After that infodump, it’s time to take a look at changes in Division III and the NAIA.\u00a0 There’s not too much shuffling in D-III, aside from chaos surrounding two conferences in particular; the NAIA, on the other hand, is losing a ton of teams, and therefore its conferences are being impacted quite a but.<\/p>\n
D-III<\/strong><\/span> American Southwest<\/span>: McMurry has departed to move to D-II; Centenary (LA), which doesn’t play football, joins this fall after reclassifying down from D-I.<\/p>\n Atlantic Central<\/span>: is gone, as Frostburg State and Salisbury have moved on to the Empire 8, leaving Wesley (now independent) and Newport News Apprentice (not an NCAA member anyway) all alone.<\/p>\n Capital<\/span> (non-football): Stevenson and Hood will leave for the Middle Atlantic Commonwealth Conference following this academic year.<\/p>\n CUNY<\/span> (non-football): no changes.<\/p>\n CCIW<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n Colonial States<\/span> (non-football): no changes.<\/p>\n Commonwealth Coast<\/span> (non-football): Okay, in the spirit of this being a primer for people more familiar with D-I sports: you think the FBS\/Big 12\/A&M realignment saga is crazy?\u00a0 In April 2010, representatives from 10 CCC schools were invited to a secret meeting regarding leaving to form a new conference.\u00a0 Nine of them — all the schools currently remaining in the conference other than Eastern Nazarene — attended; Colby-Sawyer declined, thinking it was a bit shady.\u00a0 The nine schools announced they were leaving after last season.\u00a0 Four of the five schools left amongst the ashes found new homes effective this season: Colby-Sawyer and New England College to the North Atlantic Conference, Anna Maria to the Great Northeast, and Regis to the NECC.<\/p>\n Here’s where it gets crazy.\u00a0 The nine schools that were leaving suddenly realized two things: one, they were going to have to wait to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, and two, under NCAA rules, so long as Eastern Nazarene claimed to still be a member of the conference, they theoretically held the CCC’s autobid until the grace period to add new members expired.\u00a0 So the nine schools turned around and decided not to leave after all, leaving the CCC with ten teams.<\/p>\n Crazy, crazy stuff.<\/p>\n Eastern CFC<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n Empire 8<\/span>: Rochester Tech left over the summer for the Liberty League.\u00a0 Frostburg State and Salisbury join as associate members for football only.\u00a0 After the season, Springfield, also an associate football-only member, will be leaving for the Liberty League while Buffalo State (currently in the NJAC) replaces them, also as a football affiliate.\u00a0 Houghton, a non-football school moving from the NAIA, will join the league in 2012.<\/p>\n Great Northeast<\/span> (non-football): Anna Maria joins this fall.<\/p>\n Great South<\/span> (non-football): no changes this year, but Piedmont, LaGrange, and Maryville (TN) will leave next summer to join the USA South.<\/p>\n Heartland<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n Iowa<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n Landmark<\/span> (non-football): no changes.<\/p>\n Liberty League<\/span>: no changes for football this year, but over the summer Hamilton dropped their membership to fully align with the NESCAC, while Rochester Tech joined from the Empire 8 and Bard joined from the Skyline Conference.\u00a0 Next fall, Springfield will join as an associate member in football only.<\/p>\n Little East<\/span> (non-football): no changes.<\/p>\n Massachusetts<\/span> (non-football): no changes.<\/p>\n Michigan<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n Middle Atlantic – Commonwealth<\/span>: no changes this year, but Stevenson and Hood (non-football schools) will join from the Capital Athletic Conference in 2012.<\/p>\n Middle Atlantic – Freedom<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n Midwest<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n Minnesota<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n New England<\/span> (non-football): Regis joins from the Commonwealth Coast this fall.<\/p>\n New England Football<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n NESCAC<\/span>: no changes, although Hamilton has dropped its dual membership with the Liberty League effective this summer.<\/p>\n NEWMAC<\/span> (non-football): no changes.<\/p>\n New Jersey<\/span>: no changes this year, but Buffalo State (an affiliate in football only) will leave after the football season to join the Empire 8.<\/p>\n North Atlantic<\/span> (non-football): Colby-Sawyer and New England College joined this summer from the Commonwealth Coast.<\/p>\n North Coast<\/span>: DePauw left the SCAC over the summer to join the NCAC, but will compete as an independent in football this year in order to honor existing contracts.<\/p>\n North Eastern<\/span> (non-football): Lancaster Bible, formerly an independent, joins this fall.<\/p>\n Northern<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n Northwest<\/span>: no actual changes, although Pacific (OR) begins playing football this year, and George Fox will begin in 2013.<\/p>\n Ohio<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n Old Dominion<\/span>: no changes this year.\u00a0 Shenandoah will join from the USA South next summer.<\/p>\n Presidents’<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n Saint Louis<\/span> (non-football): no changes.<\/p>\n Skyline<\/span> (non-football): Bard left over the summer to join the Liberty League.<\/p>\n Southern California<\/span>: Chapman, a former independent which has been operating under a scheduling agreement with the SCIAC for years, officially rejoined the conference over the summer.<\/p>\n Southern CAC<\/span>: Oops.\u00a0 This year’s victim, despite two schools joining this year: Birmingham-Southern in all sports, and Dallas in all sports save football.\u00a0 The fifty-year-old conference is in dire straits, as DePauw left over the summer to join the North Coast, and next summer Centre, Rhodes, Sewanee, Birmingham-Southern, Hendrix, Millsaps, and Oglethorpe are leaving to form, along with independent Berry, the Southern Athletic Association.\u00a0 That will leave Austin and Trinity (TX) along with non-football members Colorado College and Dallas.\u00a0 The conference intends to try and remain viable, although it looks nearly impossible geographically without raiding the American Southwest or luring schools from the NAIA, which might be problematic academically.<\/p>\n SUNY<\/span> (non-football): no changes.<\/p>\n University<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n Upper Midwest<\/span>: no actual changes, although Presentation begins playing football this year.<\/p>\n USA South<\/span>: no changes this year, but next summer Maryville (TN), LaGrange, and Piedmont will join from the Great South, while Shenandoah will be leaving to join the Old Dominion.\u00a0 Maryville is already an affiliate for football, while LaGrange is independent; Piedmont does not sponsor the sport.<\/p>\n Wisconsin<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n Independents<\/span>: Chapman (to the SCIAC) and Lancaster Bible (to the non-football North Eastern Conference) are no longer independent.\u00a0 DePauw, formerly in the SCAC, and Wesley, formerly in the ACFC, join the independent ranks for football; DePauw will only be independent this season before joining the North Coast.\u00a0 Mills moves from the NAIA, joining the basketball independents.\u00a0 Next summer, football independent LaGrange will cease being independent, as they join the USA South.<\/p>\n NAIA<\/span><\/strong> American Midwest<\/span> (non-football): no changes, although an application from Mid-Continent (currently in the TranSouth) to join beginning in 2012 is pending.<\/p>\n Appalachian<\/span> (non-football): Point University joins, formerly unclassified.<\/p>\n California Pacific<\/span> (non-football): Mills left to join Division III as an independent, while Bethany (CA) shuttered its doors entirely.\u00a0 Cal-Merced joins this fall.<\/p>\n Cascade<\/span> (non-football): no changes, but College of Idaho is knocking on the NCAA D-III Northwest Conference’s door pretty loudly.<\/p>\n Central States<\/span>: no changes this year.\u00a0 Northwestern Oklahoma State and Southern Nazarene will be leaving to join the Great American Conference in NCAA D-II next summer.<\/p>\n Chicagoland<\/span> (non-football): no changes, either in D-I or D-II.<\/p>\n Dakota<\/span>: Swirly.\u00a0 Over the summer, Dakota State left to become independent, Minot State left in order to join the NSIC in NCAA Division II in 2012, Black Hills State left to join the RMAC in NCAA Division II, and South Dakota Tech left to become an NCAA Division II independent (while hoping to join one of those two conferences, undoubtedly).\u00a0 That left Dickinson State, Jamestown, Mayville State, and Valley City State to become independent as well.<\/p>\n Frontier<\/span>: no changes this year, but Southern Oregon will join as a football affiliate next summer.<\/p>\n Golden State<\/span> (non-football): Another conference getting cannibalized.\u00a0 Cal Baptist left to join the Pacific West in NCAA D-II.\u00a0 Azusa Pacific, Fresno Pacific, and Point Loma Nazarene will follow suit next summer.<\/p>\n Great Plains<\/span>: Sioux Falls left over the summer to spend a year as an NCAA D-II independent before joining the NSIC.<\/p>\n Gulf Coast<\/span> (non-football): Philander Smith and Talladega, both formerly independent, joined over the summer.<\/p>\n Heart of America<\/span>: Two teams left over the summer to join NCAA D-II.\u00a0 Lindenwood will join the MIAA in 2012, and William Jewell will join the GLVC the same year.\u00a0 Helping to fill the void is Peru State, formerly independent.<\/p>\n Kansas<\/span>: no changes.<\/p>\n Kentucky<\/span> (non-football): no changes.<\/p>\n Mid-Central<\/span> (non-footbal): Mount Vernon Nazarene joined over the summer from the American Mideast.<\/p>\n Midlands<\/span> (non-football): Central Baptist, formerly independent, joined over the summer.<\/p>\n Mid-South<\/span>: no changes this year, but Shorter and Union (TN), both associate members in football only, will be leaving next summer for NCAA D-II and the Gulf South Conference.\u00a0 Cumberland (KY), also an associate member, will be rejoining the Mid-South in all sports, departing the TranSouth.<\/p>\n Mid-States<\/span>: Malone, Walsh, and McKendree are still “members” this year, but are ineligible for the championship as they’re all in the process of moving to NCAA D-II (Malone and Walsh as independents for now, McKendree to the GLVC).\u00a0 Siena Heights and Robert Morris (IL) have begun playing football and joined this summer; they’re also ineligible for now.<\/p>\n Midwest<\/span> (non-football): no changes.<\/p>\n Red River<\/span> (non-football): Saint Thomas (TX) joins this fall.<\/p>\n Sooner<\/span> (non-football): Northwestern Oklahoma State and Southern Nazarene will leave at the end of the academic year to move to NCAA D-II, joining the Great American Conference.<\/p>\n Southern States<\/span> (non-football): no changes this year; next summer, Coastal Georgia, a JUCO transitioning to four-year status, will join.<\/p>\n The Sun<\/span> (non-football): Thomas (GA) will join next summer.<\/p>\n TranSouth<\/span> (non-football): no changes this year, but Cumberland (KY) will leave for the Mid-South next summer, while Shorter and Union (TN) depart, moving to NCAA D-II and the Gulf South conference.\u00a0 Trevecca Nazarene will also be moving to D-II, with no conference affiliation yet, while Mid-Continent is departing as well; they’ve applied to the American Midwest, but that application is pending.<\/p>\n Wolverine-Hoosier<\/span> (non-football): Lourdes joined over the summer, as did Lawrence Tech, a school that was once a member of NCAA Division I in the 1950s but dropped athletics.<\/p>\n Independents<\/span>: Dakota State, Dickinson State, Jamestown, Mayville State, and Valley City State become independent as the Dakota Athletic Conference collapses.\u00a0 Ave Maria begins playing football as an independent.\u00a0 In basketball, Cal State-San Marcos (women only), La Sierra, and Rochester (MI) begin as independents, while Central Baptist (to the Midlands), Lambuth (which closed over the summer), Lourdes (to the WHAC), Simon Fraser (completed transition to NCAA D-II), Saint Thomas (TX) (to the RRAC), and Philander Smith and Talladega (to the Gulf Coast) leave the independent ranks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" After that infodump, it’s time to take a look at changes in Division III and the NAIA.\u00a0 There’s not too much shuffling in D-III, aside from chaos surrounding two conferences in particular; the NAIA, on the other hand, is losing a ton of teams, and therefore its conferences are being impacted quite a 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\nAllegheny Mountain<\/span> (non-football): no changes.<\/p>\n
\nAmerican Mideast<\/span> (non-football): Things are going pear-shaped.\u00a0 Cedarville, Malone, and Ursiline all departed over the summer to move to NCAA Division II.\u00a0 Mount Vernon Nazarene was slated to do the same, but problems arose; they still left over the summer, instead joining the Mid-Central.\u00a0 Fisher, formerly in the Sunrise, joins this fall, but next summer Roberts Wesleyan and Walsh also leave for D-II while Houghton leaves for D-III and the Empire 8.\u00a0 That will leave Carlow, Daemen, Fisher, Point Park, and Wilberforce as the only remaining schools from a 60+ year old conference that once had twenty members.\u00a0 Yes, all at the same time.<\/p>\n