Sun Belt Conference 79369 226101711 2008-07-16T20:49:57Z Bracket Builder 6839230 /* Current members */ {{Infobox Athletic Conference |name = Sun Belt Conference |short_name = |established = 1976 |logo = SunBeltConference 100.png |logo_size = 150 |association = NCAA |division = [[Division I]] |subdivision = FBS |members = 13 |sports = 19 |mens = 9 |womens = 10 |region = [[Southern United States]] |former_names = |hq_city = New Orleans |hq_stateabb = LA |hq_state = Louisiana |commissioner = Wright Waters |since = 1999 |website = http://www.sunbeltsports.org/ |color = FCA120 |font_color = 000000 |map = Sun Belt map (clean).png |map_size = 275 }} The '''Sun Belt Conference''' is a [[list of college athletic conferences|college athletic conference]] that has been affiliated with the [[National Collegiate Athletic Association|NCAA]]'s Division I since [[1976 in sports|1976]]. Its [[College football|football]] teams participate in the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), the higher of two levels of Division I football competition (formerly known as Division I-A). The Sun Belt has member institutions distributed primarily across the southern [[United States]]. ==History== After the [[1990 in sports|1990]]-[[1991 in sports|91]] [[basketball]] season, all members of the Sun Belt except [[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]], [[University of South Alabama|South Alabama]], [[Jacksonville University|Jacksonville]], and incoming member [[University of Arkansas at Little Rock|Arkansas-Little Rock]] departed for other conferences. The Sun Belt then merged with the [[American South Conference]], made up of [[Arkansas State University|Arkansas State]], [[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]], Southwestern Louisiana (now [[University of Louisiana at Lafayette]]), [[University of Texas-Pan American|Texas-Pan American]], [[University of New Orleans|New Orleans]], [[Lamar University|Lamar]], and [[University of Central Florida|Central Florida]]. The conference did not sponsor [[American football|football]] until [[2001 in sports|2001]], when the league added [[New Mexico State University|New Mexico State]], [[University of North Texas|North Texas]] and [[Middle Tennessee State University|Middle Tennessee]] as full members and added [[University of Louisiana at Monroe|Louisiana-Monroe]] (ULM) and [[University of Idaho|Idaho]] as "football only" members. [[Utah State University|Utah State]] was added as a "football only" member in [[2003 in sports|2003]], then departed in [[2005 in sports|2005]] with [[University of Idaho|Idaho]] and [[New Mexico State University|New Mexico State]] for the [[Western Athletic Conference|WAC]]. ==Future== ULM and FAU joined the league as a member in all sports on July 1, [[2005 in sports|2005]]. [[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] will join the Sun Belt Conference for football in 2009 after its Board of Regents voted to upgrade the school's football program to Division I FBS.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://wku.edu/news/releases06/november/football.html|publisher=[[Western Kentucky University]]|title=WKU Regents Approve Move To Division 1-A Football|date=2006-11-02|accessdate=2006-11-03}}</ref> <br><br> [[University of South Alabama|South Alabama]] will begin fielding a football team in 2009, with the intention of moving up to full FBS status by 2013. ==Organization== It has one bowl tie-in, the [[New Orleans Bowl]], which currently pits the Sun Belt champion against an agreed-upon school from [[Conference USA]]. The conference office has been headquartered in downtown [[New Orleans]] since 2000, after moving from suburban [[Metairie, Louisiana]] where it had been based since 1991. Prior to moving to the “Big Easy” the league was based in [[Tampa, Florida]] from 1977-1991. The original conference office was located in [[Charlotte, North Carolina]] from 1976-77. ==Commissioners== *[[Vic Bubas]] (1976-1990) *Jim Lessig (1990-1991) *Craig Thompson (1991-1998) *Wright Waters (1999-present) ==Current members== {| class="wikitable sortable" !Institution !Nickname !Location !Founded !Affiliation !Enrollment !Football Member !Endowment |- |[[University of Arkansas at Little Rock]] |[[Arkansas-Little Rock Trojans|Trojans]] |[[Little Rock, Arkansas]] |1927 |Public |12,000 |No |$7.6 million |- |[[Arkansas State University]] |[[Arkansas State Red Wolves|Red Wolves]] |[[Jonesboro, Arkansas]] |1909 |Public |16,494 |Yes |$33.1 million |- |[[University of Denver]] |[[Denver Pioneers|Pioneers]] |[[Denver, Colorado]] |1864 |Private/Non-sectarian |9,846 |No |$291 million |- |[[Florida Atlantic University]] |[[Florida Atlantic Owls|Owls]] |[[Boca Raton, Florida]] |1964 |Public |26,000 |Yes |$190 million |- |[[Florida International University]] |[[Florida International Golden Panthers|Golden Panthers]] |[[Miami, Florida]] |1965 |Public |39,500 |Yes |$92 million |- |[[University of Louisiana at Lafayette]] |[[Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns|Ragin' Cajuns]] |[[Lafayette, Louisiana]] |1900 |Public |18,079 |Yes |$93 million |- |[[University of Louisiana at Monroe]] |Warhawks |[[Monroe, Louisiana]] |1931 |Public |8,140 |Yes |$20.6 million |- |[[Middle Tennessee State University]] |Blue Raiders |[[Murfreesboro, Tennessee]] |1911 |Public |22,554 |Yes |$23.8 million |- |[[University of New Orleans]] |[[New Orleans Privateers|Privateers]] |[[New Orleans, Louisiana]] |1958 |Public |17,350 |No |$15.5 million |- |[[University of North Texas]] |[[North Texas Mean Green|Mean Green]] |[[Denton, Texas]] |1890 |Public |32,181 |Yes |$62.4 million |- |[[University of South Alabama]] |[[South Alabama Jaguars|Jaguars]] |[[Mobile, Alabama]] |1963 |Public |14,003 |Yes (2013) |$270 million |- |[[Troy University]] |[[Troy Trojans|Trojans]] |[[Troy, Alabama]] |1887 |Public |27,148 |Yes |$27 million |- |[[Western Kentucky University]] |[[Western Kentucky Hilltoppers|Hilltoppers]] |[[Bowling Green, Kentucky]] |1906 |Public |18,391 |Yes (2009) |$102 million |} ==Conference facilities== {| class="wikitable" |- !School !Football stadium !Capacity !Basketball arena !Capacity |- |Arkansas Little-Rock |Non-football school |N/A |[[Jack Stephens Center]] |5,600 |- |Arkansas State |[[Indian Stadium]] |33,410 |[[Convocation Center (Arkansas State University)|Convocation Center]] |10,563 |- |Denver |Non-football school |N/A |[[Magness Arena]] |7,200 |- |Florida Atlantic |[[Lockhart Stadium]]* |20,450 |[[FAU Arena]] |5,000 |- |Florida International |[[FIU Stadium]]** |23,500 |[[Pharmed Arena]] |6,000 |- |Louisiana-Lafayette |[[Cajun Field]] |31,000 |[[Cajundome]] |11,550 |- |ULM |[[Malone Stadium]] |30,427 |[[Fant-Ewing Coliseum]] |7,085 |- |Middle Tennessee |[[Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium]] |31,000 |[[Murphy Center]] |11,520 |- |New Orleans |Non-football school |N/A |[[UNO Lakefront Arena]] |10,000 |- |North Texas |[[Fouts Field]] |30,500 |[[UNT Coliseum]] |10,040 |- |South Alabama |[[Ladd-Peebles Stadium]]*** |40,646 |[[Mitchell Center]] |10,000 |- |Troy |[[Movie Gallery Stadium]] |30,000 |[[Trojan Arena]] |4,000 |- |Western Kentucky |[[Houchens Industries - L. T. Smith Stadium]]**** |17,500 |[[E. A. Diddle Arena]] |8,300 |} '''Notes:''' *Arkansas-Little Rock normally plays its home games on campus, but occasionally plays at [[Alltel Arena]]. *New Orleans' normal home, [[Lakefront Arena]], is unavailable due to damage from [[Hurricane Katrina]]. *<nowiki>*</nowiki>At least one home game a year is played at [[Dolphin Stadium]] in [[Miami Gardens, Florida|Miami Gardens]] (home of the NFL Miami Dolphins and NCAA Miami Hurricanes). FAU is constructing an on campus 30,000 seat stadium to open for their 2010 season. *<nowiki>**</nowiki>Florida International University's [[FIU Stadium]] is currently undergoing expansions for an increased seating capacity to 45,000. The expansion is to be done in two separate phases, phase one to be finished for the Fall 2008 season and phase two by Fall 2010. The school also used the [[Miami Orange Bowl]] as its home stadium for the 2007 season. *<nowiki>***</nowiki>South Alabama will begin a football team in 2009, with its first year of Sun Belt play in 2013. *<nowiki>****</nowiki>Through the 2006 season, Western Kentucky was not a football member of the Sun Belt Conference, as it competed at the [[Football Championship Subdivision|Division I FCS]] (formerly Division I-AA) level in the [[Gateway Football Conference]]. The football team is moving up to Division I FBS in 2007 and will join the conference in 2009; by that time, Smith Stadium's capacity will be expanded to around 22,000 seats. ==Football champions by year== {| class="wikitable" |- !Season !Champion !Conference Record |- |rowspan=2|2001 |Middle Tennessee |5-1 |- |[[North Texas Mean Green football|North Texas]]* |5-1 |- |2002 |North Texas |6-0 |- |2003 |North Texas |7-0 |- |2004 |North Texas |7-0 |- |rowspan=3|2005 |Arkansas State** |5-2 |- |Louisiana-Lafayette |5-2 |- |ULM |5-2 |- |rowspan=2|2006 |Middle Tennessee |6-1 |- |Troy*** |6-1 |- |rowspan=2|2007 |Troy |6-1 |- |Florida Atlantic**** |6-1 |} ''* North Texas won the conference's automatic bowl bid because it won the head-to-head game against Middle Tennessee. Also, North Texas had a losing overall record in 2001 and was not technically bowl-eligible, but the NCAA granted the team an exemption because it had won the conference. This is similar to what is granted to a basketball or baseball team which has a losing overall record but wins its conference tournament.'' <br /> ''** Arkansas State won the conference's automatic bowl bid through a three-way tiebreaker.'' <br /> ''*** Troy won the conference's automatic bowl bid through a tiebreaker by virtue of its head-to-head victory against Middle Tennessee, and Middle Tennessee earned a bid to the [[Motor City Bowl]] in Detroit.'' <br /> ''**** Florida Atlantic won the conference's automatic bowl bid through a tiebreaker by virtue of its head-to-head victory against Troy.'' ==Basketball champions by year== {| class="wikitable" width="65%" |- !rowspa=2|Season !Men's Regular Season Champion !Men's Tournament Champion !Women's Regular Season Champion !Women's Tournament Champion |- |1977 |[[Charlotte 49ers|UNC Charlotte]] |[[Charlotte 49ers|UNC Charlotte]] |''No Regular Season'' |''No Tournament'' |- |1978 |[[Charlotte 49ers|UNC Charlotte]] |[[University of New Orleans|New Orleans]] |''No Regular Season'' |''No Tournament'' |- |1979 |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[Jacksonville University|Jacksonville]] |''No Regular Season'' |''No Tournament'' |- |1980 |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[Virginia Commonwealth University|VCU]] |''No Regular Season'' |''No Tournament'' |- |1981 |[[Virginia Commonwealth Rams men's basketball|VCU]] |[[Virginia Commonwealth Rams men's basketball|VCU]] |''No Regular Season'' |''No Tournament'' |- |1982 |[[UAB Blazers|UAB]] |[[UAB Blazers|UAB]] |''No Regular Season'' |''No Tournament'' |- |1983 |[[Virginia Commonwealth Rams men's basketball|VCU]] |[[UAB Blazers|UAB]] |[[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]] |[[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]] |- |1984 |[[Virginia Commonwealth Rams men's basketball|VCU]] |[[UAB Blazers|UAB]] |[[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]] |[[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]] |- |1985 |[[Virginia Commonwealth Rams men's basketball|VCU]] |[[Virginia Commonwealth Rams men's basketball|VCU]] |[[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]] |[[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]] |- |1986 |[[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]] |[[Jacksonville University|Jacksonville]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |- |1987 |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[UAB Blazers|UAB]] |[[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]] |[[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]] |- |1988 |[[Charlotte 49ers|UNC Charlotte]] |[[Charlotte 49ers|UNC Charlotte]] |[[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |- |1989 |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |- |1990 |[[UAB Blazers|UAB]] |[[University of South Florida|South Florida]] |[[UAB Blazers|UAB]] |[[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]] |- |1991 |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[UAB Blazers|UAB]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |- |1992 |[[Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns|Southwestern Louisiana]] |[[Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns|Southwestern Louisiana]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |- |1993 |[[University of New Orleans|New Orleans]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |- |1994 |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns|Southwestern Louisiana]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |- |1995 |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |- |1996 |[[Arkansas-Little Rock Trojans|UALR]] |[[University of New Orleans|New Orleans]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |- |1997 |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |- |1998 |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |- |1999 |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |[[Arkansas State Red Wolves|Arkansas State]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |- |2000 |[[Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns|Louisiana-Lafayette]] |[[Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns|Louisiana-Lafayette]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |- |2001 |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] |- |2002 |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Florida International Golden Panthers|Florida International]] |[[Florida International Golden Panthers|Florida International]] |- |2003 |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |- |2004 |[[Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns|Louisiana-Lafayette]] |[[Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns|Louisiana-Lafayette]] |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[Middle Tennessee State University|Middle Tennessee]] |- |2005 |[[University of Denver|Denver]] |[[Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns|Louisiana-Lafayette]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Middle Tennessee State University|Middle Tennessee]] |- |2006 |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Middle Tennessee State University|Middle Tennessee]] |- |2007 |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[North Texas Mean Green|North Texas]] |[[Middle Tennessee State University|Middle Tennessee]] |[[Middle Tennessee State University|Middle Tennessee]] |- |2008 |[[South Alabama Jaguars|South Alabama]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |[[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |} See also: *[[Sun Belt Men's Basketball Tournament]] *[[List of Sun Belt Conference Men's Basketball Tournament Locations]] *[[Sun Belt Women's Basketball Tournament]] ==Rivalries== ===Intraconference rivalries=== {| class="wikitable" |- !Rivalry !Sport !Significant Game !Trophy |- |[[Florida Atlantic Owls football|Florida Atlantic]] - [[FIU Golden Panthers football|Florida International]] |All |[[Shula Bowl]] (football) |The Shula Award |- |[[Arkansas-Little Rock Trojans|UALR]] - [[Arkansas State Red Wolves|Arkansas State]] |All | |- |[[Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns|Louisiana-Lafayette]] - [[University of Louisiana at Monroe|ULM]] |All |[[Battle on the Bayou]] (football) | |- |[[Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football|Middle Tennessee]] - [[Troy Trojans football|Troy]] |Football |Battle for the Palladium |The Palladium |- |[[Middle Tennessee State University|Middle Tennessee]]<!--School has a football article, but not a basketball or even a general athletics one.--> - [[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |Basketball | | |} ===Interconference rivalries=== {| class="wikitable" |- !Rivalry !Sport !Significant Game !Trophy |- |[[Eastern Kentucky University|Eastern Kentucky]] - [[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] |Football |Battle of the Bluegrass | |- |[[Florida International Golden Panthers|Florida International]] - [[University of Miami]] |All | |- ||[[Arkansas State Red Wolves|Arkansas State]] - [[University of Memphis]] |All | | |- |[[North Texas Mean Green|North Texas]] - [[SMU Mustangs|SMU]] |Football |Safeway Bowl |} ==Sports== The Sun Belt Conference sponsors intercollegiate competition in men’s [[baseball]], men’s and women’s [[basketball]], men’s and women’s [[cross country running|cross country]], men’s [[American football|football]], men’s and women’s [[golf]], women’s [[soccer]], women’s [[softball]], women’s [[swimming]] and [[diving]], men’s and women’s [[tennis]], men’s and women’s indoor [[track and field]], men’s and women’s outdoor [[track and field]], and women’s [[volleyball]]. While the conference does not sponsor men's soccer, four schools do have teams, with [[University of Denver|Denver]] competing in the [[Mountain Pacific Sports Federation]], [[Florida Atlantic University|Florida Atlantic]] in the [[Atlantic Soccer Conference]], [[Florida International University|Florida International]] in [[Conference USA]], and [[Western Kentucky University|Western Kentucky]] in the [[Missouri Valley Conference]]. ==Former Members== *[[Georgia State University|Georgia State]] - 1976-1981 *[[Jacksonville University|Jacksonville]] - 1976-1998 *[[University of North Carolina at Charlotte|Charlotte]] - 1976-1991 *[[University of South Florida|South Florida]] - 1976-1991 *[[University of Alabama at Birmingham|UAB]] - 1979-1991 *[[Virginia Commonwealth University|Virginia Commonwealth]] - 1979-1991 *[[Old Dominion University|Old Dominion]] - 1982-1991 *[[University of Central Florida|UCF]] - 1991-1992 *[[Lamar University|Lamar]] - 1991-1998 *[[University of Texas-Pan American|Texas-Pan American]] - 1991-1998 *[[Louisiana Tech University|Louisiana Tech]] - 1991-2001 *[[New Mexico State University|New Mexico State]] - 2001-2005 *[[University of Idaho|Idaho]] (''football only'') - 2001-2005 *[[Utah State University|Utah State]] (''football only'') - 2003-2005 ==Affiliate Members== [[Missouri State Bears|Missouri State]], [[Southern Illinois University|Southern Illinois]], [[University of Evansville]], [[Eastern Michigan University]], [[Ball State University]], [[University of Buffalo]] and [[Miami University]] began competing with the Sun Belt in men's swimming and diving, in 2008. ==See also== *[[Sun Belt Conference Baseball Tournament]] ==External links== *[http://www.sunbeltsports.org/ Sun Belt Conference] ==Notes and references== {{reflist}} {{NCAA FBS Conferences}} {{Sun Belt Conference}} {{Sun Belt Football Venues}} {{Sun Belt Basketball Venues}} {{SunBeltBasketballCoach}} {{Sun Belt Marching Bands}} [[Category:Sun Belt Conference| ]] [[Category:Sports in New Orleans, Louisiana]] [[es:Sun Belt Conference]] [[fr:Sun Belt Conference]] [[simple:Sun Belt Conference]]