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Sun Belt Conference

The Sun Belt Conference (SBC) is a collegiate athletic conference that has been affiliated with the NCAA's Division I since 1976. Originally a non-football conference, the Sun Belt began sponsoring football in 2001. Its football teams participate in the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). The 14 member institutions of the Sun Belt are distributed across the Southern United States.

Sun Belt Conference
AssociationNCAA
Founded1976
CommissionerKeith Gill (since 2019)
Sports fielded
  • 19
    • men's: 9
    • women's: 10
DivisionDivision I
SubdivisionFBS
No. of teams14
HeadquartersNew Orleans, Louisiana
RegionSouthern United States
Official websitewww.sunbeltsports.org
Locations

History edit

 
Original Sun Belt logo from 1976.

The Sun Belt Conference was founded on August 4, 1976, with the University of New Orleans, the University of South Alabama, Georgia State University, Jacksonville University, the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and the University of South Florida. Over the next ten years the conference would add Western Kentucky University, Old Dominion University, the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and Virginia Commonwealth University. New Orleans was forced out of the league in 1980 due to its small on-campus gymnasium that the conference did not deem suitable for conference competition. New Orleans competed as an independent before joining the newly formed American South Conference in 1987.

After the 1990–91 basketball season, all members of the Sun Belt, except Western Kentucky, South Alabama, and Jacksonville, departed for other conferences. The Sun Belt, including incoming member in the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, then merged with the American South Conference, made up of Arkansas State University, Louisiana Tech University, the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette), the University of Texas–Pan American (now merged into the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley), New Orleans (re-joined), Lamar University, and the University of Central Florida. Although the American South was the larger conference, the merged league retained the Sun Belt name. In 1991, the league first began to explore the idea of sponsoring football.[1]

Central Florida left the league following the 1991–92 academic year due to a dispute over television rights, among other reasons.[2][3] Lamar, Texas–Pan American, and Jacksonville departed at the end of the 1997–98 academic year. Florida International University joined the Sun Belt in 1998, and the University of Denver was added in 1999. Louisiana Tech departed after the 2000–01 academic year.

 
The Sun Belt Conference headquarters are currently housed at the Caesars Superdome.

The conference did not sponsor football until 2001, when the league added former Big West Conference members New Mexico State University and the University of North Texas and former Ohio Valley Conference member (an FBS Independent on football) Middle Tennessee State University as full members (all three of them joined a year earlier for all sports in the 2000-01 school year) and added FBS Independent University of Louisiana at Monroe and Big West member University of Idaho as football-only members. These new members gave the Sun Belt seven football playing members in their first season, as Arkansas State and Louisiana were already full members which sponsored football. Another Big West school, Utah State University, was added as a football-only member in 2003, then departed in 2005 with Idaho and New Mexico State for the Western Athletic Conference (WAC).

In 2004, Troy University became a football-only member before joining for all sports in the 2005–06 academic year. In 2005, Florida Atlantic became a football-only member before joining for all sports in the 2006-07 academic year. In 2006, Louisiana–Monroe joined the conference as an all-sports full member when the Warhawks left their former home, the Southland Conference.

Longtime Sun Belt member Western Kentucky joined the Sun Belt's football conference in 2009 after its board of regents voted to upgrade the school's football program to Division I FBS.[4]

On November 11, 2009, New Orleans announced it was investigating a move from Division I to the NCAA's Division III. In order to maintain athletic scholarships, UNO instead opted for entry into Division II. On April 20, 2011, UNO officially received transition approval from the NCAA Division II Membership Committee.[5] (UNO later decided to remain in Division I, and joined the Southland Conference in 2013.)

Early 2010s realignment edit

 
The former Sun Belt Conference logo used until its rebranding in 2013

On April 9, 2012, Georgia State, one of the founding members of the Sun Belt Conference, announced that it would be returning to the conference as a full member in 2013. As part of the move, the football program began a transition from FCS to FBS in the 2012 season; it played a full Sun Belt schedule as a "transitional" FBS member in 2013, and became a full FBS member, with bowl eligibility, in 2014.[6] On May 2, 2012, Texas State University announced it would leave the WAC after just one year and join the Sun Belt in July 2013 to begin play for the 2013–14 academic year. At the press conference to announce Texas State's addition, Sun Belt Commissioner Karl Benson also hinted that more changes could be on the way for the conference.[7] On May 25, 2012, the conference announced that the University of Texas at Arlington (a non-football member) had accepted an invitation to join the conference and would become a full member by 2013.[8]

On May 4, 2012, FIU and North Texas announced that they would be leaving the Sun Belt for Conference USA on July 1, 2013 as part of a Conference USA expansion effort involving four other schools.[9] On November 29, 2012, Florida Atlantic and Middle Tennessee State announced that they would also leave the Sun Belt for Conference USA.[10] The move for Florida Atlantic and MTSU was originally scheduled to take place in 2014; however, the two schools announced on January 28, 2013 that they would leave for Conference USA a year early, departing on July 1, 2013 with FIU and North Texas. Western Kentucky also accepted an invitation to join Conference USA on April 1, 2013, and departed from the Sun Belt on July 1, 2014.[11]

These moves depleted the Sun Belt and made the need to expand their membership more urgent than ever, as the Sun Belt was left with ten full members and only eight members that sponsor football (the minimum number required for a conference to sponsor football at the FBS level) for the 2013 season. Appalachian State University accepted an invitation on March 27, 2013 to join the Sun Belt effective July 1, 2014.[12] Georgia Southern University accepted a similar Sun Belt invitation at the same time as Appalachian State.[13] Appalachian State and Georgia Southern both joined for all sports from the Southern Conference on July 1, 2014. Both schools had been very successful within the Football Championship Subdivision, combining to win nine national championships since 1985. They upgraded to the Football Bowl Subdivision, and were eligible for Sun Belt conference championships in 2014, but were not postseason-eligible in football until 2015.

The Sun Belt also granted football-only invites to Idaho and New Mexico State on March 28, 2013.[14] Idaho and New Mexico State were both former Sun Belt members (Idaho for football only, New Mexico State for all sports) from 2001 to 2005. The large number of defections from the WAC forced that conference to drop football after the 2012 season. Idaho and New Mexico State were the only remaining WAC members that sponsored football, and competed as FBS independents for the 2013 season before competing in the Sun Belt in 2014. Idaho is located by far the farthest away from the other Sun Belt conference members, but it was rejected by the Mountain West Conference,[15] leaving it with no other choice.[16][17]

On September 1, 2015, Coastal Carolina University accepted an invitation to join the Sun Belt Conference. The university joined in all sports except for football starting July 1, 2016, with football joining in 2017.[18]

The conference announced on March 1, 2016, that the affiliation agreement with Idaho and New Mexico State would not be extended past the 2017 season.[19]

The conference announced that beginning in 2018, the conference (10 teams) would be divided into two divisions for football: East: Appalachian State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, and Troy; West: Arkansas State, Louisiana, Louisiana–Monroe, South Alabama, and Texas State. The winner of each division will meet in the Sun Belt Championship game.[20]

Early 2020s realignment edit

Following the July 30, 2021 announcement of the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Oklahoma both moving from the Big 12 Conference to the Southeastern Conference,[21] the world of college athletics faced the prospect of realignment once again. The Big 12 responded on September 10 by adding three schools from the American Athletic Conference (The American) and BYU, an FBS independent and otherwise a member of the non-football West Coast Conference, effective in 2023.[22] The American in turn responded on October 21 by adding six schools from Conference USA (C-USA), with 2023 as the most likely entry date.[23][24] Following this move, rumors began to circulate that the Sun Belt was planning to take on another three members (the University of Southern Mississippi (Southern Miss or USM), Marshall University, and former Sun Belt member Old Dominion University) from C-USA, likely in response to that conference's remaining teams worried of the conference folding.[25] These moves would help to establish the market areas for the Sun Belt and The American, which cover similar geographic footprints. The American would now have most of its members in metropolitan areas, while the Sun Belt would instead have its members in smaller college towns.

On October 22, The Action Network reported that Southern Miss had been accepted as a new Sun Belt member, with 2023 as the likely entry date. The report also stated that the Sun Belt would add three more members—the aforementioned Marshall and Old Dominion, plus James Madison University, a member of the FCS Colonial Athletic Association (CAA).[26] Southern Miss[27] and Old Dominion[28] were respectively announced as incoming members on October 26 and 27. At the time, both were to join no later than 2023. On October 29, the day after Marshall named its next president,[29] both the Sun Belt and Marshall issued tweets announcing that school's entry; a formal announcement followed the next day[30] and an introductory press conference was held on November 1.[31] As for James Madison, its board met on October 29 to discuss a potential Sun Belt invitation, but its timeline was also affected by a Virginia state law that requires legislative approval for a four-year public school to move upward in athletic classification, including FCS to FBS. The legislative committee that must review the move did not meet until November 5, after the state's gubernatorial election.[32] The committee unanimously approved JMU's move from FCS to FBS, and the Sun Belt move was officially announced on November 6.[33][34] The original Action Network report also stated that the two full non-football SBC members, Little Rock and UT Arlington, would no longer be members of the conference after the 2022–23 school year.[26]

Initial plans were for James Madison to compete as a de facto Sun Belt affiliate in sports other than football and men's soccer during the 2022–23 season.[35] However, those plans would eventually change, with JMU and the SBC jointly announcing on February 2, 2022 that JMU would become a full SBC member, including football, in 2022–23.[36]

By the end of January 2022, both non-football members would announce their departures for other conferences, effective that July. On December 8, 2021, the University of Arkansas Board of Trustees voted to accept an invitation for Little Rock to join the Ohio Valley Conference,[37] and UT Arlington, which had been a Western Athletic Conference member in the 2012–13 school year, announced its return to that conference on January 21, 2022.[38]

Shortly thereafter, Marshall, Old Dominion, and Southern Miss announced that they planned to leave C-USA for the Sun Belt in July 2022. They claimed to have notified C-USA of their plans in December 2021, apparently seeking to negotiate a 2022 exit. C-USA had indicated in late January 2022 that it expected the three schools to remain in that league through the 2022–23 school year.[39] Marshall escalated the situation by filing suit against C-USA in its local court in an attempt to force a 2022 move.[40] On March 29, Conference USA agreed to let Marshall, Old Dominion, and Southern Miss move to the Sun Belt starting July 1, 2022.[41]

On April 6, with the entrance of three new men's soccer-sponsoring schools in James Madison, Marshall, and Old Dominion, the Sun Belt announced that men's soccer would be reinstated as a sponsored sport. The three aforementioned programs joined current Sun Belt members Coastal Carolina (previously affiliates with Conference USA) as well as Georgia State and Georgia Southern (previously affiliates with the Mid-American Conference). Additionally, it was announced that Kentucky, South Carolina, and West Virginia would join as men's soccer affiliate members beginning in fall 2022, giving the conference an inaugural soccer membership of 9.[42] Kentucky and South Carolina were previously also affiliated with C-USA, while West Virginia was affiliated with the MAC. The SBC later announced it would add UCF as a men's soccer affiliate when that school joined the Big 12 Conference in 2023.[43] In men's soccer, the conference is not a "mid-major" conference, but a "power" conference due to the quasi-alliance of the Big 12 and SEC schools, plus the presence of a recent national champion in Marshall.

On June 6, the SBC presidents & chancellors approved adding two new women's sports, beach volleyball and swimming & diving, no later than the 2023–24 school year. They also announced that the conference would explore adding another women's sport, field hockey, at an undetermined future date.[44]

On January 18, 2023, the SBC officially announced that its beach volleyball league would launch that spring, with the four full members sponsoring the sport joined by Charleston, Mercer, UNC Wilmington, and Stephen F. Austin as affiliate members.[45]

On August 17, 2023, the SBC officially announced the return of women's swimming and diving as a sponsored sport.[46]

Member schools edit

Current full members edit

Institution Location Founded Joined Type Enrollment Endowment
(millions)
Nickname Colors
East Division
Appalachian State University Boone, North Carolina 1899 2014 Public 20,023[47] $150[48] Mountaineers    
Coastal Carolina University Conway, South Carolina 1954 2016 10,894[49] $54.7 Chanticleers      
Georgia Southern University Statesboro, Georgia 1906 2014 26,106[50] $277.1 Eagles    
Georgia State University Atlanta, Georgia 1913 1976[a] 50,521[51] $179 Panthers    
James Madison University Harrisonburg, Virginia 1908 2022 21,496 $154.7 Dukes    
Marshall University Huntington, West Virginia 1837 2022 11,962[52] $192[53] Thundering Herd    
Old Dominion University Norfolk, Virginia 1930 1982[b] 24,286[54] $265.8[55] Monarchs      
West Division
Arkansas State University Jonesboro, Arkansas 1909 1991 Public 14,109[56] $113 Red Wolves    
University of Louisiana at Lafayette Lafayette, Louisiana 1898 1991 19,188[57] $232 Ragin' Cajuns    
University of Louisiana at Monroe Monroe, Louisiana 1931 2006[c] 9,060[58] $73 Warhawks    
University of South Alabama Mobile, Alabama 1963 1976 14,834[59] $667[60] Jaguars      
University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg, Mississippi 1910 2022 14,606[61] $136.3[62] Golden Eagles    
Texas State University San Marcos, Texas 1899 2013 38,231[63] $342 Bobcats    
Troy University Troy, Alabama 1887 2005[d] 17,494[64] $192.2[65] Trojans      
Notes
  1. ^ Georgia State left after the 1980–81 school year, then rejoined effective the 2013–14 school year.
  2. ^ Old Dominion left after the 1990–91 school year, then rejoined effective the 2022–23 school year.
  3. ^ Louisiana–Monroe was an affiliate member in football from the 2001 to 2005 fall seasons (2001-02 to 2005-06 school years).
  4. ^ Troy was an affiliate member in football during the 2004 fall season (2004–05 school year).

Affiliate members edit

Institution Location Founded Joined Type Enrollment Nickname Colors Sport Primary
conference
College of Charleston Charleston, South Carolina 1770 2022 Public 10,468 Cougars     Beach volleyball CAA
University of Kentucky Lexington, Kentucky 1865 32,710 Wildcats     Soccer (m) SEC
Mercer University Macon, Georgia 1833 Private 8,740 Bears     Beach volleyball SoCon
University of South Carolina Columbia, South Carolina 1801 Public 35,364 Gamecocks     Soccer (m) SEC
Stephen F. Austin State University Nacogdoches, Texas 1923 11,946 Ladyjacks     Beach volleyball WAC
University of Central Florida
(UCF)
Orlando, Florida 1963 2023 70,406 Knights     Soccer (m) Big 12
University of North Carolina Wilmington
(UNCW)
Wilmington, North Carolina 1947 2022 14,765 Seahawks       Beach volleyball CAA
West Virginia University Morgantown, West Virginia 1867 26,269 Mountaineers     Soccer (m) Big 12
  • The four beach volleyball associates (Charleston, Mercer, Stephen F. Austin, and UNCW) are listed as having joined in 2022, even though they were not announced as incoming affiliates until January 2023. The SBC's first beach volleyball season of 2023, which featured the four schools, was part of the 2022–23 school year.

Former full members edit

Institution Location Founded Joined Left Type Nickname Colors Subsequent
conference
Current
conference
University of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham, Alabama 1969 1979 1991 Public Blazers     Great Midwest The American
University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida 1963 1991 1992 Knights     ASUN Big 12
University of Denver Denver, Colorado 1864 1999 2012 Private Pioneers     WAC Summit
Florida Atlantic University Boca Raton, Florida 1961 2006[a] 2013 Public Owls     C-USA The American
Florida International University Miami, Florida 1965 1998 Panthers     C-USA
Jacksonville University Jacksonville, Florida 1934 1976 1998 Private Dolphins     ASUN
Lamar University Beaumont, Texas 1923 1991 Public Cardinals     Southland
University of Arkansas at Little Rock Little Rock, Arkansas 1927 1991 2022 Trojans       OVC
Louisiana Tech University Ruston, Louisiana 1894 1991 2001 Bulldogs & Lady Techsters     WAC C-USA
Middle Tennessee State University Murfreesboro, Tennessee 1911 2000 2013 Blue Raiders     C-USA
New Mexico State University Las Cruces, New Mexico 1888 2005[b] Aggies     WAC C-USA
University of New Orleans New Orleans, Louisiana 1958 1976 1980 Privateers       D-I Independent Southland
1991 2010 D-I Independent
University of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte, North Carolina 1946 1976 1991 49ers     Metro The American
University of North Texas Denton, Texas 1890 2000 2013 Mean Green     C-USA The American
University of South Florida Tampa, Florida 1956 1976 1991 Bulls     Metro The American
University of Texas at Arlington Arlington, Texas 1895 2013 2022 Mavericks       WAC
University of Texas–Pan American[c] Edinburg, Texas 1927 1991 1998 Broncs     Independent WAC
(as UTRGV Vaqueros)
Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, Virginia 1838 1979 1991 Rams     Metro Atlantic 10
Western Kentucky University Bowling Green, Kentucky 1906 1982 2014 Hilltoppers & Lady Toppers     C-USA
Notes
  1. ^ Florida Atlantic was an affiliate member for football during the 2005 fall season (2005–06 school year).
  2. ^ New Mexico State was a full member from 2000–01 to 2004–05 and an affiliate member for football from the 2014 to 2017 fall seasons (2014–15 to 2017–18 school years).
  3. ^ Texas–Pan American was merged into UTRGV in 2015; the merged school inherited UTPA's athletic program, with the new nickname of Vaqueros, and membership in the Western Athletic Conference (WAC).

Former affiliate members edit

Institution Location Founded Joined Left Type Nickname Colors Sport Conference
in former
Sun Belt sport[a]
University of Central Arkansas Conway, Arkansas 1907 2019 2021 Public Bears[b]     soccer (m) ASUN
Hartwick College Oneonta, New York 1797 2014 2018 Private Hawks     Empire 8
(NCAA D-III)
Howard University Washington, D.C. 1867 2021[c] Bison     Northeast
University of Idaho Moscow, Idaho 1889 2001 2005 Public Vandals     football Big Sky
2014 2018
New Jersey Institute of Technology Newark, New Jersey 1881 2016 Highlanders     soccer (m) America East
New Mexico State University Las Cruces, New Mexico 1888 2018 Aggies     football C-USA
Utah State University Logan, Utah 2003 2005 Aggies       Mountain West
Vanderbilt University Nashville, Tennessee 1873 1995 1997 Private Commodores     soccer (m) none[d]
Notes
  1. ^ In all cases except those of Howard and Vanderbilt, this matches the school's primary conference affiliation. Howard is a full member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, including FCS football. Vanderbilt has been a full member of the Southeastern Conference since that league's creation in 1932.
  2. ^ Central Arkansas uses "Bears" only for men's teams, with women's teams known as "Sugar Bears". Men's soccer was the school's only Sun Belt sport.
  3. ^ Due to COVID-19 concerns, Howard chose not to play soccer in the 2020–21 school year, although the Sun Belt chose to hold a men's soccer season, with the four remaining men's soccer members playing a fall conference schedule and spring non-conference games to accommodate the NCAA's move of the Division I tournament from fall 2020 to spring 2021.
  4. ^ Vanderbilt dropped men's soccer after the 2005 fall season (2005–06 school year). It has been a full member of the Southeastern Conference since 1932.

Membership timeline edit

Conference USAMetro ConferenceConference USAMid-American ConferenceSouthern ConferenceColonial Athletic AssociationBig South ConferenceSouthern ConferenceTrans Atlantic Athletic ConferenceSouthern ConferenceWestern Athletic ConferenceWestern Athletic ConferenceSouthland ConferenceWestern Athletic ConferenceSouthland ConferenceGulf South ConferenceLone Star ConferenceAmerican Athletic ConferenceConference USAAtlantic Sun ConferenceASUN ConferenceSummit LeagueEast Coast Conference (Division I)NCAA Division II independent schoolsGulf South ConferenceMountain West ConferenceWestern Athletic ConferenceBig West ConferenceSouthland ConferenceBig Sky ConferenceWestern Athletic ConferenceBig West ConferenceBig Sky ConferenceAmerican Athletic ConferenceConference USABig West ConferenceSouthland ConferenceConference USAWestern Athletic ConferenceWestern Athletic ConferenceBig West ConferenceMissouri Valley ConferenceConference USAOhio Valley ConferenceSummit LeagueWestern Athletic ConferenceConference USATrans Atlantic Athletic ConferenceWestern Athletic ConferenceGreat West ConferenceAmerican South ConferenceTrans Atlantic Athletic ConferenceAmerican South ConferenceSouthland ConferenceConference USAWestern Athletic ConferenceAmerican South ConferenceSouthland ConferenceSouthland ConferenceWestern Athletic ConferenceSouthland ConferenceAmerican South ConferenceSouthland ConferenceAmerican Athletic ConferenceConference USATrans America Athletic ConferenceAmerican South ConferenceOhio Valley ConferenceTrans America Athletic ConferenceArkansas Intercollegiate ConferenceAmerican South ConferenceSouthland ConferenceConference USAOhio Valley ConferenceConference USAColonial Athletic AssociationColonial Athletic AssociationAtlantic 10 ConferenceColonial Athletic AssociationMetro ConferenceAmerican Athletic ConferenceConference USAGreat Midwest ConferenceAmerican Athletic ConferenceBig East ConferenceConference USAMetro ConferenceAmerican Athletic ConferenceConference USAAtlantic 10 ConferenceConference USAMetro ConferenceSouthland ConferenceAmerican South ConferenceTrans America Athletic ConferenceColonial Athletic AssociationTrans America Athletic Conference

 Full members (all sports)   Full members (non-football)   Associate members (football-only)   Associate members (other)  Other Conference Other Conference

Commissioners edit

 
Vic Bubas was the Sun Belt Conference's first commissioner, successfully creating what was initially a premier mid-major basketball league.

In addition to the five Sun Belt commissioners, three future league leaders served on the Sun Belt staff prior to becoming conference commissioners, including Doug Elgin (Missouri Valley), John Iamarino (Northeast, Southern), and Tom Burnett (Southland).

On October 12, 2011, ESPN reported that Wright Waters would retire, effective July 1, 2012.[66] On February 15, 2012, Karl Benson was hired as the new commissioner of the Sun Belt, after having been the commissioner of the Western Athletic Conference for 17 years. Waters would later move his departure date to March 15, allowing Benson to take over at that time.[6]

Keith Gill was named the commissioner of the Sun Belt Conference on March 18, 2019. He is the first African American to lead any FBS conference.[67][68]

Sports edit

As of the current 2023–24 school year, the Sun Belt Conference sponsors championship competition in nine men's and eleven women's NCAA sanctioned sports.[69] The most recent change to sports sponsorship was the reinstatement of women's swimming & diving in 2023–24.

When Marshall was formally introduced as an incoming Sun Belt member, SBC commissioner Keith Gill also announced that the conference would reinstate men's soccer once all new members joined. Men's soccer resumed play in 2022–23 with six full members joined by three associates. Beach volleyball started play with eight members, evenly divided between full members and associates.

 
 
Teams in Sun Belt competition[a]
Sport Men's Women's
Baseball 14
Basketball 14 14
Beach Volleyball 8
Cross Country 9 13
Football 14
Golf 14 13
Soccer 10 14
Softball 12
Swimming & Diving 4
Tennis 9 14
Track & Field Indoor 7 13
Track & Field Outdoor 10 13
Volleyball 14
  1. ^ Numbers of teams are as of the 2023–24 school year.

Men's sponsored sports by school edit

Member-by-member sponsorship of the nine men's SBC sports for the 2023–24 academic year.

School Baseball Basketball Cross
Country
Football Golf Soccer Tennis Track
& Field
Indoor
Track
& Field
Outdoor
Total
Sun Belt
Sports
Appalachian State Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No Yes 6
Arkansas State Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes 7
Coastal Carolina Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes 8
Georgia Southern Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No 6
Georgia State Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No 6
James Madison Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No 6
Louisiana Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes 8
Louisiana–Monroe Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes 7
Marshall Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes 8
Old Dominion Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No 6
South Alabama Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes 8
Southern Miss Yes Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes 7
Texas State Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes 7
Troy Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes No Yes 7
Totals 14 14 9 14 14 6+4 9 7 10 97+4
Affiliate members
Kentucky Yes 1
South Carolina Yes 1
UCF Yes 1
West Virginia Yes 1

Men's varsity sports not sponsored by the Sun Belt edit

School Sailing[a] Swimming &
Diving
Wrestling
Appalachian State SoCon
Old Dominion Independent ASUN
  1. ^ Sailing is a coeducational sport not governed by the NCAA, but instead by the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association.

Women's sponsored sports by school edit

Member-by-member sponsorship of the 11 women's SBC sports for the 2023–24 academic year.

School Basketball Beach
Volleyball
Cross
Country
Golf Soccer Softball Swimming
& Diving
Tennis Track
& Field
Indoor
Track
& Field
Outdoor
Volleyball Total
Sun Belt
Sports
Appalachian State Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 9
Arkansas State Yes No Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes 8
Coastal Carolina Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 10
Georgia Southern Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 10
Georgia State Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 10
James Madison Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 10
Louisiana Yes No Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 8
Louisiana–Monroe Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 10
Marshall Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 10
Old Dominion Yes No No Yes Yes No Yes Yes No No Yes 6
South Alabama Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 9
Southern Miss Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 10
Texas State Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 9
Troy Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 9
Totals 14 4+4 13 13 14 12 4 14 13 13 14 128+4
Affiliate members
Charleston Yes 1
Mercer Yes 1
Stephen F. Austin Yes 1
UNCW Yes 1

Women's varsity sports not sponsored by the Sun Belt edit

School Bowling Field
Hockey
Lacrosse Rifle Rowing Sailing[a]
Appalachian State MAC
Arkansas State C-USA
Coastal Carolina ASUN
Georgia Southern SoCon
James Madison Independent[b] American
Old Dominion Big East American American Independent
  1. ^ Sailing is a coeducational sport not governed by the NCAA, but instead by the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association.
  2. ^ James Madison will be joining the MAC for field hockey in 2024.

Championships edit

"RS" is regular season, "T" is tournament. Championships from the previous academic year are flagged with the calendar year in which the most recent season or tournament ended.

Current Sun Belt champions edit

NCAA champions edit

The only school to have won a national title while an SBC member is Old Dominion, which won one title in women's basketball and five in the non-SBC sport of field hockey during its first conference tenure from 1982 to 1991. Six other current members have won NCAA Division I team championships prior to joining the conference. Coastal Carolina won its only D-I national title on the day before it officially joined the SBC, while representing the Big South Conference.

School NCAA
titles
Sport Years
Old Dominion
10
Women's basketball 1985
Field hockey 198219831984198819901991199219982000
Georgia Southern
6
Football (Division I-AA/FCS) 198519861989199019992000
James Madison
5
Field hockey 1994
Archery 1995
Football (Division I-AA/FCS) 20042016
Women's lacrosse 2018
Appalachian State
3
Football (Division I-AA/FCS) 200520062007
Marshall
3
Football (Division I-AA/FCS) 19921996
Men's soccer 2020
Louisiana–Monroe
1
Football (Division I-AA/FCS) 1987
Coastal Carolina
1
Baseball 2016
Total 29

See also: List of NCAA schools with the most NCAA Division I championships, List of NCAA schools with the most Division I national championships, and NCAA Division I FBS Conferences

Football edit

For more information see Sun Belt Conference football. For the current season, see 2023 Sun Belt Conference football season.

The Sun Belt first began sponsoring football in 2001. It originally consisted of seven football playing schools, three of which are still members of the conference. Up until 2009, the conference only had a contract with one bowl, the New Orleans Bowl. Following the Sun Belt's improved football success and geographical membership changes, other bowls began to sign contracts with the Sun Belt Conference. As of October 2021, the conference has seven bowl game tie-ins (Cure, Boca Raton, LendingTree, New Orleans, Myrtle Beach, Frisco, and Camellia)

Throughout the years, the conference has experienced flux in membership changes, similar to many other FBS conferences. The conference announced that beginning in 2018, the conference (10 teams after the departure of Idaho and New Mexico State)[70] would be divided into two divisions for football: East: Appalachian State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, and Troy; West: Arkansas State, Louisiana, Louisiana–Monroe, South Alabama, and Texas State. The divisional alignments changed again with the 2022 expansion, with the new dividing line being the Alabama–Georgia border. The winner of each division will meet in the Sun Belt Championship game.[71]

[72][when?][failed verification]

Team First
season
All-Time
record
All-Time
win %
Bowl
appearances
Bowl
record
All-Time
Conference
titles
Current
Head Coach
Appalachian State 1928 653–349–28 .648 7 6–1 22 Shawn Clark
Arkansas State 1911 487–509–37 .489 10 4–6 14 Butch Jones
Coastal Carolina 2003 157–81 .660 2 1–1 9 Tim Beck
Georgia Southern 1924 407–240–10 .627 4 3–1 11 Clay Helton
Georgia State 2010 50–92 .352 5 3–2 0 Shawn Elliott
James Madison 1972 351–220-4 .614 0 0–0 10 Bob Chesney
Louisiana 1901 553–563–34 .496 7 5–2 13 Michael Desormeaux
Louisiana–Monroe 1951 319–446–8 .418 1 0–1 5 Terry Bowden
Marshall 1895 623–563–47 .524 18 12–6 13 Charles Huff
Old Dominion 1930 125–99–4 .557 2 1–1 0 Ricky Rahne
Southern Miss 1912 607–447-27 .574 24 11–13 8 Will Hall
South Alabama 2009 66–83 .443 2 0–2 0 Kane Wommack
Texas State 1904 522–486–25 .517 0 0–0 12 G. J. Kinne
Troy 1909 554–424–28 .565 8 5–3 21 Gerard Parker

Sun Belt champions edit

Since the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS season, the Sun Belt Conference has held a football championship game.[73]

Season Champion Conference
record
2001 Middle Tennessee State
North Texas
5–1
2002 North Texas
6–0
2003 North Texas
7–0
2004 North Texas
7–0
2005 Arkansas State
Louisiana–Lafayette
Louisiana–Monroe
5–2
2006 Middle Tennessee State
Troy
6–1
2007 Florida Atlantic
Troy
6–1
2008 Troy
6–1
2009 Troy
8–0
2010 Florida International
Troy
6–2
2011 Arkansas State
8–0
2012 Arkansas State
7–1
2013* Arkansas State
5–2
2014 Georgia Southern
8–0
2015 Arkansas State
8–0
2016 Appalachian State
Arkansas State
7–1
2017 Appalachian State
Troy
7–1
2018 Appalachian State
7–1
2019 Appalachian State
7–1
2020 Coastal Carolina
Louisiana
8–0
7–1
2021 Louisiana
8–0
2022 Troy
7–1
2023 Troy
7–1
Notes
  • Louisiana–Lafayette vacated 2013 shared Sun Belt Conference co-championship due to major NCAA violations.[74]
  • The 2020 championship game was canceled due to COVID-19 issues; the divisional champions were declared league co-champions.

Bowl games edit

As of the 2022–23 NCAA football bowl games, the Sun Belt Conference has tie-ins with the following bowl games: [75]

Football rivalries edit

Football rivalries involving Sun Belt teams include:

Teams Rivalry
Name
Trophy Meetings
(last)
Record Series
Leader
Appalachian State Georgia Southern Deeper Than Hate 36
(2021)
20–15–1 Appalachian State
Appalachian State Marshall Old Mountain Feud 25
(2022)
15–10 Appalachian State
Georgia State Georgia Southern Modern Day Hate 9
(2022)
6–3 Georgia State
James Madison Old Dominion Royal Rivalry
(all sports)
Crown 4
(2023)
2–2 Tied
Louisiana Louisiana–Monroe Battle on the Bayou Wooden Boot 58
(2022)
31–26 Louisiana
South Alabama Troy Battle for the Belt Belt 11
(2022)
8–3 Troy

Basketball edit

Men's basketball edit

This list goes through the 2021–22 season.[76]

Team First
season
All-time
record
All-time
win %
NCAA Tournament
appearances
NCAA Tournament
record
Arena Head coach
Appalachian State 1919–20 1263–1162 .521 3 0–3 Holmes Center Dustin Kerns
Arkansas State 1926–27 1183–1184 .500 1 0–1 First National Bank Arena Mike Balado
Coastal Carolina 1974–75 711–680 .511 4 0–4 HTC Center Cliff Ellis
Georgia Southern 1926–27 1289–1014 .560 3 0–3 Hanner Fieldhouse Brian Burg
Georgia State 1963–64 668–954 .412 6 2–6 Georgia State Convocation Center Jonas Hayes
James Madison 1969–70 787–714 .524 5 4–5 Atlantic Union Bank Center Mark Byington
Louisiana 1911–12 1449–1124 .563 10 4–10 Cajundome Bob Marlin
Louisiana–Monroe 1951–52 1014–937 .520 7 0–7 Fant–Ewing Coliseum Keith Richard
Marshall 1906–07 1539–1139–2 .575 6 1–6 Cam Henderson Center Dan D'Antoni
Old Dominion 1950–51 1214–765 .613 12 3–12 Chartway Arena Jeff Jones
South Alabama 1968–69 857–682 .557 8 1–8 Mitchell Center Richie Riley
Southern Miss 1912–13 1279–1112–1 .535 3 0–3 Reed Green Coliseum Jay Ladner
Texas State 1920–21 1357–1184 .534 2 0–2 Strahan Arena Terrence Johnson
Troy 1950–51 1086–933 .538 2 0–2 Trojan Arena Scott Cross

Championships edit

Since the 2018–19 season, the Sun Belt Conference Men's and women's basketball tournaments, held in early March, have involved only 10 of the conference's 12 teams, and have been bracketed in a semi-stepladder format. The bottom four seeds play in the first round; the 5 and 6 seeds receive byes to the second round, the 3 and 4 seeds to the quarterfinals, and the top two seeds to the semifinals. The semifinals and finals are held in New Orleans; the 2019 men's and women's events were at Lakefront Arena, and from 2020 will be at Smoothie King Center.[77] Winners of the tournaments earn automatic bids to their respective NCAA Division I basketball tournament.

Season Men's
Regular Season
Champion
Men's
Tournament
Champion
Women's
Regular Season
Champion
Women's
Tournament
Champion
1977 North Carolina–Charlotte No Regular Season No Tournament
1978 North Carolina–Charlotte New Orleans No Regular Season No Tournament
1979 South Alabama Jacksonville No Regular Season No Tournament
1980 South Alabama Virginia Commonwealth No Regular Season No Tournament
1981 Virginia Commonwealth No Regular Season No Tournament
1982 Alabama–Birmingham No Regular Season No Tournament
1983 Virginia Commonwealth Alabama–Birmingham Old Dominion
1984 Virginia Commonwealth Alabama–Birmingham Old Dominion
1985 Virginia Commonwealth Old Dominion
1986 Old Dominion Jacksonville Western Kentucky
1987 Western Kentucky Alabama–Birmingham Old Dominion
1988 North Carolina–Charlotte Old Dominion Western Kentucky
1989 South Alabama Old Dominion Western Kentucky
1990 Alabama–Birmingham South Florida Alabama–Birmingham Old Dominion
1991 South Alabama Alabama–Birmingham Western Kentucky
1992 Southwestern Louisiana Western Kentucky
1993 New Orleans Western Kentucky Western Kentucky
1994 Western Kentucky Southwestern Louisiana Louisiana Tech
1995 Western Kentucky Louisiana Tech Western Kentucky
1996 Arkansas–Little Rock New Orleans Louisiana Tech
1997 South Alabama Louisiana Tech
1998 South Alabama Louisiana Tech
1999 Louisiana Tech Arkansas State Louisiana Tech
2000 Louisiana–Lafayette Louisiana Tech
2001 Western Kentucky Louisiana Tech
2002 Western Kentucky Florida International
2003 Western Kentucky Western Kentucky
2004 Louisiana–Lafayette (vacated) South Alabama Middle Tennessee State
2005 Denver Louisiana–Lafayette (vacated) Western Kentucky Middle Tennessee State
2006 Western Kentucky South Alabama Western Kentucky Middle Tennessee
2007 South Alabama North Texas Middle Tennessee
2008 South Alabama Western Kentucky Western Kentucky
2009 Western Kentucky Middle Tennessee
2010 Troy North Texas Arkansas–Little Rock Middle Tennessee
2011 Florida Atlantic Arkansas–Little Rock Middle Tennessee
Arkansas–Little Rock
Arkansas–Little Rock
2012 Middle Tennessee Western Kentucky Middle Tennessee Arkansas–Little Rock
2013 Middle Tennessee Western Kentucky Middle Tennessee Arkansas–Little Rock
2014 Georgia State Louisiana–Lafayette Arkansas State Western Kentucky
2015 Georgia State Arkansas–Little Rock
2016 Little Rock Arkansas State Troy
2017 UT Arlington Troy Little Rock Troy
2018 Louisiana Georgia State Little Rock
2019 Georgia State Little Rock
UT Arlington
Little Rock
2020 Little Rock Tournament canceled Troy Tournament canceled
2021 Texas State Appalachian State Louisiana Troy
2022 Texas State Georgia State Troy UT Arlington
2023 Southern Miss Louisiana James Madison
Southern Miss
Texas State
James Madison

Baseball edit

Facilities edit

 
Veterans Memorial Stadium, on the campus of Troy University.
School Football stadium Capacity Basketball arena Capacity Baseball stadium Capacity Softball stadium Capacity
Appalachian State Kidd Brewer Stadium 30,000 Holmes Center 8,325 Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium 1,000 Sywassink/Lloyd Family Stadium 1,000
Arkansas State Centennial Bank Stadium 30,406 First National Bank Arena 10,563 Tomlinson Stadium–Kell Field 1,200[78]
Non-softball school
Coastal Carolina Brooks Stadium 21,000 HTC Center 3,370 Springs Brooks Stadium - Vrooman Field 5,400[79] St. John Stadium – Charles Wade-John Lott Field 500
Georgia Southern Paulson Stadium 25,000 Hanner Fieldhouse 4,325[80] J. I. Clements Stadium 3,000 Eagle Field 400
Georgia State Center Parc Stadium 24,333 Georgia State Convocation Center 8,000[81] GSU Baseball Complex 1,092 Robert E. Heck Softball Complex 500
James Madison Bridgeforth Stadium 24,877 Atlantic Union Bank Center 8,500 Eagle Field at Veterans Memorial Park 1,200 Veterans Memorial Park 1,500
Louisiana Cajun Field 41,426 Cajundome[a] 12,068 M. L. Tigue Moore Field 6,000 Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park 2,790
Louisiana–Monroe Malone Stadium 27,617 Fant–Ewing Coliseum 7,085 Warhawk Field 1,800 Geo-Surfaces Field at the ULM Softball Complex 500
Marshall Joan C. Edwards Stadium 38,227 Cam Henderson Center 9,048 Jack Cook Field[82][b] 3,500 Dot Hicks Field 325
Old Dominion S. B. Ballard Stadium 22,480 Chartway Arena 8,472 Bud Metheny Baseball Complex 2,500
Non-softball school
South Alabama Hancock Whitney Stadium 25,450 Mitchell Center 10,041 Eddie Stanky Field 4,500 Jaguar Field 1,050
Southern Miss M. M. Roberts Stadium 36,000 Reed Green Coliseum 8,095 Pete Taylor Park 4,300 Southern Miss Softball Complex 607
Texas State Jim Wacker Field at Bobcat Stadium 30,008 Strahan Coliseum 10,000 Bobcat Ballpark 2,000 Bobcat Softball Stadium 1,000
Troy Veterans Memorial Stadium 30,470 Trojan Arena 6,000[83] Riddle–Pace Field 2,500 Troy Softball Complex 800
Notes
  1. ^ Louisiana's women's basketball team primarily plays at the Cajundome but occasionally plays at Earl K. Long Gymnasium on the main campus.
  2. ^ Expected to open for the 2024 season.

Athletic department revenue by school edit

Total revenue includes ticket sales, contributions and donations, rights and licensing, student fees, school funds and all other sources including TV income, camp income, concessions, and novelties.

Total expenses includes coach and staff salaries, scholarships, buildings and grounds, maintenance, utilities and rental fees, recruiting, team travel, equipment and uniforms, conference dues, and insurance.

The following table shows institutional reporting to the United States Department of Education as shown on the DOE Equity in Athletics website for the 2021–22 academic year.[84]

Institution 2021–22 Total Revenue from Athletics 2021–22 Total Expenses on Athletics
James Madison University $52,857,185 $52,857,185
Old Dominion University $47,364,891 $45,109,567
Georgia State University $45,248,891 $39,913,977
University of Louisiana at Lafayette $39,088,716 $39,088,716
Marshall University $38,114,204 $38,114,204
Coastal Carolina University $38,077,490 $38,077,490
Texas State University $33,707,371 $33,707,371
Appalachian State University $32,271,589 $32,271,589
Georgia Southern University $29,737,578 $29,737,578
Troy University $29,054,724 $29,054,724
University of Southern Mississippi $25,564,444 $25,564,444
University of South Alabama $24,652,380 $24,652,380
Arkansas State University $21,009,474 $21,009,474
University of Louisiana at Monroe $18,416,615 $18,416,615

Academics edit

Four of the Sun Belt's member schools, Georgia State, Louisiana, Old Dominion and Southern Miss are doctorate-granting universities with "very high research activity," the highest classification given by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.[85]

Appalachian State is also currently ranked as one of the Top 10 regional schools in the South by the U.S. News & World Report.

University Affiliation Carnegie[85] Endowment[86] US News[87] Forbes[88]
Appalachian State University Public (UNC) Master's (Larger) $99,593,000[89] 6 (Regional: South) 301
Arkansas State University Public (ASU System) Research (High) $66,217,000[89] 317 (National) N/A[d 1]
Coastal Carolina University Public Master's (Larger) $39,432,000[89] 38 (Regional: South) N/A[d 2]
Georgia Southern University Public (USG System) Research (High) $50,999,000[89] 331-440 (National) N/A[d 3]
Georgia State University Public (USG System) Research (Very High) $155,303,000[89] 234 (National) 367
James Madison University Public Research (High) $116,700,000[55] 151 (National) 139
University of Louisiana at Lafayette Public (UL System) Research (Very High) $178,300,000[90] 331-440 (National) N/A[d 4]
University of Louisiana at Monroe Public (UL System) Doctoral/Research $28,787,795[91] 331-440 (National) N/A[d 5]
Marshall University Public Research (High) $192,000,000[55] 299 (National) N/A[d 6]
Old Dominion University Public Research (Very High) $265,800,000[55] 299 (National) 472
University of South Alabama Public Research (High) $555,735,000[89] 331-440 (National) N/A[d 7]
University of Southern Mississippi Public Research (Very High) $136,300,000[55] 331-440 (National) N/A[d 8]
Texas State University Public (TSU System) Research (High) $186,676,000[89] 331-440 (National) 385
Troy University Public (TU System) Doctoral/Research[92] $191,458,000[93] 44 (Regional: South) N/A[d 9]

Notes edit

  1. ^ Arkansas State is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America's Best Colleges rankings.
  2. ^ Coastal Carolina is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America's Best Colleges rankings.
  3. ^ Georgia Southern is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America's Best Colleges rankings.
  4. ^ Louisiana-Lafayette is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America's Best Colleges rankings.
  5. ^ Louisiana-Monroe is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America's Best Colleges rankings.
  6. ^ Marshall is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America's Best Colleges rankings.
  7. ^ South Alabama is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America's Best Colleges rankings.
  8. ^ Southern Miss is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America's Best Colleges rankings.
  9. ^ Troy is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America's Best Colleges rankings.

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External links edit

  • Official website  

belt, conference, this, article, about, college, athletic, conference, region, southern, united, states, belt, collegiate, athletic, conference, that, been, affiliated, with, ncaa, division, since, 1976, originally, football, conference, belt, began, sponsorin. This article is about the college athletic conference For the region of the southern United States see Sun Belt The Sun Belt Conference SBC is a collegiate athletic conference that has been affiliated with the NCAA s Division I since 1976 Originally a non football conference the Sun Belt began sponsoring football in 2001 Its football teams participate in the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision FBS The 14 member institutions of the Sun Belt are distributed across the Southern United States Sun Belt ConferenceAssociationNCAAFounded1976CommissionerKeith Gill since 2019 Sports fielded19 men s 9 women s 10DivisionDivision ISubdivisionFBSNo of teams14HeadquartersNew Orleans LouisianaRegionSouthern United StatesOfficial websitewww wbr sunbeltsports wbr orgLocations Contents 1 History 1 1 Early 2010s realignment 1 2 Early 2020s realignment 2 Member schools 2 1 Current full members 2 2 Affiliate members 2 3 Former full members 2 4 Former affiliate members 2 5 Membership timeline 3 Commissioners 4 Sports 4 1 Men s sponsored sports by school 4 1 1 Men s varsity sports not sponsored by the Sun Belt 4 2 Women s sponsored sports by school 4 2 1 Women s varsity sports not sponsored by the Sun Belt 5 Championships 5 1 Current Sun Belt champions 5 2 NCAA champions 6 Football 6 1 Sun Belt champions 6 2 Bowl games 6 3 Football rivalries 7 Basketball 7 1 Men s basketball 7 2 Championships 8 Baseball 9 Facilities 10 Athletic department revenue by school 11 Academics 12 Notes 13 References 14 External linksHistory edit nbsp Original Sun Belt logo from 1976 The Sun Belt Conference was founded on August 4 1976 with the University of New Orleans the University of South Alabama Georgia State University Jacksonville University the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and the University of South Florida Over the next ten years the conference would add Western Kentucky University Old Dominion University the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Virginia Commonwealth University New Orleans was forced out of the league in 1980 due to its small on campus gymnasium that the conference did not deem suitable for conference competition New Orleans competed as an independent before joining the newly formed American South Conference in 1987 After the 1990 91 basketball season all members of the Sun Belt except Western Kentucky South Alabama and Jacksonville departed for other conferences The Sun Belt including incoming member in the University of Arkansas at Little Rock then merged with the American South Conference made up of Arkansas State University Louisiana Tech University the University of Southwestern Louisiana now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette the University of Texas Pan American now merged into the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley New Orleans re joined Lamar University and the University of Central Florida Although the American South was the larger conference the merged league retained the Sun Belt name In 1991 the league first began to explore the idea of sponsoring football 1 Central Florida left the league following the 1991 92 academic year due to a dispute over television rights among other reasons 2 3 Lamar Texas Pan American and Jacksonville departed at the end of the 1997 98 academic year Florida International University joined the Sun Belt in 1998 and the University of Denver was added in 1999 Louisiana Tech departed after the 2000 01 academic year nbsp The Sun Belt Conference headquarters are currently housed at the Caesars Superdome The conference did not sponsor football until 2001 when the league added former Big West Conference members New Mexico State University and the University of North Texas and former Ohio Valley Conference member an FBS Independent on football Middle Tennessee State University as full members all three of them joined a year earlier for all sports in the 2000 01 school year and added FBS Independent University of Louisiana at Monroe and Big West member University of Idaho as football only members These new members gave the Sun Belt seven football playing members in their first season as Arkansas State and Louisiana were already full members which sponsored football Another Big West school Utah State University was added as a football only member in 2003 then departed in 2005 with Idaho and New Mexico State for the Western Athletic Conference WAC In 2004 Troy University became a football only member before joining for all sports in the 2005 06 academic year In 2005 Florida Atlantic became a football only member before joining for all sports in the 2006 07 academic year In 2006 Louisiana Monroe joined the conference as an all sports full member when the Warhawks left their former home the Southland Conference Longtime Sun Belt member Western Kentucky joined the Sun Belt s football conference in 2009 after its board of regents voted to upgrade the school s football program to Division I FBS 4 On November 11 2009 New Orleans announced it was investigating a move from Division I to the NCAA s Division III In order to maintain athletic scholarships UNO instead opted for entry into Division II On April 20 2011 UNO officially received transition approval from the NCAA Division II Membership Committee 5 UNO later decided to remain in Division I and joined the Southland Conference in 2013 Early 2010s realignment edit Main article 2010 2013 Sun Belt Conference realignment See also 2010 2013 Conference USA realignment and 2010 2013 Western Athletic Conference realignment nbsp The former Sun Belt Conference logo used until its rebranding in 2013On April 9 2012 Georgia State one of the founding members of the Sun Belt Conference announced that it would be returning to the conference as a full member in 2013 As part of the move the football program began a transition from FCS to FBS in the 2012 season it played a full Sun Belt schedule as a transitional FBS member in 2013 and became a full FBS member with bowl eligibility in 2014 6 On May 2 2012 Texas State University announced it would leave the WAC after just one year and join the Sun Belt in July 2013 to begin play for the 2013 14 academic year At the press conference to announce Texas State s addition Sun Belt Commissioner Karl Benson also hinted that more changes could be on the way for the conference 7 On May 25 2012 the conference announced that the University of Texas at Arlington a non football member had accepted an invitation to join the conference and would become a full member by 2013 8 On May 4 2012 FIU and North Texas announced that they would be leaving the Sun Belt for Conference USA on July 1 2013 as part of a Conference USA expansion effort involving four other schools 9 On November 29 2012 Florida Atlantic and Middle Tennessee State announced that they would also leave the Sun Belt for Conference USA 10 The move for Florida Atlantic and MTSU was originally scheduled to take place in 2014 however the two schools announced on January 28 2013 that they would leave for Conference USA a year early departing on July 1 2013 with FIU and North Texas Western Kentucky also accepted an invitation to join Conference USA on April 1 2013 and departed from the Sun Belt on July 1 2014 11 These moves depleted the Sun Belt and made the need to expand their membership more urgent than ever as the Sun Belt was left with ten full members and only eight members that sponsor football the minimum number required for a conference to sponsor football at the FBS level for the 2013 season Appalachian State University accepted an invitation on March 27 2013 to join the Sun Belt effective July 1 2014 12 Georgia Southern University accepted a similar Sun Belt invitation at the same time as Appalachian State 13 Appalachian State and Georgia Southern both joined for all sports from the Southern Conference on July 1 2014 Both schools had been very successful within the Football Championship Subdivision combining to win nine national championships since 1985 They upgraded to the Football Bowl Subdivision and were eligible for Sun Belt conference championships in 2014 but were not postseason eligible in football until 2015 The Sun Belt also granted football only invites to Idaho and New Mexico State on March 28 2013 14 Idaho and New Mexico State were both former Sun Belt members Idaho for football only New Mexico State for all sports from 2001 to 2005 The large number of defections from the WAC forced that conference to drop football after the 2012 season Idaho and New Mexico State were the only remaining WAC members that sponsored football and competed as FBS independents for the 2013 season before competing in the Sun Belt in 2014 Idaho is located by far the farthest away from the other Sun Belt conference members but it was rejected by the Mountain West Conference 15 leaving it with no other choice 16 17 On September 1 2015 Coastal Carolina University accepted an invitation to join the Sun Belt Conference The university joined in all sports except for football starting July 1 2016 with football joining in 2017 18 The conference announced on March 1 2016 that the affiliation agreement with Idaho and New Mexico State would not be extended past the 2017 season 19 The conference announced that beginning in 2018 the conference 10 teams would be divided into two divisions for football East Appalachian State Coastal Carolina Georgia Southern Georgia State and Troy West Arkansas State Louisiana Louisiana Monroe South Alabama and Texas State The winner of each division will meet in the Sun Belt Championship game 20 Early 2020s realignment edit Main article 2021 2024 NCAA conference realignment nbsp nbsp App State nbsp Coastal Carolina nbsp Georgia Southern nbsp GSU nbsp JMU nbsp Marshall nbsp ODU nbsp Arkansas State nbsp Louisiana nbsp ULM nbsp South Alabama nbsp Southern Miss nbsp Texas State nbsp Troy nbsp Kentucky nbsp SC nbsp WVU nbsp UCF nbsp Charleston nbsp Mercer nbsp SFA nbsp UNCWclass notpageimage Sun Belt Member locations nbsp Full member East nbsp Full member West nbsp current associate member Following the July 30 2021 announcement of the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Oklahoma both moving from the Big 12 Conference to the Southeastern Conference 21 the world of college athletics faced the prospect of realignment once again The Big 12 responded on September 10 by adding three schools from the American Athletic Conference The American and BYU an FBS independent and otherwise a member of the non football West Coast Conference effective in 2023 22 The American in turn responded on October 21 by adding six schools from Conference USA C USA with 2023 as the most likely entry date 23 24 Following this move rumors began to circulate that the Sun Belt was planning to take on another three members the University of Southern Mississippi Southern Miss or USM Marshall University and former Sun Belt member Old Dominion University from C USA likely in response to that conference s remaining teams worried of the conference folding 25 These moves would help to establish the market areas for the Sun Belt and The American which cover similar geographic footprints The American would now have most of its members in metropolitan areas while the Sun Belt would instead have its members in smaller college towns On October 22 The Action Network reported that Southern Miss had been accepted as a new Sun Belt member with 2023 as the likely entry date The report also stated that the Sun Belt would add three more members the aforementioned Marshall and Old Dominion plus James Madison University a member of the FCS Colonial Athletic Association CAA 26 Southern Miss 27 and Old Dominion 28 were respectively announced as incoming members on October 26 and 27 At the time both were to join no later than 2023 On October 29 the day after Marshall named its next president 29 both the Sun Belt and Marshall issued tweets announcing that school s entry a formal announcement followed the next day 30 and an introductory press conference was held on November 1 31 As for James Madison its board met on October 29 to discuss a potential Sun Belt invitation but its timeline was also affected by a Virginia state law that requires legislative approval for a four year public school to move upward in athletic classification including FCS to FBS The legislative committee that must review the move did not meet until November 5 after the state s gubernatorial election 32 The committee unanimously approved JMU s move from FCS to FBS and the Sun Belt move was officially announced on November 6 33 34 The original Action Network report also stated that the two full non football SBC members Little Rock and UT Arlington would no longer be members of the conference after the 2022 23 school year 26 Initial plans were for James Madison to compete as a de facto Sun Belt affiliate in sports other than football and men s soccer during the 2022 23 season 35 However those plans would eventually change with JMU and the SBC jointly announcing on February 2 2022 that JMU would become a full SBC member including football in 2022 23 36 By the end of January 2022 both non football members would announce their departures for other conferences effective that July On December 8 2021 the University of Arkansas Board of Trustees voted to accept an invitation for Little Rock to join the Ohio Valley Conference 37 and UT Arlington which had been a Western Athletic Conference member in the 2012 13 school year announced its return to that conference on January 21 2022 38 Shortly thereafter Marshall Old Dominion and Southern Miss announced that they planned to leave C USA for the Sun Belt in July 2022 They claimed to have notified C USA of their plans in December 2021 apparently seeking to negotiate a 2022 exit C USA had indicated in late January 2022 that it expected the three schools to remain in that league through the 2022 23 school year 39 Marshall escalated the situation by filing suit against C USA in its local court in an attempt to force a 2022 move 40 On March 29 Conference USA agreed to let Marshall Old Dominion and Southern Miss move to the Sun Belt starting July 1 2022 41 On April 6 with the entrance of three new men s soccer sponsoring schools in James Madison Marshall and Old Dominion the Sun Belt announced that men s soccer would be reinstated as a sponsored sport The three aforementioned programs joined current Sun Belt members Coastal Carolina previously affiliates with Conference USA as well as Georgia State and Georgia Southern previously affiliates with the Mid American Conference Additionally it was announced that Kentucky South Carolina and West Virginia would join as men s soccer affiliate members beginning in fall 2022 giving the conference an inaugural soccer membership of 9 42 Kentucky and South Carolina were previously also affiliated with C USA while West Virginia was affiliated with the MAC The SBC later announced it would add UCF as a men s soccer affiliate when that school joined the Big 12 Conference in 2023 43 In men s soccer the conference is not a mid major conference but a power conference due to the quasi alliance of the Big 12 and SEC schools plus the presence of a recent national champion in Marshall On June 6 the SBC presidents amp chancellors approved adding two new women s sports beach volleyball and swimming amp diving no later than the 2023 24 school year They also announced that the conference would explore adding another women s sport field hockey at an undetermined future date 44 On January 18 2023 the SBC officially announced that its beach volleyball league would launch that spring with the four full members sponsoring the sport joined by Charleston Mercer UNC Wilmington and Stephen F Austin as affiliate members 45 On August 17 2023 the SBC officially announced the return of women s swimming and diving as a sponsored sport 46 Member schools editCurrent full members edit Institution Location Founded Joined Type Enrollment Endowment millions Nickname ColorsEast DivisionAppalachian State University Boone North Carolina 1899 2014 Public 20 023 47 150 48 Mountaineers Coastal Carolina University Conway South Carolina 1954 2016 10 894 49 54 7 Chanticleers Georgia Southern University Statesboro Georgia 1906 2014 26 106 50 277 1 Eagles Georgia State University Atlanta Georgia 1913 1976 a 50 521 51 179 Panthers James Madison University Harrisonburg Virginia 1908 2022 21 496 154 7 Dukes Marshall University Huntington West Virginia 1837 2022 11 962 52 192 53 Thundering Herd Old Dominion University Norfolk Virginia 1930 1982 b 24 286 54 265 8 55 Monarchs West DivisionArkansas State University Jonesboro Arkansas 1909 1991 Public 14 109 56 113 Red Wolves University of Louisiana at Lafayette Lafayette Louisiana 1898 1991 19 188 57 232 Ragin Cajuns University of Louisiana at Monroe Monroe Louisiana 1931 2006 c 9 060 58 73 Warhawks University of South Alabama Mobile Alabama 1963 1976 14 834 59 667 60 Jaguars University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg Mississippi 1910 2022 14 606 61 136 3 62 Golden Eagles Texas State University San Marcos Texas 1899 2013 38 231 63 342 Bobcats Troy University Troy Alabama 1887 2005 d 17 494 64 192 2 65 Trojans Notes Georgia State left after the 1980 81 school year then rejoined effective the 2013 14 school year Old Dominion left after the 1990 91 school year then rejoined effective the 2022 23 school year Louisiana Monroe was an affiliate member in football from the 2001 to 2005 fall seasons 2001 02 to 2005 06 school years Troy was an affiliate member in football during the 2004 fall season 2004 05 school year Affiliate members edit Institution Location Founded Joined Type Enrollment Nickname Colors Sport PrimaryconferenceCollege of Charleston Charleston South Carolina 1770 2022 Public 10 468 Cougars Beach volleyball CAAUniversity of Kentucky Lexington Kentucky 1865 32 710 Wildcats Soccer m SECMercer University Macon Georgia 1833 Private 8 740 Bears Beach volleyball SoConUniversity of South Carolina Columbia South Carolina 1801 Public 35 364 Gamecocks Soccer m SECStephen F Austin State University Nacogdoches Texas 1923 11 946 Ladyjacks Beach volleyball WACUniversity of Central Florida UCF Orlando Florida 1963 2023 70 406 Knights Soccer m Big 12University of North Carolina Wilmington UNCW Wilmington North Carolina 1947 2022 14 765 Seahawks Beach volleyball CAAWest Virginia University Morgantown West Virginia 1867 26 269 Mountaineers Soccer m Big 12The four beach volleyball associates Charleston Mercer Stephen F Austin and UNCW are listed as having joined in 2022 even though they were not announced as incoming affiliates until January 2023 The SBC s first beach volleyball season of 2023 which featured the four schools was part of the 2022 23 school year Former full members edit Institution Location Founded Joined Left Type Nickname Colors Subsequentconference CurrentconferenceUniversity of Alabama at Birmingham Birmingham Alabama 1969 1979 1991 Public Blazers Great Midwest The AmericanUniversity of Central Florida Orlando Florida 1963 1991 1992 Knights ASUN Big 12University of Denver Denver Colorado 1864 1999 2012 Private Pioneers WAC SummitFlorida Atlantic University Boca Raton Florida 1961 2006 a 2013 Public Owls C USA The AmericanFlorida International University Miami Florida 1965 1998 Panthers C USAJacksonville University Jacksonville Florida 1934 1976 1998 Private Dolphins ASUNLamar University Beaumont Texas 1923 1991 Public Cardinals SouthlandUniversity of Arkansas at Little Rock Little Rock Arkansas 1927 1991 2022 Trojans OVCLouisiana Tech University Ruston Louisiana 1894 1991 2001 Bulldogs amp Lady Techsters WAC C USAMiddle Tennessee State University Murfreesboro Tennessee 1911 2000 2013 Blue Raiders C USANew Mexico State University Las Cruces New Mexico 1888 2005 b Aggies WAC C USAUniversity of New Orleans New Orleans Louisiana 1958 1976 1980 Privateers D I Independent Southland1991 2010 D I IndependentUniversity of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte North Carolina 1946 1976 1991 49ers Metro The AmericanUniversity of North Texas Denton Texas 1890 2000 2013 Mean Green C USA The AmericanUniversity of South Florida Tampa Florida 1956 1976 1991 Bulls Metro The AmericanUniversity of Texas at Arlington Arlington Texas 1895 2013 2022 Mavericks WACUniversity of Texas Pan American c Edinburg Texas 1927 1991 1998 Broncs Independent WAC as UTRGV Vaqueros Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond Virginia 1838 1979 1991 Rams Metro Atlantic 10Western Kentucky University Bowling Green Kentucky 1906 1982 2014 Hilltoppers amp Lady Toppers C USANotes Florida Atlantic was an affiliate member for football during the 2005 fall season 2005 06 school year New Mexico State was a full member from 2000 01 to 2004 05 and an affiliate member for football from the 2014 to 2017 fall seasons 2014 15 to 2017 18 school years Texas Pan American was merged into UTRGV in 2015 the merged school inherited UTPA s athletic program with the new nickname of Vaqueros and membership in the Western Athletic Conference WAC Former affiliate members edit Institution Location Founded Joined Left Type Nickname Colors Sport Conferencein formerSun Belt sport a University of Central Arkansas Conway Arkansas 1907 2019 2021 Public Bears b soccer m ASUNHartwick College Oneonta New York 1797 2014 2018 Private Hawks Empire 8 NCAA D III Howard University Washington D C 1867 2021 c Bison NortheastUniversity of Idaho Moscow Idaho 1889 2001 2005 Public Vandals football Big Sky2014 2018New Jersey Institute of Technology Newark New Jersey 1881 2016 Highlanders soccer m America EastNew Mexico State University Las Cruces New Mexico 1888 2018 Aggies football C USAUtah State University Logan Utah 2003 2005 Aggies Mountain WestVanderbilt University Nashville Tennessee 1873 1995 1997 Private Commodores soccer m none d Notes In all cases except those of Howard and Vanderbilt this matches the school s primary conference affiliation Howard is a full member of the Mid Eastern Athletic Conference including FCS football Vanderbilt has been a full member of the Southeastern Conference since that league s creation in 1932 Central Arkansas uses Bears only for men s teams with women s teams known as Sugar Bears Men s soccer was the school s only Sun Belt sport Due to COVID 19 concerns Howard chose not to play soccer in the 2020 21 school year although the Sun Belt chose to hold a men s soccer season with the four remaining men s soccer members playing a fall conference schedule and spring non conference games to accommodate the NCAA s move of the Division I tournament from fall 2020 to spring 2021 Vanderbilt dropped men s soccer after the 2005 fall season 2005 06 school year It has been a full member of the Southeastern Conference since 1932 Membership timeline edit Full members all sports Full members non football Associate members football only Associate members other Other Conference Other ConferenceCommissioners edit nbsp Vic Bubas was the Sun Belt Conference s first commissioner successfully creating what was initially a premier mid major basketball league Vic Bubas 1976 1990 Jim Lessig 1990 1991 Craig Thompson 1991 1998 Wright Waters 1999 2012 Karl Benson 2012 2019 Keith Gill 2019 present In addition to the five Sun Belt commissioners three future league leaders served on the Sun Belt staff prior to becoming conference commissioners including Doug Elgin Missouri Valley John Iamarino Northeast Southern and Tom Burnett Southland On October 12 2011 ESPN reported that Wright Waters would retire effective July 1 2012 66 On February 15 2012 Karl Benson was hired as the new commissioner of the Sun Belt after having been the commissioner of the Western Athletic Conference for 17 years Waters would later move his departure date to March 15 allowing Benson to take over at that time 6 Keith Gill was named the commissioner of the Sun Belt Conference on March 18 2019 He is the first African American to lead any FBS conference 67 68 Sports editAs of the current 2023 24 school year the Sun Belt Conference sponsors championship competition in nine men s and eleven women s NCAA sanctioned sports 69 The most recent change to sports sponsorship was the reinstatement of women s swimming amp diving in 2023 24 When Marshall was formally introduced as an incoming Sun Belt member SBC commissioner Keith Gill also announced that the conference would reinstate men s soccer once all new members joined Men s soccer resumed play in 2022 23 with six full members joined by three associates Beach volleyball started play with eight members evenly divided between full members and associates nbsp nbsp Teams in Sun Belt competition a Sport Men s Women sBaseball 14 Basketball 14 14Beach Volleyball 8Cross Country 9 13Football 14 Golf 14 13Soccer 10 14Softball 12Swimming amp Diving 4Tennis 9 14Track amp Field Indoor 7 13Track amp Field Outdoor 10 13Volleyball 14 Numbers of teams are as of the 2023 24 school year Men s sponsored sports by school edit Member by member sponsorship of the nine men s SBC sports for the 2023 24 academic year School Baseball Basketball CrossCountry Football Golf Soccer Tennis Track amp FieldIndoor Track amp FieldOutdoor TotalSun BeltSportsAppalachian State Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No No Yes 6Arkansas State Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes 7Coastal Carolina Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes 8Georgia Southern Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No 6Georgia State Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No 6James Madison Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No 6Louisiana Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes 8Louisiana Monroe Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes 7Marshall Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes 8Old Dominion Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No No 6South Alabama Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes 8Southern Miss Yes Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes 7Texas State Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes 7Troy Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes No Yes 7Totals 14 14 9 14 14 6 4 9 7 10 97 4Affiliate membersKentucky Yes 1South Carolina Yes 1UCF Yes 1West Virginia Yes 1Men s varsity sports not sponsored by the Sun Belt edit School Sailing a Swimming amp Diving WrestlingAppalachian State SoConOld Dominion Independent ASUN Sailing is a coeducational sport not governed by the NCAA but instead by the Inter Collegiate Sailing Association Women s sponsored sports by school edit Member by member sponsorship of the 11 women s SBC sports for the 2023 24 academic year School Basketball BeachVolleyball CrossCountry Golf Soccer Softball Swimming amp Diving Tennis Track amp FieldIndoor Track amp FieldOutdoor Volleyball TotalSun BeltSportsAppalachian State Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 9Arkansas State Yes No Yes Yes Yes No No Yes Yes Yes Yes 8Coastal Carolina Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 10Georgia Southern Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 10Georgia State Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 10James Madison Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 10Louisiana Yes No Yes No Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 8Louisiana Monroe Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 10Marshall Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes 10Old Dominion Yes No No Yes Yes No Yes Yes No No Yes 6South Alabama Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 9Southern Miss Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 10Texas State Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 9Troy Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes No Yes Yes Yes Yes 9Totals 14 4 4 13 13 14 12 4 14 13 13 14 128 4Affiliate membersCharleston Yes 1Mercer Yes 1Stephen F Austin Yes 1UNCW Yes 1Women s varsity sports not sponsored by the Sun Belt edit School Bowling FieldHockey Lacrosse Rifle Rowing Sailing a Appalachian State MACArkansas State C USACoastal Carolina ASUNGeorgia Southern SoConJames Madison Independent b AmericanOld Dominion Big East American American Independent Sailing is a coeducational sport not governed by the NCAA but instead by the Inter Collegiate Sailing Association James Madison will be joining the MAC for field hockey in 2024 Championships editSee also List of Sun Belt Conference champions RS is regular season T is tournament Championships from the previous academic year are flagged with the calendar year in which the most recent season or tournament ended Current Sun Belt champions edit Fall 2023Sport SchoolCrossCountry Appalachian State men Arkansas State women Football Appalachian State East RS Troy West RS amp Championship Game Soccer M Marshall RS amp T Soccer W South Alabama RS Old Dominion T Volleyball W Coastal Carolina East RS amp T Texas State West RS Winter 2022 23Sport SchoolBasketball M Southern Miss RS Louisiana T Basketball W James Madison Southern Miss amp Texas State RS James Madison T Track amp FieldIndoor Arkansas State Men Arkansas State Women Spring 2023Sport SchoolBaseball Coastal Carolina RS Southern Miss T BeachVolleyball Georgia State T Golf Louisiana Men ULM Women Softball Louisiana RS amp T Tennis M Old Dominion South Alabama RS Old Dominion T Tennis W Old Dominion RS amp T Track amp FieldOutdoor Arkansas State Men Arkansas State Women NCAA champions edit The only school to have won a national title while an SBC member is Old Dominion which won one title in women s basketball and five in the non SBC sport of field hockey during its first conference tenure from 1982 to 1991 Six other current members have won NCAA Division I team championships prior to joining the conference Coastal Carolina won its only D I national title on the day before it officially joined the SBC while representing the Big South Conference School NCAAtitles Sport YearsOld Dominion 10 Women s basketball 1985Field hockey 1982 1983 1984 1988 1990 1991 1992 1998 2000Georgia Southern 6 Football Division I AA FCS 1985 1986 1989 1990 1999 2000James Madison 5 Field hockey 1994Archery 1995Football Division I AA FCS 2004 2016Women s lacrosse 2018Appalachian State 3 Football Division I AA FCS 2005 2006 2007Marshall 3 Football Division I AA FCS 1992 1996Men s soccer 2020Louisiana Monroe 1 Football Division I AA FCS 1987Coastal Carolina 1 Baseball 2016Total 29See also List of NCAA schools with the most NCAA Division I championships List of NCAA schools with the most Division I national championships and NCAA Division I FBS ConferencesFootball editFor more information see Sun Belt Conference football For the current season see 2023 Sun Belt Conference football season West Division East DivisionArkansas State Appalachian StateLouisiana Coastal CarolinaLouisiana Monroe Georgia SouthernSouth Alabama Georgia StateSouthern Miss James MadisonTexas State MarshallTroy Old DominionThe Sun Belt first began sponsoring football in 2001 It originally consisted of seven football playing schools three of which are still members of the conference Up until 2009 the conference only had a contract with one bowl the New Orleans Bowl Following the Sun Belt s improved football success and geographical membership changes other bowls began to sign contracts with the Sun Belt Conference As of October 2021 update the conference has seven bowl game tie ins Cure Boca Raton LendingTree New Orleans Myrtle Beach Frisco and Camellia Throughout the years the conference has experienced flux in membership changes similar to many other FBS conferences The conference announced that beginning in 2018 the conference 10 teams after the departure of Idaho and New Mexico State 70 would be divided into two divisions for football East Appalachian State Coastal Carolina Georgia Southern Georgia State and Troy West Arkansas State Louisiana Louisiana Monroe South Alabama and Texas State The divisional alignments changed again with the 2022 expansion with the new dividing line being the Alabama Georgia border The winner of each division will meet in the Sun Belt Championship game 71 72 when failed verification Team Firstseason All Timerecord All Timewin Bowlappearances Bowlrecord All TimeConferencetitles CurrentHead CoachAppalachian State 1928 653 349 28 648 7 6 1 22 Shawn ClarkArkansas State 1911 487 509 37 489 10 4 6 14 Butch JonesCoastal Carolina 2003 157 81 660 2 1 1 9 Tim BeckGeorgia Southern 1924 407 240 10 627 4 3 1 11 Clay HeltonGeorgia State 2010 50 92 352 5 3 2 0 Shawn ElliottJames Madison 1972 351 220 4 614 0 0 0 10 Bob ChesneyLouisiana 1901 553 563 34 496 7 5 2 13 Michael DesormeauxLouisiana Monroe 1951 319 446 8 418 1 0 1 5 Terry BowdenMarshall 1895 623 563 47 524 18 12 6 13 Charles HuffOld Dominion 1930 125 99 4 557 2 1 1 0 Ricky RahneSouthern Miss 1912 607 447 27 574 24 11 13 8 Will HallSouth Alabama 2009 66 83 443 2 0 2 0 Kane WommackTexas State 1904 522 486 25 517 0 0 0 12 G J KinneTroy 1909 554 424 28 565 8 5 3 21 Gerard ParkerSun Belt champions edit Since the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS season the Sun Belt Conference has held a football championship game 73 Season Champion Conferencerecord2001 Middle Tennessee StateNorth Texas 5 12002 North Texas 6 02003 North Texas 7 02004 North Texas 7 02005 Arkansas StateLouisiana LafayetteLouisiana Monroe 5 22006 Middle Tennessee StateTroy 6 12007 Florida AtlanticTroy 6 12008 Troy 6 12009 Troy 8 02010 Florida InternationalTroy 6 22011 Arkansas State 8 02012 Arkansas State 7 12013 Arkansas State 5 22014 Georgia Southern 8 02015 Arkansas State 8 02016 Appalachian StateArkansas State 7 12017 Appalachian StateTroy 7 12018 Appalachian State 7 12019 Appalachian State 7 12020 Coastal CarolinaLouisiana 8 0 7 12021 Louisiana 8 02022 Troy 7 12023 Troy 7 1NotesLouisiana Lafayette vacated 2013 shared Sun Belt Conference co championship due to major NCAA violations 74 The 2020 championship game was canceled due to COVID 19 issues the divisional champions were declared league co champions Bowl games edit As of the 2022 23 NCAA football bowl games the Sun Belt Conference has tie ins with the following bowl games 75 Name Location OpposingconferenceCamellia Bowl Montgomery Alabama MACCure Bowl Orlando Florida The AmericanLendingTree Bowl Mobile Alabama MACMyrtle Beach Bowl Conway South Carolina C USA MACNew Orleans Bowl New Orleans Louisiana C USAFootball rivalries edit Football rivalries involving Sun Belt teams include Teams RivalryName Trophy Meetings last Record SeriesLeaderAppalachian State Georgia Southern Deeper Than Hate 36 2021 20 15 1 Appalachian StateAppalachian State Marshall Old Mountain Feud 25 2022 15 10 Appalachian StateGeorgia State Georgia Southern Modern Day Hate 9 2022 6 3 Georgia StateJames Madison Old Dominion Royal Rivalry all sports Crown 4 2023 2 2 TiedLouisiana Louisiana Monroe Battle on the Bayou Wooden Boot 58 2022 31 26 LouisianaSouth Alabama Troy Battle for the Belt Belt 11 2022 8 3 TroyBasketball editMen s basketball edit This list goes through the 2021 22 season 76 Team Firstseason All timerecord All timewin NCAA Tournamentappearances NCAA Tournamentrecord Arena Head coachAppalachian State 1919 20 1263 1162 521 3 0 3 Holmes Center Dustin KernsArkansas State 1926 27 1183 1184 500 1 0 1 First National Bank Arena Mike BaladoCoastal Carolina 1974 75 711 680 511 4 0 4 HTC Center Cliff EllisGeorgia Southern 1926 27 1289 1014 560 3 0 3 Hanner Fieldhouse Brian BurgGeorgia State 1963 64 668 954 412 6 2 6 Georgia State Convocation Center Jonas HayesJames Madison 1969 70 787 714 524 5 4 5 Atlantic Union Bank Center Mark ByingtonLouisiana 1911 12 1449 1124 563 10 4 10 Cajundome Bob MarlinLouisiana Monroe 1951 52 1014 937 520 7 0 7 Fant Ewing Coliseum Keith RichardMarshall 1906 07 1539 1139 2 575 6 1 6 Cam Henderson Center Dan D AntoniOld Dominion 1950 51 1214 765 613 12 3 12 Chartway Arena Jeff JonesSouth Alabama 1968 69 857 682 557 8 1 8 Mitchell Center Richie RileySouthern Miss 1912 13 1279 1112 1 535 3 0 3 Reed Green Coliseum Jay LadnerTexas State 1920 21 1357 1184 534 2 0 2 Strahan Arena Terrence JohnsonTroy 1950 51 1086 933 538 2 0 2 Trojan Arena Scott CrossChampionships edit Main articles Sun Belt Conference men s basketball tournament and Sun Belt Conference women s basketball tournament Since the 2018 19 season the Sun Belt Conference Men s and women s basketball tournaments held in early March have involved only 10 of the conference s 12 teams and have been bracketed in a semi stepladder format The bottom four seeds play in the first round the 5 and 6 seeds receive byes to the second round the 3 and 4 seeds to the quarterfinals and the top two seeds to the semifinals The semifinals and finals are held in New Orleans the 2019 men s and women s events were at Lakefront Arena and from 2020 will be at Smoothie King Center 77 Winners of the tournaments earn automatic bids to their respective NCAA Division I basketball tournament Season Men sRegular SeasonChampion Men sTournamentChampion Women sRegular SeasonChampion Women sTournamentChampion1977 North Carolina Charlotte No Regular Season No Tournament1978 North Carolina Charlotte New Orleans No Regular Season No Tournament1979 South Alabama Jacksonville No Regular Season No Tournament1980 South Alabama Virginia Commonwealth No Regular Season No Tournament1981 Virginia Commonwealth No Regular Season No Tournament1982 Alabama Birmingham No Regular Season No Tournament1983 Virginia Commonwealth Alabama Birmingham Old Dominion1984 Virginia Commonwealth Alabama Birmingham Old Dominion1985 Virginia Commonwealth Old Dominion1986 Old Dominion Jacksonville Western Kentucky1987 Western Kentucky Alabama Birmingham Old Dominion1988 North Carolina Charlotte Old Dominion Western Kentucky1989 South Alabama Old Dominion Western Kentucky1990 Alabama Birmingham South Florida Alabama Birmingham Old Dominion1991 South Alabama Alabama Birmingham Western Kentucky1992 Southwestern Louisiana Western Kentucky1993 New Orleans Western Kentucky Western Kentucky1994 Western Kentucky Southwestern Louisiana Louisiana Tech1995 Western Kentucky Louisiana Tech Western Kentucky1996 Arkansas Little Rock New Orleans Louisiana Tech1997 South Alabama Louisiana Tech1998 South Alabama Louisiana Tech1999 Louisiana Tech Arkansas State Louisiana Tech2000 Louisiana Lafayette Louisiana Tech2001 Western Kentucky Louisiana Tech2002 Western Kentucky Florida International2003 Western Kentucky Western Kentucky2004 Louisiana Lafayette vacated South Alabama Middle Tennessee State2005 Denver Louisiana Lafayette vacated Western Kentucky Middle Tennessee State2006 Western Kentucky South Alabama Western Kentucky Middle Tennessee2007 South Alabama North Texas Middle Tennessee2008 South Alabama Western Kentucky Western Kentucky2009 Western Kentucky Middle Tennessee2010 Troy North Texas Arkansas Little Rock Middle Tennessee2011 Florida Atlantic Arkansas Little Rock Middle TennesseeArkansas Little Rock Arkansas Little Rock2012 Middle Tennessee Western Kentucky Middle Tennessee Arkansas Little Rock2013 Middle Tennessee Western Kentucky Middle Tennessee Arkansas Little Rock2014 Georgia State Louisiana Lafayette Arkansas State Western Kentucky2015 Georgia State Arkansas Little Rock2016 Little Rock Arkansas State Troy2017 UT Arlington Troy Little Rock Troy2018 Louisiana Georgia State Little Rock2019 Georgia State Little RockUT Arlington Little Rock2020 Little Rock Tournament canceled Troy Tournament canceled2021 Texas State Appalachian State Louisiana Troy2022 Texas State Georgia State Troy UT Arlington2023 Southern Miss Louisiana James MadisonSouthern MissTexas State James MadisonBaseball editMain article Sun Belt Conference Baseball Tournament The Sun Belt Conference has sponsored an annual baseball tournament to determine the conference winner since 1978 South Alabama has won the most championships at 13 Teams in bold represent current conference members School Tourneytitles Title YearsSouth Alabama 13 1980 1981 1983 1984 1987 1992 1996 1997 2000 2001 2005 2017 2021Louisiana 5 1998 2014 2015 2016 2022New Orleans 3 1978 1979 2007South Florida 3 1982 1986 1990Coastal Carolina 2 2018 2019FIU 2 1999 2010Lamar 2 1993 1995Middle Tennessee 2 2003 2009Western Kentucky 2 2004 2008Arkansas State 1 1994Florida Atlantic 1 2013Jacksonville 1 1989Little Rock 1 2011New Mexico State 1 2002Old Dominion 1 1985Southern Miss 1 2023Troy 1 2006UAB 1 1991ULM 1 2012VCU 1 1988 Season TournamentChampion1978 New Orleans1979 New Orleans1980 South Alabama1981 South Alabama1982 South Florida1983 South Alabama1984 South Alabama1985 Old Dominion1986 South Florida1987 South Alabama1988 Virginia Commonwealth1989 Jacksonville1990 South Florida1991 Alabama Birmingham1992 South Alabama1993 Lamar1994 Arkansas State1995 Lamar1996 South Alabama1997 South Alabama Season TournamentChampion1998 Southwestern Louisiana1999 Florida International2000 South Alabama2001 South Alabama2002 New Mexico State2003 Middle Tennessee State2004 Western Kentucky2005 South Alabama2006 Troy2007 New Orleans2008 Western Kentucky2009 Middle Tennessee State2010 Florida International2011 Arkansas Little Rock2012 Louisiana Monroe2013 Florida Atlantic2014 Louisiana2015 Louisiana2016 Louisiana2017 South Alabama2018 Coastal Carolina2019 Coastal Carolina2020 No champion due to COVID 192021 South Alabama2022 Louisiana2023 Southern MissFacilities edit nbsp Veterans Memorial Stadium on the campus of Troy University School Football stadium Capacity Basketball arena Capacity Baseball stadium Capacity Softball stadium CapacityAppalachian State Kidd Brewer Stadium 30 000 Holmes Center 8 325 Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium 1 000 Sywassink Lloyd Family Stadium 1 000Arkansas State Centennial Bank Stadium 30 406 First National Bank Arena 10 563 Tomlinson Stadium Kell Field 1 200 78 Non softball schoolCoastal Carolina Brooks Stadium 21 000 HTC Center 3 370 Springs Brooks Stadium Vrooman Field 5 400 79 St John Stadium Charles Wade John Lott Field 500Georgia Southern Paulson Stadium 25 000 Hanner Fieldhouse 4 325 80 J I Clements Stadium 3 000 Eagle Field 400Georgia State Center Parc Stadium 24 333 Georgia State Convocation Center 8 000 81 GSU Baseball Complex 1 092 Robert E Heck Softball Complex 500James Madison Bridgeforth Stadium 24 877 Atlantic Union Bank Center 8 500 Eagle Field at Veterans Memorial Park 1 200 Veterans Memorial Park 1 500Louisiana Cajun Field 41 426 Cajundome a 12 068 M L Tigue Moore Field 6 000 Yvette Girouard Field at Lamson Park 2 790Louisiana Monroe Malone Stadium 27 617 Fant Ewing Coliseum 7 085 Warhawk Field 1 800 Geo Surfaces Field at the ULM Softball Complex 500Marshall Joan C Edwards Stadium 38 227 Cam Henderson Center 9 048 Jack Cook Field 82 b 3 500 Dot Hicks Field 325Old Dominion S B Ballard Stadium 22 480 Chartway Arena 8 472 Bud Metheny Baseball Complex 2 500 Non softball schoolSouth Alabama Hancock Whitney Stadium 25 450 Mitchell Center 10 041 Eddie Stanky Field 4 500 Jaguar Field 1 050Southern Miss M M Roberts Stadium 36 000 Reed Green Coliseum 8 095 Pete Taylor Park 4 300 Southern Miss Softball Complex 607Texas State Jim Wacker Field at Bobcat Stadium 30 008 Strahan Coliseum 10 000 Bobcat Ballpark 2 000 Bobcat Softball Stadium 1 000Troy Veterans Memorial Stadium 30 470 Trojan Arena 6 000 83 Riddle Pace Field 2 500 Troy Softball Complex 800Notes Louisiana s women s basketball team primarily plays at the Cajundome but occasionally plays at Earl K Long Gymnasium on the main campus Expected to open for the 2024 season Athletic department revenue by school editTotal revenue includes ticket sales contributions and donations rights and licensing student fees school funds and all other sources including TV income camp income concessions and novelties Total expenses includes coach and staff salaries scholarships buildings and grounds maintenance utilities and rental fees recruiting team travel equipment and uniforms conference dues and insurance The following table shows institutional reporting to the United States Department of Education as shown on the DOE Equity in Athletics website for the 2021 22 academic year 84 Institution 2021 22 Total Revenue from Athletics 2021 22 Total Expenses on AthleticsJames Madison University 52 857 185 52 857 185Old Dominion University 47 364 891 45 109 567Georgia State University 45 248 891 39 913 977University of Louisiana at Lafayette 39 088 716 39 088 716Marshall University 38 114 204 38 114 204Coastal Carolina University 38 077 490 38 077 490Texas State University 33 707 371 33 707 371Appalachian State University 32 271 589 32 271 589Georgia Southern University 29 737 578 29 737 578Troy University 29 054 724 29 054 724University of Southern Mississippi 25 564 444 25 564 444University of South Alabama 24 652 380 24 652 380Arkansas State University 21 009 474 21 009 474University of Louisiana at Monroe 18 416 615 18 416 615Academics editFour of the Sun Belt s member schools Georgia State Louisiana Old Dominion and Southern Miss are doctorate granting universities with very high research activity the highest classification given by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching 85 Appalachian State is also currently ranked as one of the Top 10 regional schools in the South by the U S News amp World Report University Affiliation Carnegie 85 Endowment 86 US News 87 Forbes 88 Appalachian State University Public UNC Master s Larger 99 593 000 89 6 Regional South 301Arkansas State University Public ASU System Research High 66 217 000 89 317 National N A d 1 Coastal Carolina University Public Master s Larger 39 432 000 89 38 Regional South N A d 2 Georgia Southern University Public USG System Research High 50 999 000 89 331 440 National N A d 3 Georgia State University Public USG System Research Very High 155 303 000 89 234 National 367James Madison University Public Research High 116 700 000 55 151 National 139University of Louisiana at Lafayette Public UL System Research Very High 178 300 000 90 331 440 National N A d 4 University of Louisiana at Monroe Public UL System Doctoral Research 28 787 795 91 331 440 National N A d 5 Marshall University Public Research High 192 000 000 55 299 National N A d 6 Old Dominion University Public Research Very High 265 800 000 55 299 National 472University of South Alabama Public Research High 555 735 000 89 331 440 National N A d 7 University of Southern Mississippi Public Research Very High 136 300 000 55 331 440 National N A d 8 Texas State University Public TSU System Research High 186 676 000 89 331 440 National 385Troy University Public TU System Doctoral Research 92 191 458 000 93 44 Regional South N A d 9 Notes edit Arkansas State is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America s Best Colleges rankings Coastal Carolina is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America s Best Colleges rankings Georgia Southern is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America s Best Colleges rankings Louisiana Lafayette is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America s Best Colleges rankings Louisiana Monroe is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America s Best Colleges rankings Marshall is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America s Best Colleges rankings South Alabama is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America s Best Colleges rankings Southern Miss is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America s Best Colleges rankings Troy is not ranked in the 2022 Forbes America s Best Colleges rankings References edit Staff Russ White of The Sentinel 3 July 1991 UCF HOPES TO FIND FAME IN EXPANDED SUN BELT OrlandoSentinel com Retrieved March 1 2020 Meadows Dave May 20 1992 UCF ends marriage with Sun Belt Conference The Orlando Sentinel from Orlando Florida on May 20 1992 Page 70 Newspapers com 20 May 1992 Retrieved March 1 2020 WKU Regents Approve Move To Division I A Football Press release Western Kentucky University November 2 2006 Archived from the original on January 15 2008 Retrieved November 3 2006 University of New Orleans gets approval from NCAA to move to Division II The Times Picayune April 20 2011 Retrieved September 6 2011 a b McMurphy Brett April 7 2012 Sun Belt adding Georgia State College Football Insider CBS Sports Retrieved April 9 2012 Texas State will leave WAC join Sun Belt in 2013 14 Sports Illustrated May 2 2012 Retrieved May 2 2012 University of Texas Arlington Mavericks to join Sun Belt Conference in 2013 ESPN 25 May 2012 Retrieved May 29 2015 Conference USA Adds Five New Members Conferenceusa com Archived from the original on May 10 2012 Retrieved May 29 2015 McMurphy Brett November 29 2012 C USA adds FAU Middle Tennessee State ESPN Retrieved May 29 2015 1 Archived April 6 2013 at the Wayback Machine 2 Archived December 3 2013 at the Wayback Machine 3 Archived December 3 2013 at the Wayback Machine 4 Archived July 3 2013 at the Wayback Machine Board approves Idaho football going independent College Football Idaho football returning to Sun Belt in 2014 Spokesman com March 27 2013 Spokesman com Boise Meridian Nampa Caldwell news by Idaho Statesman Idaho Statesman Statement from Big South Commissioner Kyle B Kallander on Coastal Carolina Press release Big South Conference September 1 2015 Archived from the original on September 3 2015 Retrieved September 1 2015 Sun Belt Football to Be 10 Teams in 2018 Press release Sun Belt Conference March 1 2016 Retrieved March 1 2016 Sun Belt announces football divisions for 2018 new collaborative replay system CBS Sports Retrieved May 23 2017 Texas Oklahoma regents accept SEC invitation ESPN com July 30 2021 Retrieved October 21 2021 Big 12 Conference Adds Four New Members Press release Big 12 Conference September 10 2021 Retrieved September 10 2021 6 schools officially apply to join AAC source says ESPN com October 19 2021 Retrieved October 21 2021 American Athletic Conference Announces the Addition of Six Universities Press release American Athletic Conference October 21 2021 Retrieved October 21 2021 Sun Belt Conference USA considering adding teams amid AAC expansion CBSSports com 20 October 2021 Retrieved October 21 2021 a b McMurphy Brett October 22 2021 Sources Southern Miss Joins Sun Belt Marshall Old Dominion JMU Will Join in Coming Days The Action Network Retrieved October 22 2021 Southern Miss Joins Sun Belt Conference Press release Sun Belt Conference October 26 2021 Retrieved October 26 2021 Old Dominion Joins Sun Belt Conference Press release Sun Belt Conference October 27 2021 Retrieved October 27 2021 Rittenberg Adam October 26 2021 Southern Miss officially joins Sun Belt will enter league no later than July 2023 ESPN com Retrieved October 26 2021 Marshall Joins Sun Belt Conference Press release Sun Belt Conference October 30 2021 Retrieved November 1 2021 Traylor Grant November 1 2021 Sun Belt confirms men s soccer being reinstated The Herald Dispatch Huntington WV Retrieved November 2 2021 Madia Greg October 28 2021 Va s Gubernatorial Election Impacts JMU Sun Belt Timeline Daily News Record Harrisonburg VA Retrieved October 28 2021 James Madison s move to Sun Belt would trigger messy divorce from CAA The Washington Post November 4 2021 Retrieved November 5 2021 James Madison Joins Sun Belt Conference Press release Sun Belt Conference November 6 2021 Retrieved November 6 2021 Mettler Shane November 5 2021 Dukes Get Approval For Move To FBS Join Sun Belt Daily News Record Retrieved November 20 2021 Sources said JMU s other sports would begin competition in the Sun Belt during the 2022 23 school year and it is expected the Dukes will be eligible for conference championships in their debut seasons James Madison to Compete in Sun Belt Conference in 2022 2023 Press release James Madison Dukes February 2 2022 Retrieved February 3 2022 Little Rock Receives Board Approval To Join Ohio Valley Conference Press release Little Rock Trojans Retrieved 2021 12 08 University of Texas at Arlington Accepts Invitation to Join WAC Press release Western Athletic Conference January 21 2022 Retrieved January 22 2022 Rittenberg Adam February 11 2022 Sun Belt bound Marshall Old Dominion Southern Miss announce plans to depart Conference USA in June ESPN com Retrieved February 11 2022 Dinich Heather February 23 2022 Marshall sues Conference USA to push up departure for Sun Belt ESPN com Retrieved February 23 2022 Thamel Pete March 29 2022 Move of Marshall Old Dominion Southern Miss from Conference USA to Sun Belt now complete ESPN com Retrieved March 29 2022 Sun Belt Conference Announces Return of Men s Soccer This Fall Press release Sun Belt Conference April 6 2022 Retrieved April 6 2022 UCF Men s Soccer to Join Sun Belt Conference in Fall 2023 Press release Sun Belt Conference June 21 2022 Retrieved June 22 2022 Sun Belt Presidents Chancellors add two sports look into adding third Press release Sun Belt Conference June 9 2022 Retrieved June 9 2022 Sun Belt Conference Adds Beach Volleyball For 2023 Press release Sun Belt Conference January 18 2023 Retrieved January 19 2023 Sun Belt Conference Announces Return of Women s Swimming and Diving For 2023 24 Press release Sun Belt Conference August 17 2023 Retrieved August 17 2023 About Appalachian State University Appalachian State University Archived from the original on December 11 2019 Retrieved January 27 2020 Bruffy Megan App State marks best fundraising year in more than a decade today appstate edu CCU Enrollment Trends Fall 2019 Coastal Carolina University Archived from the original on January 27 2020 Retrieved January 27 2020 Fall 2023 enrollment numbers for Georgia Southern University System of Georgia PDF Georgia Southern University Archived from the original PDF on November 15 2023 Retrieved November 14 2023 Fall Semester Enrollment Report PDF Georgia Board of Regents Retrieved November 14 2023 MU Quick Facts Marshall University Archived from the original on September 11 2019 Retrieved August 22 2016 U S and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2020 Endowment Market Value and Change in Endowment Market Value from FY20 to FY21 Report National Association of College and University Business Officers and TIAA June 2022 Retrieved June 6 2022 University Facts amp Figures Old Dominion University Retrieved October 27 2021 a b c d e U S and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2020 Endowment Market Value and Change in Endowment Market Value from FY19 to FY20 Report National Association of College and University Business Officers and TIAA February 19 2021 Retrieved February 20 2021 ARKANSAS STATE HAS NEAR RECORD ENROLLMENT FOR FALL 2022 WITH GAINS IN MOST CATEGORIES Arkansas State University September 8 2022 Archived from the original on September 15 2022 Retrieved September 16 2022 Graduate school boosts UL Lafayette overall enrollment University of Louisiana at Lafayette October 3 2019 Archived from the original on January 28 2020 Retrieved January 28 2020 University Planning amp Analsysis Quick Facts Fall 2019 University of Louisiana Monroe Archived from the original on January 27 2020 Retrieved January 27 2020 University of South Alabama Historical Enrollment by Fall Semester Total Headcount Enrollment by Fall Semester University of South Alabama Archived from the original on August 13 2019 Retrieved January 28 2020 As of June 30 2021 U S and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2021 Endowment Market Value and Change in Endowment Market Value from FY20 to FY21 Report National Association of College and University Business Officers and TIAA February 20 2022 Retrieved February 20 2022 USM Defies National Trends Reaches Highest Enrollment in Six Years The University of Southern Mississippi January 13 2021 Retrieved October 25 2021 Philanthropy Strong in Fiscal Year 2021 for USM Foundation The University of Southern Mississippi September 3 2021 Retrieved October 25 2021 Quarterly Board of Regents Meeting November 14 15 2019 PDF Texas State University System pp 47 50 Archived from the original PDF on January 28 2020 Retrieved January 28 2020 Troy University Headcount Enrollment By Classification and Enrollment Status Fall 2018 PDF Troy University Archived from the original PDF on January 28 2020 Retrieved January 28 2020 Troy University College Confidential College Confidential 2022 Retrieved May 4 2023 Sun Belt Conference commissioner Wright Waters to retire in July ESPN com October 12 2011 Retrieved May 29 2015 Joyce Ethan March 19 2019 The Sun Belt s Keith Gill on his new conference and being the first African American FBS commissioner Winston Salem Journal Archived from the original on April 1 2019 Retrieved April 1 2019 Kercheval Ben March 19 2019 Sun Belt hires Keith Gill as first African American commissioner overseeing FBS conference CBS Sports Archived from the original on April 1 2019 Retrieved April 1 2019 Sun Belt Conference Sunbeltsports org Retrieved May 28 2015 Sun Belt Football to Be 10 Teams in 2018 Press release Sun Belt Conference March 1 2016 Retrieved March 1 2016 Sun Belt announces football divisions for 2018 new collaborative replay system CBSSports com Retrieved May 23 2017 All time Division I A football records Archived April 6 2004 at the Wayback Machine College Football Data Warehouse Inaugural Sun Belt Football Championship to be played in 2018 sunbeltsports org June 8 2016 Big NCAA penalties for UL Lafayette Cajuns vacate 20 plus wins two bowls 2013 Sun Belt title The Advocate March 6 2016 Sun Belt amp ESPN Announce Updates to 2022 Football Schedule sunbeltsports org May 26 2022 2021 22 NCAA Men s Basketball Records PDF NCAA Retrieved November 5 2021 New Orleans to host Sun Belt Basketball Championships through 2019 Format for 2017 Announced 15 June 2016 A State Baseball 2014 Baseball Reference Guide PDF Arkansas State University Athletics p 2 Archived from the original PDF on September 7 2015 Retrieved December 5 2014 Springs Brooks Stadium Vrooman Field Coastal Carolina University Athletics Archived from the original on July 9 2016 Retrieved June 30 2016 2015 16 Georgia Southern Men s Basketball PDF GSEagles com Retrieved September 12 2015 2014 15 Panther Men s Basketball PDF Georgia State University Athletics p 1 Archived from the original PDF on March 4 2016 Retrieved January 11 2015 Arena GSU Sports Arena 3 854 Marshall Baseball Field Named In Honor of Jack Cook Press release Marshall Thundering Herd June 21 2023 Retrieved August 7 2023 Trojan Arena Troy University Retrieved September 11 2015 Trojan Arena a 6 000 seat multi purpose facility opened in the fall of 2012 Equity in Athletics Data Analysis U S Department of Education a b Carnegie Classifications Institution Lookup Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching 2021 Retrieved October 26 2021 National Association of College and University Business Officers PDF National Association of College and University Business 2013 Archived from the original PDF on May 21 2014 Retrieved July 1 2014 2022 2023 Best College Rankings and Lists U S News amp World Report 2022 Retrieved September 13 2022 Forbes America s Top Colleges 2021 Forbes 2021 Retrieved 2021 10 22 a b c d e f g U S and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year FY 2017 Endowment Market Value and Change in Endowment Market Value from FY2016 to FY2017 PDF National Association of College and University Business Officers and Commonfund Institute 2018 Archived from the original PDF on March 6 2018 Retrieved February 22 2018 Louisiana university endowments following national downturn here s what that means for LSU others 11 February 2017 Notes to the Financial Statements Note 10 Endowments Financial Report for the Years Ended June 30 2019 and 2018 University of Louisiana Monroe Foundation December 17 2019 p 26 TROY achieves historic milestone with ACHE instructional role change 8 September 2023 TROY endowment values and returns PDF 15 January 2024 External links editOfficial website nbsp Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Sun Belt Conference amp oldid 1196818957, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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