Gulf Coast Athletic Conference

Gulf Coast Athletic Conference
GCAC
Established 1981
Association NAIA
Division Division I
Members 7
Sports fielded
  • 10
    • men's: 4
    • women's: 6
Region Southeastern United States
Commissioner Steve Martin
Website gcaconf.com
Locations

The Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) is a college athletic conference made up entirely of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics's (NAIA) Division I. Member institutions are located in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee, USA.

History

The GCAC was established in 1981, with the following charter institutions: Belhaven College, Dillard University, Louisiana College, Spring Hill College, Tougaloo College, William Carey University and Xavier University of Louisiana. The first sports were men and women's basketball and men's tennis, with other sports soon following.[1]

The University of Mobile was admitted in October 1985, Southern University at New Orleans was granted admission in May 1986, Loyola University was admitted in April 1995, and Louisiana State University in Shreveport became a member in April 2000. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina forced Dillard and Xavier (La.) to cancel all athletic competition for 2005-06 and Loyola and Southern-New Orleans were able only to compete partially. All schools returned to competition in 2006-07, although in most cases with a reduced number of sports.

Louisiana College left the GCAC to join the American Southwest Conference of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III in 2000. Belhaven also left in 2000, only to re-join in 2002; while Talladega College, which joined in 1999, left in 2002. In 2010, Belhaven, Loyola-New Orleans, Spring Hill, Mobile and William Carey left the GCAC to join the Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC).[2] In 2010 LSU-Shreveport left the conference to join the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC). Edward Waters College and Fisk University joined to replace the departed schools in 2010. Philander Smith College also joined the GCAC in 2011. Talladega College re-joined the conference starting in the 2011-12 academic year. Talladega had been a member of the GCAC from 1999-2002.[3]

On April 17, 2018, it was announced that Rust College will join the GCAC in the 2018-19 season.[4]

Member schools

Current members

Institution Location Founded Enrollment Nickname Joined
Dillard University New Orleans, Louisiana 1869 900 Bleu Devils and Lady Bleu Devils 1981
Edward Waters College Jacksonville, Florida 1866 800 Tigers 2010
Philander Smith College Little Rock, Arkansas 1864 700 Panthers 2011
Rust College Holly Springs, Mississippi 1886 900 Bearcats 2018
Southern University at New Orleans New Orleans, Louisiana 1956 3,200 Knights and Lady Knights 1986
Talladega College Talladega, Alabama 1867 600 Tornadoes 1999;
2011
Tougaloo College Tougaloo, Mississippi 1869 900 Bulldogs 1981
Xavier University of Louisiana New Orleans, Louisiana 1925 3,200 Gold Rush and Gold Nuggets 1981

Former members

Institution Location Founded Nickname Joined Left Current
Conference
Belhaven College Jackson, Mississippi 1883 Blazers 1981;
2002		 2000;
2010		 American Southwest
(NCAA D-III)
Fisk University Nashville, Tennessee 1866 Bulldogs 2010 2014 Independent
Louisiana College Pineville, Louisiana 1906 Wildcats 1981 2000 American Southwest
(NCAA D-III)
Louisiana State University Shreveport Shreveport, Louisiana 1967 Pilots 2000 2010 Red River
Loyola University New Orleans New Orleans, Louisiana 1904 Wolf Pack 1995 2010 Southern States
University of Mobile Mobile, Alabama 1961 Rams 1985 2010 Southern States
Spring Hill College Mobile, Alabama 1830 Badgers 1981 2010 Southern Intercollegiate
(NCAA D-II)
Voorhees College Denmark, South Carolina 1897 Tigers 2013 2015 Independent
William Carey University Hattiesburg, Mississippi 1906 Crusaders 1981 2010 Southern States

Membership timeline

 Full member (non-football) 

Conference sports

Old logo
Conference sports
SportMen'sWomen's
BasketballGreen tickGreen tick
Cross CountryGreen tickGreen tick
SoftballGreen tick
TennisGreen tickGreen tick
Track & Field OutdoorGreen tickGreen tick
VolleyballGreen tick

References

  1. ↑ GCAC Directory 1981-82, pg.2
  2. ↑ SSAC To Expand And Restructure Conference In 2010-11, Southern States Athletic Conference, 2009-09-29.
  3. ↑ "Talladega College join the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference". Talladega College. January 9, 2011. Retrieved January 20, 2011.
  4. ↑ "Great 8: GCAC Welcomes Rust College As Newest Member". Victory Sports Network. April 17, 2018. Retrieved April 18, 2018.
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