FB: Southern Athletic Association

[jknezek]

Lyon College of AR has announced they are going to start the transition process from NAIA to D3 (though they haven't applied yet).   While they are (just) in the SAA's geographical footprint and do have a football program, I don't see them as a school the SAA would be interested in adding as they don't meet the SAA's academics.  They would fit in the ASC or SCAC (should the latter revive football, especially).   IMO the ASC is the most likely destination as they'd make a good travel partner for the U of the Ozarks.

If nothing else... could be an easy OOC game for Hendrix in lots of sports. Less than 2 hours away.

[TLU02SA]

Lyon College of AR has announced they are going to start the transition process from NAIA to D3 (though they haven't applied yet).   While they are (just) in the SAA's geographical footprint and do have a football program, I don't see them as a school the SAA would be interested in adding as they don't meet the SAA's academics.  They would fit in the ASC or SCAC (should the latter revive football, especially).   IMO the ASC is the most likely destination as they'd make a good travel partner for the U of the Ozarks.

If nothing else... could be an easy OOC game for Hendrix in lots of sports. Less than 2 hours away.

Also posted this on ASC board but doesn't this just scream SCAC?  In light of the recent amendments to the AQ, with the SCAC voting unanimously for the 6 AQ, along with Centenary starting a football program, I would predict there will be an announcement that Lyon is joining the SCAC (I have no actually knowledge of this).  That is your 6 for a football AQ: Austin, Centenary, Lyon, Southwestern, Trinity and TLU. The addition of Lyon would also get the SCAC in other sports back to 10 (the previous six plus Colorado, Dallas, Schreiner and St. Thomas).  Distance will play a role because Lyon is not really close to the other SCAC schools but this seems to be the end game here.  And Lyon is Presbyterian.  Fits the SCAC profile (Presbyterians, Methodists, Catholics and Lutherans).  I could be wrong.

[Ron Boerger]

Also posted this on ASC board but doesn't this just scream SCAC?  In light of the recent amendments to the AQ, with the SCAC voting unanimously for the 6 AQ, along with Centenary starting a football program, I would predict there will be an announcement that Lyon is joining the SCAC (I have no actually knowledge of this).  That is your 6 for a football AQ: Austin, Centenary, Lyon, Southwestern, Trinity and TLU. The addition of Lyon would also get the SCAC in other sports back to 10 (the previous six plus Colorado, Dallas, Schreiner and St. Thomas).  Distance will play a role because Lyon is not really close to the other SCAC schools but this seems to be the end game here.  And Lyon is Presbyterian.  Fits the SCAC profile (Presbyterians, Methodists, Catholics and Lutherans).  I could be wrong.

It's certainly a possibility but the ASC desperately needs another football school because non-conference scheduling is ridiculously hard and gets harder with Southwestern leaving for the SAA in 2023.   

The SCAC already has a bad travel situation in most sports one weekend where you have Dallas or Austin paired with Colorado College - but at least all those schools are near major airports.   If they take Lyon your closest airport is Little Rock, a couple hours away.  So then you end up with either two travel weekends Dallas - Colorado and Austin - Lyon or even worse one weekend with both Lyon and Colorado.  There are actually three airlines flying from Little Rock to Denver so that actually might work - but I don't know if the majority of schools that don't have huge endowments would be happy about adding a flight for most of their sports.   

We'll see!   

[BSCpanthers]

Southwestern is coming in as associate member in football only, or are they becoming full members to the SAA???  If it's associate member, there is a chance they never make it into conference as the SCAC may start to sponsor football with 6 playing members.

[TLU02SA]

Southwestern is coming in as associate member in football only, or are they becoming full members to the SAA???  If it's associate member, there is a chance they never make it into conference as the SCAC may start to sponsor football with 6 playing members.

According to the press release, it is an associate member in football only:

https://saa-sports.com/news/2021/8/19/saa-announces-that-southwestern-university-will-join-the-league-as-an-affiliate-member-in-football.aspx

With only 6 members to have an AQ, I would suspect that there will be some shuffling on conference affiliations, especially with associate memberships.

[awadelewis]

Article covering an interview that Sewanee's alumni office recently did with our new AD.    Not a new face on the Mountain as we were able to convince our long-time men's tennis coach to come out of retirement to take the AD position.   I was glad to see Coach Shackleford take the position as he and his wife have built a solid tennis program at Sewanee over the past 30 years and I think we will see the same with John as our AD.   Comments about the state of the football program are towards the end of the article.

https://stories.sewanee.edu/building-a-championship-culture/index.html?fbclid=IwAR2WqKHvV-4vDZ1BaSsk78wCDQm4Jqm318G1E8E3FJnYd4f750Pfo8IGHHU

[Ron Boerger]

Article covering an interview that Sewanee's alumni office recently did with our new AD.    Not a new face on the Mountain as we were able to convince our long-time men's tennis coach to come out of retirement to take the AD position.   I was glad to see Coach Shackleford take the position as he and his wife have built a solid tennis program at Sewanee over the past 30 years and I think we will see the same with John as our AD.   Comments about the state of the football program are towards the end of the article.

https://stories.sewanee.edu/building-a-championship-culture/index.html?fbclid=IwAR2WqKHvV-4vDZ1BaSsk78wCDQm4Jqm318G1E8E3FJnYd4f750Pfo8IGHHU

Sounds like you have the right man for the job - a solid AD, *along with support from the administration*, can make a huge difference.  Trinity's athletic programs were in similar straits before we hired Bob King from Millsaps way back in '93.  Sewanee's commitment to meet the full financial needs of all students should certainly help but facilities are a key, which your new AD realizes.  And fundraising for athletic facilities can be complicated - so too getting the student body involved.  I wish you all the best!

[awadelewis]

Sounds like you have the right man for the job - a solid AD, *along with support from the administration*, can make a huge difference.  Trinity's athletic programs were in similar straits before we hired Bob King from Millsaps way back in '93.  Sewanee's commitment to meet the full financial needs of all students should certainly help but facilities are a key, which your new AD realizes.  And fundraising for athletic facilities can be complicated - so too getting the student body involved.  I wish you all the best!

Thanks, that's mighty kind of you.  Will be a bit before we can deal with facilities issues as we're going through another transition at the Vice Chancellor level (what would be the President on other campuses).     But the first hurdle is past now that we're admitting we have a problem that we need to fundraise to address.   I admire what Trinity has been able to do in both athletics and academics over the past few years... signs of a good set of administrators.

[Ron Boerger]

(tip of the hat the the ASC board)

Football schedules for 2022 are starting to come up at last, albeit slowly.

Centre:  https://centrecolonels.com/sports/football/schedule/2022
@Hanover, Maryville, @Trine

Sewanee:  https://sewaneetigers.com/sports/football/schedule/2022
St. Scholastica, W&L, Westminster(MO) - a very home-friendly open to the season

.. and that's it.   We know from the TLU schedule that they scrimmage Trinity and then play them in SA three weeks later.   More schedules will be forthcoming over the next month or two. 

[Etchglow]

(tip of the hat the the ASC board)

Football schedules for 2022 are starting to come up at last, albeit slowly.

Centre:  https://centrecolonels.com/sports/football/schedule/2022
@Hanover, Maryville, @Trine

Sewanee:  https://sewaneetigers.com/sports/football/schedule/2022
St. Scholastica, W&L, Westminster(MO) - a very home-friendly open to the season

.. and that's it.   We know from the TLU schedule that they scrimmage Trinity and then play them in SA three weeks later.   More schedules will be forthcoming over the next month or two.

Here are a few others:
Hendrix plays Austin College week 1 (9/3) and Howard Payne week 3 (9/17).  Rhodes plays Austin College week 2 (9/10), and Millsaps opens with Belhaven on Thursday 9/1. 

[Ron Boerger]

[x-posting to both ASC and SAA boards]

Centenary [LA] has their football coach, former Evangel and LSU star Byron Dawson, who comes over from Tulane where he was DL coach since March 2020.  Prior to that he was HC at Evangel, where he worked his way up from DL coach to DC to HC in a 15-year career.

What they don't have - yet - is a conference to play in.

[awadelewis]

(tip of the hat the the ASC board)

Football schedules for 2022 are starting to come up at last, albeit slowly.
...
Sewanee:  https://sewaneetigers.com/sports/football/schedule/2022
St. Scholastica, W&L, Westminster(MO) - a very home-friendly open to the season

...

Plus we open SAA play at home against Millsaps.   Full first month of the schedule at home.   Second half of season might be tough with road games to Centre, Hendrix, Rhodes, and Trinity.

Just hoping for better results... a second perfect "0-fer' season will not go over very well on the Mountain. 

[BSCpanthers]

So far this is what I can find for BSC 2022 schedule

Sep 3 Point University(NAIA)
Sep 10 Huntingdon
Sep 17 McMurry

Oct 22 @Suwanee

Nov 5 Centre

Suwanee and Centre have released their schedule.  BSC is having the football banquet and spring game on April 29 and 30, I would assume we will release our schedule then.  That is if the McMurry game has been figured out by then, also don't know if we play Point home or away. 

[Hawks88]

Our schedule has the BSC game at 1PM. Do you know if that's right or will it be the usual 6PM? I haven't tried contacting anyone at HC to ask about it.

[BSCpanthers]

I'd hope it's 6pm just because of the heat.  That, and tailgating all day is more fun.