Missouri Valley Football Conference
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Missouri Valley Football Conference | |
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| Data | |
| Classification | NCAA Division I FCS |
| Established | 1985 |
| Members | 9 |
| Sports fielded | 1 (football) |
| Region | Midwestern United States |
| States | 7 - Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota |
| Headquarters | St. Louis, Missouri |
| Commissioner | Patty Viverito |
| Locations | |
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The Missouri Valley Football (formerly the Gateway Football) Conference is a college athletic conference which operates in the midwestern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS; still frequently referred to by its former designation of Division I-AA) as a football-only conference.
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[edit] History
The Gateway Football Conference was formed from the remnant football schools of the old Missouri Valley when it stopped sponsoring its hybrid I-A/I-AA football league in 1985. The I-AA members from the MVC, Illinois State, Indiana State, and Southern Illinois, joined Eastern Illinois, Northern Iowa, Southwest Missouri State, and Western Illinois from the AMCU. After Eastern Illinois joined the Ohio Valley Conference for football in 1995, Youngstown State joined in 1997 and was followed by Western Kentucky in 2001. Southwest Missouri State changed its name to Missouri State in 2005. The Gateway changed its name to the Missouri Valley Football Conference in 2008.
On November 2, 2006, Western Kentucky's Board of Regents approved a proposal by the school's president to upgrade the football program to the Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS; formerly Division I-A). The Hilltoppers left the GFC after the 2006 season, and are now in the two-year "reclassification" period mandated by the NCAA for schools moving from the FCS to the FBS. WKU will join the Sun Belt Conference for football in 2009; it is already a member of that conference for other sports.[1]
Due to Western Kentucky's move, the Gateway was left with 7 members for the 2007 season. However, Great West Football Conference members North Dakota State and South Dakota State were asked to submit information about themselves and to attend the conference presidents' meeting.[2] On March, 7, 2007, the conference announced that both schools would join the conference beginning with the 2008 season.[3]
On June 6, 2008, the Missouri Valley Football Conference changed its name from the Gateway Football Conference, effective immediately. This change aligns the conference with the Missouri Valley Conference, a conference in which five of the nine Missouri Valley Football schools participate. The conferences will share the "Missouri Valley" name but will remain separate administratively.[4]
[edit] Membership
[edit] Former members
- Eastern Illinois University (Ohio Valley Conference), 1985-1995
- Western Kentucky University (Sun Belt Conference), 2001-2006
[edit] Champions
- 1985: Northern Iowa
- 1986: Eastern Illinois
- 1987: Northern Iowa
- 1988: Western Illinois
- 1989: Missouri State
- 1990: Missouri State & Northern Iowa
- 1991: Northern Iowa
- 1992: Northern Iowa
- 1993: Northern Iowa
- 1994: Northern Iowa
- 1995: Eastern Illinois & Northern Iowa
- 1996: Northern Iowa
- 1997: Western Illinois
- 1998: Western Illinois
- 1999: Illinois State
- 2000: Western Illinois
- 2001: Northern Iowa
- 2002: Western Illinois & Western Kentucky
- 2003: Northern Iowa & Southern Illinois
- 2004: Southern Illinois
- 2005: Northern Iowa, Southern Illinois, & Youngstown State
- 2006: Youngstown State
- 2007: Northern Iowa
[edit] Conference facilities
| School | Football Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Illinois State | Hancock Stadium | 15,000 |
| Indiana State | Memorial Stadium | 12,764 |
| Missouri State | Robert W. Plaster Sports Complex | 16,300 |
| North Dakota State | Fargodome | 19,500 |
| Northern Iowa | UNI-Dome | 16,000 |
| South Dakota State | Coughlin-Alumni Stadium | 16,000 |
| Southern Illinois | McAndrew Stadium | 17,000 |
| Western Illinois | Hanson Field | 15,000 |
| Youngstown State | Stambaugh Stadium | 20,630 |
[edit] External links
[edit] Notes and references
- ^ WKU Regents Approve Move To Division 1-A (sic) Football. Western Kentucky University (2006-11-02). Retrieved on 2006-11-03.
- ^ Gateway Eyes Dakotas For Expansion. ESPN (2006-10-26). Retrieved on 2006-11-19.
- ^ Gateway Expands to Nine Members. Gateway Football Conference (2007-03-07). Retrieved on 2007-03-09.
- ^ Gateway Football Conference Changes Its Name. Gateway Football Conference (2008-06-06). Retrieved on 2008-06-07.
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