Patriot League
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Patriot League
| Patriot League | |
|---|---|
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| Established | 1986 |
| Association | NCAA |
| Division | Division I FCS |
| Members | 8 full; 2 associate |
| Sports fielded | 23 (men's: 11; women's: 12) |
| Region | Northeast |
| Former names | Colonial League |
| Headquarters | Center Valley, Pennsylvania |
| Commissioner | Carolyn S. Femovich (since 1999) |
| Website | patriotleague.org |
| Locations | |
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The Patriot League is a college athletic conference which operates in the northeastern United States. It participates in the NCAA's Division I for a number of sports; in football, it participates in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS; still often referred to by its former designation of Division I-AA). There are eight "full" member schools, whose teams participate in all league sports except football.[1] American does not compete in football, while Army and Navy are Independents in the NCAA's Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). Associate members include Fordham (football), Georgetown (football) and MIT (women's rowing). The league was founded in 1984 as the Colonial League (not to be confused with the Colonial Athletic Association), but competition did not start until 1986.[1] It changed its name in 1990 when it expanded to include other sports besides football.
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About
Patriot League members are schools with very strong academic reputations that adhere strongly to the ideal of the "scholar-athlete", with the emphasis on "scholar". An academic index ensures that athletes are truly representative of and integrated with the rest of the student body. Out-of-league play for Patriot League schools is typically with members of the Ivy League, which follow similar philosophies regarding academics and athletics.
Patriot League members have some of the oldest collegiate athletic programs in the country. In particular, The Rivalry between Lehigh University and Lafayette College is both the nation's most played and longest uninterrupted college football series.[2] Similarly, matchups between Army and Navy in any sport are always intense.
The winner of the Patriot League Basketball tournament receives an automatic invitation to the NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament every March. In recent years, Bucknell and Lehigh have both won NCAA tournament games.
History
The league began competition in 1986 — as the Colonial League and in football only — with five charter members: Bucknell, Colgate, Holy Cross, Lafayette, and Lehigh.[1][3] In 1990, the league changed its name to the Patriot League.[3] At the start of the 1990-91 academic year, the league became an all-sport conference, with 22 sports (11 for men and 11 for women), and now had seven full members, including Fordham and the United States Military Academy (Army) as new members.[3] In 1991, the league gained an eighth full member — the United States Naval Academy (Navy).[3]
In 1993, the league hired Constance (Connie) H. Hurlbut as executive director. She was the first woman and youngest person to be the leader of an NCAA Division I conference.[3]
In 1995, Fordham resigned its full membership (leaving the league with seven full members) but continued as an associate member in football.[3] In 1996, Fairfield and Ursinus joined as associate members in field hockey.[3] (Fairfield is now an associate member of the America East Conference. Ursinus is now a full member of the Centennial Conference.[4]) In 1997, Towson joined as an associate member in football.[3] (Towson left after the 2003 season to join the Atlantic 10 Conference, whose football conference would be absorbed by the Colonial Athletic Association in 2007.) In 1999, Hobart joined as an associate member in men's lacrosse and Villanova joined as an associate member in women's lacrosse.[3] (Hobart left in 2005, to join the ECAC Lacrosse League.) In 2001, American University joined as the eighth full member and Georgetown joined as an associate member in football.[3]
Athletic Scholarships
While financial aid has always been available, athletic scholarships have only been given in recent years at Patriot League schools. Basketball scholarships were first allowed beginning with freshmen entering the league in the fall of 1998. In 2001, when American, which gave scholarships in all sports (AU does not play football) entered the league, the league began allowing all schools to do so in sports other than football. Lafayette, the last no athletic scholarships holdout, began granting full rides in basketball and other sports with freshmen entering the school in the fall of 2006.
On February 13, 2012, the Patriot League announced they would begin offering Football scholarships. Starting with the 2013 academic year, each school will be allowed no more than the equivalent of 15 scholarships to incoming football players, according to the release. The total number of scholarships can’t exceed 60 in any season.[5]
Presidents from six of the seven football schools indicated they would award scholarships in the fall of 2012. Georgetown University did not commit to offer scholarships. [6]
Membership
Full members
There are eight "full" member schools:[1]
| Institution | Location | Founded | Type | Undergraduate Enrollment | Nickname | Joined |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American University | Washington, D.C. | 1893 | Private | 6,028 | Eagles | 2001 |
| United States Military Academy (Army) | West Point, New York | 1802 | Government Institution | 4,487 | Black Knights | 1990 |
| Bucknell University | Lewisburg, Pennsylvania | 1846 | Private | 3,650 | Bison | 1986 |
| Colgate University | Hamilton, New York | 1819 | Private | 2,837 | Raiders | 1986 |
| College of the Holy Cross | Worcester, Massachusetts | 1843 | Private | 2,817 | Crusaders | 1986 |
| Lafayette College | Easton, Pennsylvania | 1826 | Private | 2,382 | Leopards | 1986 |
| Lehigh University | Bethlehem, Pennsylvania | 1865 | Private | 4,781 | Mountain Hawks | 1986 |
| United States Naval Academy (Navy) | Annapolis, Maryland | 1845 | Government Institution | 4,400 | Midshipmen | 1991 |
Associate members
There are two associate-member schools:
| Institution | Location | Founded | Type | Undergraduate Enrollment | Mascot | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fordham University | New York City, NY | 1841 | Private | 8,220 | Rams | Football-only Associate Member |
| Georgetown University | Georgetown, Washington, D.C. | 1789 | Private | 7,433 | Hoyas | Football-only Associate Member |
American does not play football, while Army and Navy participate as Independents in the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A). Thus, Fordham and Georgetown replace them in the Patriot League for football only.
The Fordham Rams are ineligible for the Patriot League title in football from 2010 through 2012 because they offered athletic scholarships in that sport prior to the League implementation of limited scholarships in 2013. [7]
Membership timeline
Full members Assoc. members (football only) Associate member(some sports)
- Fairfield and Ursinus—associate members in field hockey
- Hobart—associate member in men's lacrosse
- Villanova—associate member in women's lacrosse
Conference facilities
| School | Football stadium | Capacity | Basketball arena | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| American | Non-football School | N/A | Bender Arena | 4,500 |
| Army* | Michie Stadium | 40,000 | Christl Arena | 5,043 |
| Bucknell | Christy Mathewson–Memorial Stadium | 13,100 | Sojka Pavilion | 4,000 |
| Colgate | Andy Kerr Stadium | 10,221 | Cotterell Court | 3,000 |
| Fordham | Coffey Field | 7,000 | Football-only Member | N/A |
| Georgetown | Multi-Sport Field | 2,500 | Football-only Member | N/A |
| Holy Cross | Fitton Field | 23,500 | Hart Center | 3,600 |
| Lafayette | Fisher Field | 15,207 | Kirby Sports Center | 3,500 |
| Lehigh | Goodman Stadium | 16,000 | Stabler Arena | 5,600 |
| Navy* | Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium | 34,000 | Alumni Hall | 5,710 |
*Plays Division I FBS football
Basketball
- Men's tournament champion, runner-up, and MVP
- See: Patriot League Men's Basketball Tournament
- Women's tournament champion
- See: Patriot League Women's Basketball Tournament
- NCAA
In NCAA basketball, Bucknell, Navy, Lehigh, and Holy Cross are the only teams in the conference ever to have recorded NCAA Tournament victories. Bucknell won tournament games in 2005 over Kansas and in 2006 over Arkansas. Lehigh won over Duke in the 2012 tournament.
The Bison and Mountain Hawks are the only teams to win in the NCAA Tournament while actually representing the Patriot League. A Navy team - then representing the Colonial Athletic Association - led by future Hall of Famer David Robinson won three tournament games while advancing to the regional finals in 1986. Holy Cross was among the best teams in the country in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and won the 1947 national championship with a team that included Hall of Famer Bob Cousy. Its combined record in the NCAA Tournament is 7–12. However, Holy Cross has not won a tournament game since 1953.
Field hockey
- Tournament champion
- 2001 – Fairfield
Football
The winner of the regular Patriot League football season goes on to represents the league in the NCAA Football Bowl Championship Series.
- League champions
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*The 2003 Colgate team advanced all the way to the National Championship game before falling to the University of Delaware.
After many years of debate, the Patriot League Presidents voted to start offering full merit-based athletic scholarships. Starting with the 2013 academic year, each school will be allowed no more than the equivalent of 15 scholarships to incoming football players, according to the release. The total number of scholarships can’t exceed 60 in any season.
“The introduction of this financial-aid model for football will strengthen the Patriot League’s ability to compete for outstanding student-athletes while continuing to uphold the high academic standards of the league and its member institutions,” Patriot League Executive Director Carolyn Schlie Femovich said in a news release on February 13, 2012.
Literature
The Patriot League was profiled in the John Feinstein book, The Last Amateurs. The title is derived from the belief that the Patriot League was the last Division I basketball league which functions as a place for student athletes, rather than functioning as a de facto minor professional league with players not representative of their student bodies. In it, Feinstein followed all the league's men's basketball teams during the 1999–2000 season.
Notes
- ^ a b c d "Who We Are" About the Patriot League: Patriot League - Who We Are, What We Believe, What We Do. Patriot League official website. Retrieved 2010-03-01.
- ^ The Brown and White, Lehigh University Student Newspaper
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Patriot League History. Patriot League official website. Retrieved 2010-03-02.
- ^ 2009 Field Hockey. Centennial Conference official website. Retrieved 2010-03-02.
- ^ http://webfarm.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-13/patriot-league-to-offer-football-scholarships-for-first-time-starting-2013.html
- ^ http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/patr/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/2011-12/misc_non_event/PLpresidentCommentsFootballFA.pdf
- ^ Fordham to Add Athletic Scholarships in Football , FordhamSports.com
External links
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