The Sun Belt Conference announced Tuesday the addition of the University of Southern Mississippi into the league after a unanimous vote of the Sun Belt CEOs. Southern Miss will become members no later than July 1, 2023.
“This is a big day for our conference,” Sun Belt Commissioner Keith Gill said. “We are thrilled to welcome the University of Southern Mississippi to the Sun Belt.
“Southern Miss brings a host of strengths to our conference. They are competitive across all of their sports, have a strong brand and are supported by a great fan base. The electric atmosphere surrounding their games is a tradition we are proud to now be a part of.”
The addition of Southern Miss will bring the number of Sun Belt members to 13, with the Golden Eagles joining current members Appalachian State, Little Rock, Arkansas State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Louisiana, ULM, South Alabama, UTA, Texas State and Troy, although UTA and Little Rock do not compete in football.
“I am grateful to President Dr. Rodney D. Bennett and Athletics Director Jeremy McClain for their leadership during this process,” Gill said. “I’d also like to thank the CEOs and athletic directors of our current member institutions for their efforts as we continue our discussions around adding new members.”
“When national realignment discussions began, our presidents and chancellors expressed confidence in the current SBC configuration but also defined the parameters for potential new members,” said Arkansas State President Kelly Damphousse, chair of the Sun Belt executive committee. “Our goal was to only add schools that added value, that fit geographically and that mirrored our athletics and academic missions. Southern Miss perfectly matched those parameters, and my colleagues look forward to welcoming President Bennett and his colleagues to the Sun Belt Conference.”
Southern Miss has won five NCAA national championships — two in Division II football in 1958 and 1962 and three individual crowns in track and field. The football program has appeared in 26 bowl games, the men’s basketball program won the National Invitational Tournament in 1987, the softball program appeared in the College World Series in 1999 and 2000, and the baseball team advanced to the College World Series in 2009.
“Membership in the Sun Belt Conference is an exciting opportunity for the University of Southern Mississippi, for our student-athletes, for our alumni and fans and for the university’s host communities,” Bennett said. “This move will allow Southern Miss student-athletes to compete in what is fast-becoming the best Group of Five conference in the country and will provide greater visibility for the university’s championship athletics programs.”
Geographically, Southern Miss is a natural fit as the state of Mississippi is bordered by three states (Alabama, Arkansas and Louisiana) that are currently home to Sun Belt institutions.
“The Sun Belt’s geographic footprint will create new regional rivalries and will encourage more visitors to Mississippi, further increasing our athletics programs’ $41 million annual economic impact on the state,” Bennett said.
The Golden Eagles sponsor 17 varsity sports. Men’s sports include baseball, basketball, football, golf, indoor track & field, outdoor track & field and tennis. Women’s sports include basketball, beach volleyball, cross-country, golf, indoor track & field, outdoor track & field, soccer, softball, tennis and volleyball. Southern Miss participates in every sport sponsored by the Sun Belt except men’s cross-country, and the conference sponsors every sport in which the Golden Eagles compete except beach volleyball.
“Today is a great day for Southern Miss. I want to thank Commissioner Gill and the board of directors within the Sun Belt for their faith in our institution and our ability to add value to the conference,” McClain said. “We are excited about adding our rich tradition of success and passionate fan base to a conference that values those attributes and look forward to working together to continue to elevate the Sun Belt on the national stage.”
The Sun Belt was founded in 1976 with New Orleans, South Alabama, Georgia State, Jacksonville, North Carolina at Charlotte and South Florida, Over the next 10 years it added Western Kentucky, Old Dominion, the UAB and Virginia Commonwealth.
In all, 18 institutions that have been part of the Sun Belt now play in other conferences.
The Sun Belt began sponsoring football in 2001. Over the course of the past five seasons, the conference has posted an FBS-leading .692 winning percentage in bowl games, going 18-8.
The Sun Belt sponsors 17 NCAA sports and annually awards nearly $134 million in financial aid to more than 4,600 student-athletes.
Southern Miss leaves Conference USA, another league that is drastically different from when it began when it included such basketball powers as Cincinnati, Louisville, Marquette, Memphis and DePaul. There are reports that Marshall and Old Dominion might also leave C-USA for the Sun Belt, with C-USA rumored to be considering FBS independents Massachusetts and Liberty as well as FCS teams that might be looking to move up.
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