Jump to content

List of NCAA conferences

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Dale Arnett (talk | contribs) at 18:26, 11 October 2018 (→‎Ice hockey conferences). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is divided into three divisions, based roughly on school size. Each division is made up of several conferences for regional league play. Unless otherwise noted, changes in conference affiliation will occur on July 1 of the given year.

Division I

Football Bowl Subdivision

Conference Nickname Founded Members Sports Headquarters Map
American Athletic Conference The American 1979
[a]		 12
[b]		 22 Providence,
Rhode Island
Atlantic Coast Conference ACC 1953 15
[c]		 27 Greensboro,
North Carolina
Big Ten Conference Big Ten 1896 14 28 Rosemont,
Illinois
Big 12 Conference Big 12 1996 10 23 Irving,
Texas
Conference USA C-USA 1995 14 19 Irving,
Texas
Division I
FBS Independents		 Ind. 6 1 None
Mid-American Conference MAC 1946 12 23 Cleveland,
Ohio
Mountain West Conference MW
MWC		 1999 11
[d]		 18 Colorado Springs,
Colorado
Pac-12 Conference Pac-12 1959
[e]		 12 24 San Francisco,
California
Southeastern Conference SEC 1932 14 21 Birmingham,
Alabama
Sun Belt Conference Sun Belt 1976 12
[f]		 18 New Orleans,
Louisiana
  1. ^ Known as Big East Conference prior to 2013.
  2. ^ 12 full members with Wichita State as a non-football member; 12 football members with Navy as a football-only affiliate
  3. ^ 15 members (14 football)
  4. ^ 11 members (12 football) with Hawaii as a football-only affiliate
  5. ^ Pacific Coast Conference chartered in 1915; current charter formed 1959 by five former PCC members, with three others joining by 1964
  6. ^ 12 full members with Little Rock and Texas–Arlington as non-football members

Football Championship Subdivision

Conference Nickname Founded Full Members Sports Headquarters Map
Big Sky Conference Big Sky
BSC		 1963 11
[a]		 16 Ogden, Utah
Big South Conference Big South 1983 11
[b]		 19 Charlotte, North Carolina
Colonial Athletic Association CAA 1983 10
[c]		 21 Richmond, Virginia
Division I FCS Independents 3
[d]		 1
Ivy League Ivy League 1954
[e]		 8 33 Princeton, New Jersey
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference MEAC 1970 12
[f]		 15 Norfolk, Virginia
Missouri Valley Football Conference MVFC 1985
[g]		 10
[h]		 1 St. Louis, Missouri
Northeast Conference NEC 1981 10
[i]		 23
[j]		 Somerset, New Jersey
Ohio Valley Conference OVC 1948 12
[k]		 17 Brentwood, Tennessee
Patriot League Patriot 1986 10
[l]		 24 Center Valley, Pennsylvania
Pioneer Football League PFL 1991 10
[m]		 1 St. Louis, Missouri
Southern Conference SoCon 1921 10
[n]		 21 Spartanburg, South Carolina
Southland Conference Southland 1963 13
[o]		 17 Frisco, Texas
Southwestern Athletic Conference SWAC 1920 10 18 Birmingham, Alabama
  1. ^ 11 full members and 13 football members
  2. ^ 11 full members and 6 football members
    • 11 full members, 8 football members in 2019 with addition of Hampton football and North Alabama as a football-only member
    • 11 full members, 7 football members in 2020 with Presbyterian football leaving for independent status and eventually the Pioneer League
  3. ^ 10 full members and 12 football members
  4. ^ 1 independent in 2019 with Hampton and North Alabama joining Big South football
    • 1 independent in 2020 with North Dakota joining the MVFC and Presbyterian transitioning to non-scholarship football
    • No independents in 2021 with Presbyterian football joining the Pioneer League
  5. ^ While the Ivy League considers its athletic conference to have been established in 1954, the history of the athletic league can be traced back decades earlier:
    • In 1901, the Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League (EIBL) was formed by five schools that would later become part of the current Ivy League; the EIBL membership eventually became identical to that of the future all-sports league. The EIBL was directly absorbed into the all-sports Ivy League, which considers the EIBL to be part of its history.
    • In 1945, the Ivy Group Agreement, which governed competition and policies among the Ivy schools in football, was signed by all eight schools that eventually formed the all-sports league.
    • The official formation of the athletic Ivy League came in 1954, when the Ivy Group Agreement was extended to cover all sports.
    For more details, see the section on the history of the athletic Ivy League.
  6. ^ 12 full members, 10 football members
    • 11 full members, 9 football members in 2019 with loss of Savannah State
  7. ^ While the MVFC began football competition in 1985, the conference charter dates to 1982. See History of the Missouri Valley Football Conference for more details.
  8. ^ 11 members in 2020 with addition of North Dakota
  9. ^ 10 full members, 7 football members
    • 11 full members, 9 football members in 2019 with the following:
      • Addition of Merrimack
      • Merger of the athletic programs of non-football LIU Brooklyn and Division II football-sponsoring LIU Post into a single Division I LIU athletic program that will include football
  10. ^ 24 sports in 2019 with addition of field hockey
  11. ^ 12 full members, 9 football members (one full member, Morehead State, plays football outside the OVC in the Pioneer Football League)
  12. ^ 10 full members and 7 football members
  13. ^ 11 members in 2021 with addition of Presbyterian
  14. ^ 10 full members, 9 football members
  15. ^ 13 full members, 11 football members

Non-football, multi-sport conferences

Conference Nickname Founded Members Sports Headquarters Map
America East Conference America East
AmEast		 1979 9 19 Boston, Massachusetts
Atlantic Sun Conference ASUN 1978 9 19 Macon, Georgia
Atlantic 10 Conference A-10 1975 14 21 Newport News, Virginia
Big East Conference Big East 2013
[a]		 10 22 New York City, New York
Big West Conference Big West
BWC		 1969 9[b] 18 Irvine, California
Coastal Collegiate Sports Association CCSA 2008 24 [c] 3 [d] Macon, Georgia
Horizon League Horizon 1979 10 19 Indianapolis, Indiana
Division I Independents 0
Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference MAAC 1980 11 24 [e] Edison, New Jersey
Missouri Valley Conference MVC
The Valley		 1907 10 17 St. Louis, Missouri
Mountain Pacific Sports Federation MPSF 1992 38 10 Woodland, California
Summit League The Summit 1982 9 19 Sioux Falls, South Dakota
West Coast Conference WCC 1952 10 14 San Bruno, California
Western Athletic Conference WAC 1962 9 [f] 19[1] Englewood, Colorado
  1. ^ Although the charter of the current Big East dates only to the 2013 split of the original Big East, both the current Big East and the American Athletic Conference claim 1979 as their founding dates. The current Big East maintains the pre-split history of the original conference in all sports that it sponsors. In football and rowing, the two sports that are sponsored by The American but not the current Big East, neither conference recognizes the history of the original Big East.
  2. ^ 11 members in 2020 with addition of CSU Bakersfield and UC San Diego
  3. ^ Total conference membership; no more than 12 schools compete in any one of the CCSA's three sports.
  4. ^ Sponsors only men's and women's swimming & diving, plus beach volleyball.
  5. ^ 23 sports in 2019 with dropping of field hockey.
  6. ^ 8 members in 2020 with loss of CSU Bakersfield

Ice hockey conferences

Conference Nickname Founded Members (Men/Women) Headquarters Map
Atlantic Hockey Atlantic Hockey 1997 11 (11/none) Haverhill, Massachusetts
College Hockey America CHA 1999 [a] 6 (none/6) Haverhill, Massachusetts
ECAC Hockey ECAC 1962 12 (12/12) Albany, New York
Hockey East Hockey East
HEA		 1984 12 (11/10) Wakefield, Massachusetts
Independents 6 (1/5) [b][c]
National Collegiate Hockey Conference NCHC 2011 [d] 8 (8/none) Colorado Springs, Colorado
Western Collegiate Hockey Association WCHA 1951 15 (10/7) Edina, Minnesota
  1. ^ College Hockey America was formed in 1999 as a men's-only conference; women's play began in 2002. The men's side of CHA folded after the 2009–10 season.
  2. ^ All five current women's independents participate in a scheduling agreement known as the New England Women's Hockey Alliance (NEWHA), which with the upcoming addition of LIU in 2019 has announced its intention to become an official NCAA conference.[2]
  3. ^ Potential of no independents in 2019 should the NEWHA be recognized as an NCAA conference; 6 women's independents otherwise.
  4. ^ Although founded in 2011, the NCHC did not begin play until 2013.

Other single-sport conferences

This list includes conferences in sports that the NCAA does not fully split into divisions, such as men's volleyball and rifle. Note also that sports in which the NCAA sponsors separate championships for men and women are officially treated by the NCAA as two separate sports.

Conference Nickname Founded Members Sports Headquarters Map
Central Collegiate Ski Association CCSA 2009 7 [a] 1 (Skiing) ?
Collegiate Water Polo Association CWPA 1970s 28 [b] 1 (water polo) Bridgeport, Pennsylvania
East Atlantic Gymnastics League EAGL 1995 7 1 (gymnastics) ?
Eastern Association of Rowing Colleges EARC ? 18 1 (rowing) Danbury, Connecticut
Eastern Association of Women's Rowing Colleges EAWRC ? 18 1 (rowing) Danbury, Connecticut
Eastern Intercollegiate Gymnastics League EIGL ? 5 1 (gymnastics) Danbury, Connecticut
Eastern Intercollegiate Ski Association EISA ? 15 1 (Skiing) ?
Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association EIVA 1977 8 1 (men's volleyball) Bronxville, New York
Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association EIWA 1905 16 1 (wrestling) ?
Eastern Women's Fencing Conference EWFC 2000 7 1 (fencing) ?
Eastern Wrestling League EWL 1976 7 1 (wrestling) ?
Golden Coast Conference GCC 2013 [c] 6 (men)
8 (women)		 1 (water polo) ?
Great America Rifle Conference GARC 1998 9 1 (rifle) ?
Intercollegiate Fencing Conference of Southern California IFCSC 1996? 2 [d] 1 (fencing) ?
Metropolitan Swimming Conference METS ? 18 (men)
19 (women)		 1 (swimming) ?
Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Fencing Association MACFA 1952 8 [e] 1 (fencing) Hackettstown, New Jersey
Mid-Atlantic Rifle Conference MAC 1978 7 [f] 1 (rifle) ?
Midwest Fencing Conference MFC 1968 6 [g] 1 (fencing) University of Notre Dame (?)
Midwest Independent Conference MIC ? 6 1 (women's gymnastics) UIC (?)
Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association MIVA 1961 8 1 (men's volleyball) Columbus, Ohio
Mountain Rim Gymnastics Conference MRGC 2013 4 1 (women's gymnastics)
National Intercollegiate Women's Fencing Association NIWFA 1929 10 [h] 1 (fencing) ?
New England Intercollegiate Fencing Conference NEIFC ? 8 [i] 1 (fencing) ?
Northeast Fencing Conference NFC 1992 8 [j] 1 (fencing) ?
Patriot Rifle Conference PRC 2013 6 1 (rifle) Colorado Springs, Colorado
Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association RMISA 1950 8 [k][l] 1 (Skiing) ?
Southland Bowling League SBL 2015[m] 8 1 (bowling) Frisco, Texas
Western Water Polo Association WWPA 1981 8 (men)
9 (women)[n]		 1 (water polo) ?
  1. ^ There are 7 NCAA varsity members; the conference also has one junior college member.
  2. ^ 9 schools have both men's & women's varsity teams, 10 have men's varsity teams only, 9 have women's varsity teams only; additionally, there are 136 men's and 86 women's club teams.
  3. ^ Founded in 2013 as a women's-only conference; men's play added in 2016.
  4. ^ There are 2 varsity members; the conference also has 7 college club members.
  5. ^ There are 8 varsity members; the conference also has 7 college club members.
  6. ^ There are 7 varsity members; the conference also has 6 college club members.
  7. ^ There are 6 varsity members; the conference also has 13 college club members.
  8. ^ There are 10 varsity members; the conference also has 10 college club members.
  9. ^ There are 8 varsity members; the conference also has 13 college club members.
  10. ^ There are 8 varsity members; the conference also has 5 college club members.
  11. ^ There are 8 varsity members; the conference also has 4 college club members.
  12. ^ 7 varsity members in 2019 with loss of New Mexico.
  13. ^ The SBL was established during the 2014–15 school year with competition starting immediately. While the Southland Conference provides administrative support, the SBL operates separately.[3]
  14. ^ 8 women's members in 2019 with loss of UC San Diego; men's membership will not change.

Division II

Current conferences

Conference Nickname Founded Members D-II
Sports		 Headquarters Map
California Collegiate Athletic Association CCAA 1938 13 [a] 13 Walnut Creek, California
Conference Carolinas CC 1930 11 [b] 21 [c] Thomasville, North Carolina
Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference CACC 1961 14 16 New Haven, Connecticut
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association CIAA 1912 13 [d] 15 Hampton, Virginia
East Coast Conference ECC 1989 10 [e] 17 Central Islip, New York
Great American Conference GAC 2011 12 16 Russellville, Arkansas
Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference GLIAC 1972 12 21 Bay City, Michigan
Great Lakes Valley Conference GLVC 1978 14 [f] 22 Indianapolis, Indiana
Great Midwest Athletic Conference G-MAC 2011 14 [g] 23 [h] Greenwood, Indiana
Great Northwest Athletic Conference GNAC 2001 11 16 Portland, Oregon
Gulf South Conference GSC 1970 13 17 Birmingham, Alabama
Heartland Conference Heartland 1999 9[i] 13 Waco, Texas
Division II Independents 3
Lone Star Conference LSC 1931 11[j] 17 Richardson, Texas
Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association MIAA 1912 14[k] 19 Kansas City, Missouri
Mountain East Conference MEC 2012 12 [l] 19 [m] Bridgeport, West Virginia
Northeast-10 Conference NE-10 1980 15[n] 23 Mansfield, Massachusetts
Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference NSIC 1932 16 18 St. Paul, Minnesota
Pacific West Conference PacWest 1992 12 15 Newport Beach, California
Peach Belt Conference PBC 1990 12 15 Augusta, Georgia
Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference PSAC 1951 17 [o] 23 Lock Haven, Pennsylvania
Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference RMAC 1909 16 23 Colorado Springs, Colorado
South Atlantic Conference SAC 1975 11 [p] 20 Rock Hill, South Carolina
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference SIAC 1913 13 [q] 13 Tucker, Georgia
Sunshine State Conference SSC 1975 11 18 Melbourne, Florida
  1. ^ 12 members in 2020 with loss of UC San Diego.
  2. ^ 12 members in 2019 with addition of Chowan.
  3. ^ Emerging sport Swimming & Diving (M) included.
  4. ^ 12 members in 2019 with loss of Chowan.
  5. ^ 9 members in 2019 with loss of LIU Post.
  6. ^ 15 members in 2019 with addition of Southwest Baptist.
  7. ^ 13 members in 2019 with loss of Davis & Elkins.
  8. ^ Emerging sport Wrestling included.
  9. ^ Disbanding in 2019 following the announced departure of eight members to the Lone Star Conference, with the ninth (Newman) set to become a de facto MIAA member at that time.
  10. ^ 20 members in 2019 with addition of Arkansas–Fort Smith, Dallas Baptist, Lubbock Christian, Oklahoma Christian, Rogers State, St. Edwards, St. Mary's (TX), Texas A&M International, and UT Tyler.
  11. ^ 13 full members in 2019 with loss of Southwest Baptist. A 14th school, Newman, will technically be an associate member, but for all practical purposes will be a full non-football member, housing all of its sports in the MIAA.
  12. ^ 11 or 12 members in 2019 with loss of Shepherd and UVA–Wise, plus confirmed addition of Davis & Elkins as a full non-football member and possible addition of Frostburg State as a full football-sponsoring member.
  13. ^ 22 sports in 2019 with addition of men's and women's indoor track & field, plus wrestling.
  14. ^ 14 members in 2019 with loss of Merrimack.
  15. ^ 18 members in 2019 with addition of Shepherd.
  16. ^ 12 members in 2019 with addition of UVA–Wise.
  17. ^ 14 members in 2019 with addition of Savannah State.

Single-sport conferences

Conference Nickname Founded Members Sport Headquarters Map
Appalachian Swimming Conference ASC ? 6 (men)
4 (women)		 swimming ?
Bluegrass Mountain Conference BMC 2000 9 (men)
7 (women)		 swimming Spartanburg, South Carolina
ECAC Division II Field Hockey League ECAC 2014 6 field hockey Danbury, Connecticut
ECAC Division II Wrestling League ECAC 2015 7 wrestling Danbury, Connecticut
New South Intercollegiate Swim Conference NSISC 1995 6 (men)
6 (women)		 swimming ?
Pacific Collegiate Swim and Dive Conference PCSC 2003 4 (men)
7 (women)		 swimming ?

Other sports

These conferences sponsor sports which do not have D-II championships.

Conference Nickname Founded Members Sport Headquarters Map
Conference Carolinas CC 1930 9 men's volleyball Thomasville, North Carolina
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association CIAA 1912 10 bowling Hampton, Virginia
East Coast Conference ECC 1989 10 bowling Central Islip, New York
Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association MIAA 1912 7 bowling Kansas City, Missouri
Northeast-10 Conference NE-10 1980 6 men's ice hockey South Easton, Massachusetts

Division III

Current conferences

Conference Nickname Founded Members Sports Headquarters Map
Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference AMCC 1997 10[a] 16 North Boston, New York
American Collegiate Athletic Association ACAA 2017 9[b] 8 Omaha, Nebraska
American Rivers Conference[c] ARC 1922 9 22 Cedar Rapids, Iowa
American Southwest Conference ASC 1996 13[d] 16 Richardson, Texas
Atlantic East Conference AEC 2018 7 20 Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Capital Athletic Conference CAC 1989 8[e] 21 Hollywood, Maryland
Centennial Conference Centennial 1981 11 24 Lancaster, Pennsylvania
City University of New York Athletic Conference CUNYAC 1987 9 16 Flushing, Queens, New York
College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin CCIW 1946 9 23 Naperville, Illinois
Colonial States Athletic Conference CSAC 1992 9[f] 17 Aston, Pennsylvania
Commonwealth Coast Conference CCC 1984 9 17 Springfield, Massachusetts File:800px-TCCC-USA-states.png
Commonwealth Coast Football[g] CCC Football 1965[h] 7[i] 1 Springfield, Massachusetts File:800px-TCCC-USA-states.png
Eastern Collegiate Football Conference ECFC 2009 7[j] 1 Wilmington, Vermont
Empire 8 E8 1964 9[k] 22 Rochester, New York
Great Northeast Athletic Conference GNAC 1995 13 17 Boston, Massachusetts
Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference HCAC 1987 10 16 Greenwood, Indiana
Division III Independents 1 (football)[l]
6 (basketball)
Landmark Conference Landmark 2006 8 18 Madison, New Jersey
Liberty League Liberty 1995 11 26 Canton, New York
Little East Conference LEC 1986 9 19 North Dartmouth, Massachusetts
Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference MASCAC 1971 8 16 Westfield, Massachusetts
Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association MIAA 1888 9 22 Freeland, Michigan
Middle Atlantic Conferences MAC 1912 17[m][n] 27 Annville, Pennsylvania
Midwest Conference Midwest 1921 10 20 Ripon, Wisconsin
Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference MIAC 1920 13 22 St. Paul, Minnesota
New England Collegiate Conference NECC 2008 10 16 Attleboro, Massachusetts
New England Small College Athletic Conference NESCAC 1971 11 26 Hadley, Massachusetts
New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference NEWMAC 1998 11 20 Wellesley, Massachusetts
New Jersey Athletic Conference NJAC 1985 10 18 Pitman, New Jersey
North Atlantic Conference NAC 1996 8 15 Waterville, Maine
North Coast Athletic Conference NCAC 1983 10 23 Westlake, Ohio
North Eastern Athletic Conference NEAC 2004 12[o] 18 Gansevoort, New York
Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference NACC 2006 13[p] 19 Waukesha, Wisconsin
Northwest Conference NWC 1926 9 20 Seattle, Washington
Ohio Athletic Conference OAC 1902 10 23 Austintown, Ohio
Old Dominion Athletic Conference ODAC 1976 15 24 Forest, Virginia
Presidents' Athletic Conference PAC 1955 9 19 Wexford, Pennsylvania
Skyline Conference Skyline 1989 11[q] 17 Lawrenceville, New Jersey
Southern Athletic Association SAA 2012 8 21 Atlanta, Georgia
Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference SCIAC 1915 9 21 Los Angeles, California
Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference SCAC 1962 9 18 Lawrenceville, Georgia
State University of New York Athletic Conference SUNYAC 1958 11 20 Fredonia, New York
St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference SLIAC 1989 10 14 St. Louis, Missouri
University Athletic Association UAA 1986 8 22 Rochester, New York
Upper Midwest Athletic Conference UMAC 1972 9 16 St. Paul, Minnesota
USA South Athletic Conference USA South 1965 18 14 Fayetteville, North Carolina
Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference WIAC 1913 8 22 Madison, Wisconsin
  1. ^ 11 members in 2019 with addition of Alfred State.
  2. ^ 7 members in 2019 with loss of Alfred State and Thomas More.
  3. ^ Known before 2018–19 as the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
  4. ^ 12 members in 2019 with loss of UT Tyler.
  5. ^ 6 members in 2019 with loss of Frostburg State and Penn State Harrisburg.
  6. ^ 10 members in 2019 with addition of Saint Elizabeth.
  7. ^ Commonwealth Coast Football is operated by the Commonwealth Coast Conference, but remains a separate entity.
  8. ^ Commonwealth Coast Football is a 2017 rebranding of the New England Football Conference, which was founded in 1965.
  9. ^ 8 members in 2019 with addition of Husson
  10. ^ 6 members in 2019 with loss of Husson
  11. ^ 8 members in 2019 with loss of Stevens.
  12. ^ No football independents in 2019 with Thomas More leaving the NCAA to rejoin the NAIA.
  13. ^ The MAC is actually an umbrella organization of three conferences. Nine schools are members of the Commonwealth Conference and eight are members of the Freedom Conference. Each league conducts competition in the same set of 15 sports, not including football. The third league, called the Middle Atlantic Conference, combines schools from the Commonwealth and Freedom Conferences for the following 12 sports: men's and women's cross country, football, men's and women's ice hockey, men's and women's track & field (both indoor and outdoor), men's and women's swimming & diving, and men's volleyball.
  14. ^ 17 total members and 8 MAC Freedom members in 2019 with loss of Manhattanville and addition of Stevens.
  15. ^ 12 members in 2019 with addition of Penn State Harrisburg and loss of Saint Elizabeth.
  16. ^ 12 or 13 members in 2019. Benedictine had originally planned to move to the Division II Great Lakes Valley Conference, but has reportedly backed out of the move and will remain in Division III. Benedictine's future NACC status is currently unknown.[4]
  17. ^ 12 members in 2019 with addition of Manhattanville

Single-sport conferences

Conference Nickname Founded Members Sport Headquarters Map
Colonial Hockey Conference CHC 2015 7 Women's ice hockey
Continental Volleyball Conference CVC 2011 12 Men's volleyball Madison, New Jersey
ECAC West ECAC-W 6 (men)
10 (women)		 Ice hockey Danbury, Connecticut
Midwest Collegiate Volleyball League MCVL 2014 10 Men's volleyball Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Midwest Lacrosse Conference MLC 2009 8 Men's lacrosse Waukesha, Wisconsin
Midwest Women's Lacrosse Conference MWLC 2010 10 Women's Lacrosse Waukesha, Wisconsin
New England Hockey Conference NEHC 2015 10 (men)
13 (women)		 Ice hockey N/A
Northern Collegiate Hockey Association NCHA 1981 10 (men)
7 (women)		 Ice hockey Waukesha, Wisconsin
Ohio River Lacrosse Conference ORLC 2014 7 (men)
10 (women)		 Lacrosse Greenwood, Indiana
United Volleyball Conference UVC 2010 9 Men's volleyball Rochester, New York

Other sports

These conferences sponsor sports which do not have D-III championships.

Conference Nickname Founded Members Sport Headquarters Map
Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference AMCC 1997 8 Bowling North Boston, New York
Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference WIAC 1913 8 Women's gymnastics Madison, Wisconsin

Defunct NCAA conferences

Conference Division Founded Folded Fate
America Sky Conference Division I 2007 2014 Men's golf conference absorbed by the Big Sky Conference.[5]
American Lacrosse Conference Division I 2001 2014 Women's lacrosse conference that folded after the 2014 season due to fallout of the early-2010s conference realignment, specifically the 2013 announcement by the Big Ten that it would add men's and women's lacrosse for the 2014–15 school year (2015 season). Four of the seven final ALC members are full Big Ten members. Johns Hopkins went independent before joining Big Ten women's lacrosse in the 2017 season. The other two members became Big East affiliates.
American South Conference Division I 1987 1991 Merged with the Sun Belt Conference. The new conference used the Sun Belt name.[6]
Atlantic Central Football Conference Division III 1997 2010 Disbanded
Atlantic Soccer Conference Division I 2000 2012 Disbanded
Atlantic Women's Colleges Conference Division III 1995 2007 Disbanded
Big Central Soccer Conference Division I 1987 1991 Men's soccer-only conference disbanded after the all-sports conferences of all but two of its members began sponsoring the sport.
Big Eight Conference Division I 1907 1996 Initially formed in January 1907 as the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association, before six schools split away to form the Big Six in 1928. Disbanded to join with four former Southwest Conference schools to create the Big 12 Conference.
Border Conference University Division 1931 1962 Members split between the newly formed WAC and Independent statuses.
Central Collegiate Hockey Association Division I 1971 2013 The decision of the Big Ten Conference to add men's ice hockey as a sponsored sport in the 2013–14 season, taking three of the most successful members of the then-11-member league, led to a major conference realignment that ultimately consumed the CCHA. Two members joined the new National Collegiate Hockey Conference, one member joined Hockey East, and the remaining five members joined or rejoined the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.
Continental Divide Conference Division II ??? 1992 Women's-only conference that merged with the men's-only Great Northwest Conference (not to be confused with the current Great Northwest Athletic Conference) to form the Pacific West Conference.
Deep South Conference Division II 1994 2013 Men's lacrosse conference disbanded when the South Atlantic Conference and Sunshine State Conference, home to all nine of the final conference members, began sponsoring the sport.
Dixie Conference * 1930 1942 Disbanded after most of its members suspended athletics during World War II.
Dixie Conference * 1948 1954 Disbanded
East Coast Conference Division I 1958 1994 Absorbed by the Mid-Continent Conference, now known as The Summit League.
Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League * 1901 1955 Basketball-only conference absorbed by the Ivy League, which claims the EIBL as part of its own history.
ECAC Lacrosse League Division I 1999 2014 Men's lacrosse conference that disbanded after the 2014 season. The conference lost many members after the 2010 season when the original Big East launched a men's lacrosse league, and lost still more members with the Big Ten announcement. At the end of the final ECAC Lacrosse season, only one member had not announced a new lacrosse affiliation for the 2014–15 school year; that school would later join Southern Conference men's lacrosse.
ECAC Division II Lacrosse League Division II 2012 2016 Disbanded. Six members began play in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference, leaving three members to become independents.
Freedom Football Conference Division III 1992 2003 Disbanded
Great Lakes Football Conference Division II 2006 2012 Football-only conference, effectively absorbed by the Great Lakes Valley Conference.
Great Midwest Conference Division I 1991 1995 Merged with Metro Conference to form Conference USA.
Great Northwest Conference Division II ??? 1992 The second part of the merger that created the current Pacific West Conference.
Great South Athletic Conference Division III 1999 2016 Disbanded
Great West Conference Division I 2004 2013 Disbanded after all but one of its members joined more established conferences during the early-2010s conference realignment. The men's golf history and Internet presence of the Great West were maintained by the America Sky Conference (above) before the latter conference's absorption by the Big Sky.
Great West Hockey Conference Division I 1985 1988 Ice hockey-only conference formed by four Western schools, but had one of its members drop hockey after its first season. After failing to attract additional members in 1988, the league folded when one of the remaining members shut down its entire athletic program.
Great Western Lacrosse League Division I 1993 2010 Members joined the ECAC Lacrosse League (see above).
Gulf Coast Conference College Division 1949 1957 Disbanded
Gulf Star Conference Division I 1984 1987 Effectively absorbed by the Southland Conference.
High Country Athletic Conference Division I 1983 1990 Women's-only conference absorbed by the Western Athletic Conference.
Indiana Collegiate Conference Division II 1950 1978 Disbanded
Indiana Intercollegiate Conference Division II 1922 1950 Disbanded
Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference University Division 1908 1970 Previously known as Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, disbanded.
Intercollegiate Athletic Association of the Northwest * 1892 1893 Disbanded, precursor to the Big Ten Conference.
Lake Michigan Conference Division III 1974 2007 Merged with the Northern Illinois-Iowa Conference to form the Northern Athletics Conference, now known as the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference.
Metro Conference Division I 1975 1995 Merged with Great Midwest Conference to form Conference USA.
Metropolitan Collegiate Conference University Division 1965 1969 Disbanded
Metropolitan New York Conference University Division 1933 1963 Disbanded
Mid-Continent Athletic Association Division II, later Division I 1978 1981 Football-only conference absorbed by the Association of Mid-Continent Universities in 1982. Effectively one of the precursors to the current Missouri Valley Football Conference.
Midwest Collegiate Hockey Association Division III 1998 2013 Absorbed by the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association.
Midwestern Conference University Division 1970 1972 The five member schools were unable to find the 6th member required for NCAA recognition.
Mountain States Conference (aka Skyline Conference) University Division 1938 1962 Disbanded, members split between the newly formed WAC and Independent statuses.
Mountain West Athletic Conference Division I 1982 1988 Women's-only conference (not to be confused with the modern Mountain West Conference) absorbed by the Big Sky Conference.
National Lacrosse Conference Division I 2008 2012 Disbanded after the Atlantic Sun Conference and Big South Conference began sponsoring women's lacrosse.
New England Conference * 1938 1947 Disbanded; the final four members joined two other schools to form the Yankee Conference under a new charter. Effectively the earliest ancestor of today's Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) football conference.
New England Women's Lacrosse Alliance Division III 1998 2012 Disbanded
New South Women's Athletic Conference Division I 1985 1991 Women's-only conference initially known as the New South Conference; absorbed by the Trans America Athletic Conference, now legally known as the Atlantic Sun Conference and branded as the ASUN Conference.
North Central Conference Division II 1922 2008 Disbanded
North East Collegiate Volleyball Association Division III 1995 2011 Men's volleyball conference disbanded in 2011 due to the 2012 establishment of the NCAA Men's Division III Volleyball Championship. Most of the all-sports conferences that were home to NECVA members began sponsoring men's volleyball at that time.
North Star Conference Division I 1983 1992 Women's-only conference effectively absorbed by the Mid-Continent Conference (now The Summit League).
Northern California Athletic Conference Division II 1925 1996 Football-only conference, dissolved when most members decided to drop football
Northern Illinois-Iowa Conference Division III 1969 2007 Merged with the Lake Michigan Conference to form the Northern Athletics Conference, now known as the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference.
Northern Pacific Conference Division I 1982 1986 Women's-only conference. Disbanded when the Pac-10, home to five of the seven final conference members, began sponsoring women's sports.
Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference Division I 1982 2015 Field hockey-only conference that folded after the 2014 season. After a period in which the conference expanded to span both coasts, most of the eastern teams left over time. Four of the six final members, all from California (and also the league's founding members), became America East affiliates. The remaining two members became independents; one is now a field hockey member of the Big East and the other is now a MAC field hockey member.
Northern Sun Conference Division II 1979 1992 Women's-only conference that merged with the men's Northern Intercollegiate Conference, forming the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference.
Pacific Coast Conference Division I 1915 1959 Forerunner to the Pac-12, disbanded due to scandal and infighting
Pacific Coast Softball Conference Division I 2002 2013 Softball-only; disbanded due to fallout from the early-2010s conference realignment. After the 2012 season, it lost five members when the Big Sky added the sport and a sixth to the WAC. After the 2013 season, the final seven members left when the West Coast Conference began sponsoring the sport (five were already WCC members, and the other two joined the WAC in softball).
Pilgrim Lacrosse League Division III 1986 2013 Absorbed by the NEWMAC
Southeast Team Handball Conference Unknown 1997 2006 Handball only, disbanded
Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association * 1894 1941 Disbanded with the onset of American involvement in World War II.
Southwest Conference Division I 1914 1996 Disbanded, members split into the Big 12, WAC, and C-USA
United Soccer Conference Division I 2005 2009 Women's soccer-only, absorbed by Great West Conference
West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Division II 1924 2013 Disbanded after the conference's football schools announced a split from the non-football schools. Ultimately, nine of the final schools became charter members of the Mountain East Conference, three joined the Great Midwest Athletic Conference, two joined the PSAC, and one went independent.
Western Collegiate Athletic Association Division I 1981 1986 Women's-only conference; known in its final season of 1985–86 as the Pacific West Conference (not to be confused with the current NCAA Division II conference). Disbanded when the Pac-10, home to the final five conference members, began sponsoring women's sports.
Western Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association Division II 2010 2015 Lacrosse-only conference absorbed by the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference; all final teams are members of the RMAC, including one affiliate. The RMAC had absorbed the women's side of the WILA in 2013; five of the members were RMAC members including one affiliate, one additional women's member became an independent.
Western Wrestling Conference Division I 2006 2015 Wrestling-only conference effectively absorbed by the Big 12 Conference, with all of its final members becoming single-sport Big 12 associates.
Yankee Conference Division I 1947 1997 Football-only conference from 1975 until its absorption by the Atlantic 10 Conference in 1997. Also an effective ancestor of today's CAA football conference.
  • * - Operated before the NCAA split into divisions in 1955.

Conferences set to disband

This section is reserved for conferences currently in operation, but likely to disband in the near future due to major membership losses.

Conference Division Founded Folding Background
Heartland Conference Division II 1999 2019 In August 2017, eight of the Heartland Conference's nine members announced a mass exodus to the Lone Star Conference (LSC) after the 2018–19 school year.[7] The remaining member, Newman University, announced it would seek a new conference affiliation at that time,[8] and eventually announced that it would become a de facto member of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association in 2019.[9] According to the Newman student newspaper, the Heartland and LSC had been discussing a merger in spring 2017.[10]

See also

References

  1. ^ http://www.wacsports.com
  2. ^ "NEWHA announces intent to be recognized as NCAA national collegiate women's hockey conference". USCHO.com. September 26, 2018. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  3. ^ "New Southland Bowling League Established" (Press release). Southland Conference. January 20, 2015. Retrieved March 15, 2015.
  4. ^ Coleman, Pat (September 22, 2018). "Benedictine pulls 180, will return to D-III". D3sports.com. Retrieved October 1, 2018.
  5. ^ Burton, Roy (June 4, 2014). "WSU joins friends/foes as Big Sky brings back men's golf". Standard-Examiner. Ogden, UT. Retrieved June 13, 2014.
  6. ^ http://articles.latimes.com/keyword/colleges-southern-united-states
  7. ^ "Lone Star Conference to Add Eight Schools in 2019" (Press release). Lone Star Conference. August 30, 2017. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
  8. ^ "Newman To Explore New Conference Affiliation" (Press release). Newman University Athletics. August 30, 2017. Retrieved August 31, 2017.
  9. ^ "Newman to Compete In MIAA As Associate Member in 2019-20" (Press release). Newman Jets. February 8, 2018. Retrieved February 15, 2018.
  10. ^ Mannis, Taylor (March 9, 2017). "Heartland Conference Looking to Expand". The Vantage. Wichita, KS. Retrieved December 19, 2017.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_NCAA_conferences&oldid=863585706"