Southern Athletic Association
| Southern Athletic Association (SAA) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Established |
Chartered: 2011 Began play: 2012 |
| Association | NCAA |
| Division | Division III |
| Members | 12 |
| Sports fielded | 21 (men's: 10; women's: 11) |
| Headquarters | Atlanta, Georgia |
| Commissioner | Jay Gardiner |
| Website |
www |
| Locations | |
 | |
The Southern Athletic Association (SAA) is a college athletic conference in NCAA Division III that began play in the 2012–13 school year. It was formed in 2011 by seven members of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference and independent Berry College.[1]
Member schools
Full members
| Institution | Location | Founded | Type | Enrollment | Nickname | Colors | Football? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berry College | Mount Berry, Georgia | 1902 | Private/Non-denominational | 1,937 | Vikings | Yes | |
| Birmingham–Southern College | Birmingham, Alabama | 1856 | Private/United Methodist | 1,600 | Panthers | Yes | |
| Centre College | Danville, Kentucky | 1819 | Private | 1,215 | Colonels | Yes | |
| Hendrix College | Conway, Arkansas | 1876 | Private/United Methodist | 1,400 | Warriors | Yes | |
| Millsaps College | Jackson, Mississippi | 1890 | Private/United Methodist | 1,146 | Majors | Yes | |
| Oglethorpe University | Atlanta, Georgia | 1835 | Private | 1,000 | Stormy Petrels | No | |
| Rhodes College | Memphis, Tennessee | 1848 | Private/Presbyterian | 2,000 | Lynx | Yes | |
| Sewanee: The University of the South | Sewanee, Tennessee | 1857 | Private/Episcopal | 1,384 | Tigers | Yes |
Affiliate members
Two schools, the University of Chicago and Washington University in St. Louis, announced their intention to become affiliate members of the conference for football, effective in 2015. Both are members of the University Athletic Association (UAA), which is currently in a football scheduling alliance with the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC). However, after the 2012 season, the NCAC will adopt a full round-robin football schedule, making it impossible for that conference to fill in all of its non-conference dates with the four UAA members that sponsor the sport.
Over the summer of 2015, Chicago and Washington U. both announced that they will leave the SAA after two seasons of competition in order to join more geographically-convenient conferences.[2] Washington U. will join the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin for football-only in 2018 and Chicago has yet to announce a league affiliation.
On November 18, 2015, Trinity University (Texas) and Austin College announced [3] they will affiliate with the SAA for football, renewing a relationship that was lost when the SAA split from the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference. As a result, the SCAC will no longer offer football as a sport from 2017.
| Institution | Location | Founded | Type | Enrollment | Nickname | Colors | SAA Sport |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Chicago | Chicago, Illinois | 1890 | Private/Non-denominational | 5,134 | Maroons | Football (2015–2016) | |
| Washington University in St. Louis | St. Louis, Missouri | 1853 | Private | 5,997 | Bears | Football (2015–2016) | |
| Austin College | Sherman, Texas | 1849 | Private | 1,278 | 'Roos | Football (2017–) | |
| Trinity University | San Antonio, Texas | 1869 | Private | 2,353 | Tigers | Football (2017–) |
Membership timeline
Blue = Full member, Green = Full member except football, Red = Associate member for football
References
- ↑ "Eight Division III Southeastern Colleges Form Southern Athletic Association". Rhodes College. Retrieved 22 September 2011.
- ↑ "Wash U, Chicago already leaving SAA". [d3football.com]. June 12, 2015. Retrieved November 15, 2015.
- ↑ "Austin College; Trinity Accept Football Affiliate Membership Offer from SAA". Retrieved December 21, 2015.