID	Canceled due to COVID	Canceled due to COVID
2021–22	Spring Hill	Spring Hill	Benedict	Tuskegee	Benedict	Benedict
2022–23	Spring Hill	Benedict	Tuskegee	Edward Waters	Benedict	Benedict

See also

• Pioneer Bowl

References

1. pbrock (November 19, 2013). "NCAA Football Attendance".
2. Gaither, Steven (March 31, 2021). "Paine College approved for NCCAA". HBCU Game Day. Retrieved 27 January 2023.
3. "First Point Volleyball Foundation and USA Volleyball Makes a $1 Million Investment to SIAC Member Institutions". Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. September 6, 2019. Retrieved September 13, 2019.

External links

• Official website