Marshall latest to make move to Sun Belt
Published 9:25 pm Friday, October 29, 2021
The Associated Press
Marshall is moving to the Sun Belt Conference, becoming the ninth school to reveal plans to depart the dwindling Conference USA.
A video posted Friday on the Marshall Athletics Twitter account teased the official announcement from the Huntington, West Virginia-based school that has been a member of C-USA since 2005.
Earlier this week the Sun Belt announced C-USA schools Southern Mississippi and Old Dominion would be joining the conference by 2023.
The additions will give the Sun Belt 13 football-playing members.
The Sun Belt is also pursuing FCS powerhouse James Madison.
Last week, six C-USA schools announced they would be leaving for the American Athletic Conference at a date to be determined.
Conference USA currently has only five members — UTEP, Louisiana Tech, Middle Tennessee State, Florida International and Western Kentucky — committed to the league long-term.
C-USA Commissioner Judy MacLeod has said the conference is pursuing new members, including FCS schools that are considering making the move to FBS, the NCAA’s top tier of Division I college football.
Other possible options for C-USA include FBS independents Connecticut, Massachusetts, Liberty and New Mexico State.
UConn athletic director David Benedict told CTInsider.com that the school had an exploratory conversation with C-USA officials about a football-only membership.
UConn rejoined the Big East for basketball and most of its other sports programs last year.