In 1976, several small colleges in Texas formed the third incarnation of the Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association. They churned along happily for the next two decades before the goals of the individual schools got in the way; some wanted to move to Division II, some wanted to stay in Division III. The result? In 1996, the American Southwest Conference was formed.
Football Members: East Texas Baptist Tigers, Hardin-Simmons Cowboys, Howard Payne Yellowjackets, Louisiana College Wildcats, Mary Hardin-Baylor Crusaders, McMurry nothings, Mississippi College Choctaws, Sul Ross State Lobos, and Texas Lutheran Bulldogs.
Basketball-only Members: Concordia (TX) Tornadoes, LeTourneau Yellowjackets, University of the Ozarks Eagles, Schreiner Mountaineers, Texas-Dallas Comets, and Texas-Tyler Patriots.
Austin College was a member until 2001 before leaving to join the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference for academic reasons. The University of Dallas departed in 2006 to embark on an independent schedule. Frankly, I think it was ill-advised and pointless in today’s climate, especially considering their geographic location. That decision was made worse by their brief dalliance with being an associate member of… the North Eastern Conference. Thankfully, they came to their senses, and are also joining the SCAC. But I digress.
The ASC has a stable footing despite those two departures, and has steadily grown as schools in the conference’s footprint have launched athletic programs or reclassified into Division III. The conference is home to a former Division I program (Hardin-Simmons) and will be joined by another in 2011 when Centenary College completes its transition to non-scholarship athletics.
Football:
In the early years of the conference, Hardin-Simmons ruled the roost, winning or sharing seven of the first nine titles (five outright, two shared). Since then, Mary Hardin-Baylor has been in control, having a share in seven of the last eight championships (five outright, including four in a row from 2005-2008). Mississippi College, in 1997, is the only other school to win an outright conference title in football; they also shared the 2009 title with MHB. Sul Ross State shared the inaugural championship with Hardin-Simmons in 1996, and East Texas Baptist shared the 2003 crown with both Hardin-Simmons and MHB.
The conference received its automatic bid to the D-III playoffs beginning in 1999, and has a cumulative record of 20-16 in 16 appearances. No team from the ASC has won the D-III football crown during the league’s existence, although MHB did lose to Linfield in the 2004 Stagg Bowl, and reached the semifinals in 2007 and 2008. They’ve made eight appearances total, going 14-8. Hardin-Simmons reached the semifinals in 2000, and have made 6 appearances (4-6). East Texas Baptist reached the second round in 2003, as did Mississippi College in 2009.
The primary rivalries are the recent one between Hardin-Simmons and Mary Hardin-Baylor, and the rivalries among the former TIAA teams (Hardin-Simmons, Howard Payne, McMurry, and Sul Ross State), especially that between Hardin-Simmons and McMurry (both located in Abilene).
TIDBITS:
East Texas Baptist: The Tigers relaunched their program in 2000, and quickly became competitive under coach Ralph Harris. He resigned following the 2006 season, and the program has struggled somewhat under his replacement, Mark Sartain.
Hardin-Simmons: The Cowboys have a storied history; they were a member of the Border Conference back in the post-war era (alongside teams such as Texas Tech, UTEP, Arizona, Arizona State, and New Mexico). In 1946 and 1958, they won the conference title, and shared it in 1942 with Texas Tech. They dropped their football program in 1963, reinstating it in 1990 under coach Jimmie Keeling, who is still in charge.
Howard Payne: The Yellowjackets won or shared four of the last seven TIAA titles, but haven’t touched the championship in the ASC era. They came close many times under coach Vance Gibson (1992-2004), and until he departed, they had never finished below .500 in the conference. It’s been rough since then.
Louisiana College: Like ETBU, the Wildcats reinstated a long-dormant football program in 2000. Unlike ETBU, they haven’t had much success; LC had not finished over .500 in conference play until 2008. Their 6-3 mark in 2009 was a school best. Head coach Dennis Dunn, architect of the program’s recent strides, is in his fifth year.
Mary Hardin-Baylor: MHBC had no football team until 1998. By the time the odometer rolled over, they were competitive; since 2002, they’ve been almost unstoppable. As I write this, the Crusaders are ranked #4 in the nation, and are unbeaten. Pete Fredenburg has helmed the program since its inception, and the school’s all-time record is 114-31. Not bad, considering 13 of those losses came in 1998-99. They’ve only lost as many as three games in a season once since then.
McMurry: In 1998 and 1999, only losses to crosstown rival Hardin-Simmons kept the (then) Indians from claiming the ASC crown. Since then, it’s been misery and despair, including two winless seasons. The team has no nickname at the moment, having been forced to rid themselves of the Indian moniker by the NCAA.
Mississippi College: They won the conference in 1997 (their first year of eligibility after moving down from D-II), and split the difference with MHBC last year. Prior to joining the ASC, the Choctaws had been a relatively successful member of the D-II Gulf South Conference; they won the 1989 D-II Championship, only to be forced to hand the trophy back due to NCAA violations.
Sul Ross State: In the early ’80s, SRSC won or shared four straight TIAA crowns. After sharing the initial ASC title, the Lobos took up residence near the bottom of the standings and have stayed there ever since, including a winless season in 2003. The school is located in Alpine, Texas, which is just about as far from anywhere as you can get in this country and still pursue a post-secondary education. Well, with the exception of Fairbanks.
Texas Lutheran: Won back-to-back NAIA Division II championships in 1974-75 under the late Jim Wacker, who was later head coach at TCU, then Minnesota, and became famous for his integrity after uncovering and self-reporting massive illegal benefits at TCU even though it wrecked a program that was finally getting its act together after years of misery. Their time in the ASC has been up and down, but it’s at its nadir at the moment, coming off a winless 2009.
Basketball:
Men’s basketball hasn’t been the conference’s strong point; only twice (UT-Dallas in 2009 and 2010) has a conference member reached the Sweet Sixteen. (UTD reached the Elite Eight in 2009.) Mississippi College has, more often than not, been the men’s representative in the tourney. On the women’s side, things are rosier. Hardin-Simmons made it to the Final Four in 2006, and Howard Payne won it all in 2008; those two schools account for 12 tournament trips. Overall, the conference is 17-18 in 18 appearances in the men’s tournament, and 25-20 in 20 appearances in the women’s tournament.
TIDBITS:
Concordia (TX): The Tornadoes joined the league in 1999-2000, and both the men’s and women’s teams have been steadfastly mediocre, hanging around the middle of the West Division standings.
East Texas Baptist: The Tigers also joined in 1999-2000. The men won the 2003 East Division title, but couldn’t navigate the conference tournament. The women shared the division crown in 2000 and 2002, and won it outright in 2007, but still haven’t captured the tournament title.
Hardin-Simmons: The men shared the 2005 West Division crown, but haven’t done much else. The women, as noted, reached the D-III Final Four in 2006; they won the conference tournament every year from 1999-2004, and the division title from 1999-2005. Their NCAA run in 2006 came from an at-large bid secured without even having won their division. They haven’t been back since, but they’re still a strong outfit.
Howard Payne: The men shared the initial conference title in 1997 (no conference tournament), and went to the NAIA tournament that year. They won the West in 2006, but have otherwise been unremarkable. The women won the West in 2007 and 2008, won the conference tournament in 2005 and from 2007-2009, and reached the NCAA tournament every year from 2005-2009. And, as mentioned, won it all in 2008. They’re good. Real good.
LeTourneau: They’re not.
Louisiana College: Middle of the pack since joining in 1999-2000, but last year the women broke through and captured the East and the conference tournament, earning their first NCAA bid.
Mary Hardin-Baylor: The men have been solid since 2007, capturing three division titles and the conference championship in 2008 and 2010. The women had done little until winning the division in 2010, but naturally that indicates things are looking up.
McMurry: The men were West Division champions from 1999-2002, and three times since; in 2000 and 2001 they won the conference. The women won or shared the division honors in 2000, 2006, and 2009, winning the conference title in 2006. Unspectacular, but solid.
Mississippi College: The class of the conference on the men’s side of the gym, winning or sharing 9 out of 10 East Division titles from 1999-2008, and three times capturing back-to-back conference titles. The women only have a single NCAA appearance to show for five divisional titles, but that’s nothing to be ashamed of.
University of the Ozarks: The women shared the 2002 East Division title, and that’s all either squad has accomplished. They haven’t generally been awful, but they haven’t usually been very good either.
Schreiner: Usually mired at the bottom of the West. The women went through a 7-140 stretch from 1999-2005, including two winless seasons. Ouch.
Sul Ross State: The men won the west from 2003-2005, with a conference title in 2004. Since then, it’s been rough. The women have been firmly middle of the pack for years.
Texas-Dallas: The men were mostly harmless until 2004. In 2005, they won the conference title after a 12-14 season in conference. Then they won the East in 2009 and 2010, racking up the conference’s two best NCAA runs in the bargain. They should be considered a favorite in 2011. The women’s program went from awful to bad to mediocre to okay to winning the East in 2009. They, also, are among the contenders in 2011.
Texas-Tyler: Program began in 2003. The men have been decent, considering. The women captured the East in 2005, 2006, and 2008, but have fallen backward since.
Texas Lutheran: The men went from mediocre in 2001 to fairly good in 2004 to really bad now. The women went through a horrific stretch from 2007-2008, going 1-49, but they’ve bounced back to respectability.