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NCAA Division II independent schools
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NCAA Division II independent schools are four-year institutions that compete in college athletics at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, but do not belong to an established college athletic conference for a particular sport. These schools may however still compete as members of an athletic conference in other sports. A school may also be fully independent, and not belong to any athletic conference for any sport at all. The reason for independent status varies among institutions, but it is frequently because the school's primary athletic conference does not sponsor a particular sport.
Full independents
Division II was created in 1973, at a time when the NCAA included dozens of independent members, plus members of conferences who played as independents in one or more sports. The trend toward consolidating the NCAA membership into conferences began in the late 1970s, and within a decade the number of independent programs declined dramatically. The lists below include only the small number of programs still functioning on an independent basis in recent years.
Current members
| Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Enrollment | Nickname | Joined | Colors | Future |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| conference | ||||||||
| Bayamón, Puerto Rico | 1971 | Public | 2,967 | Cowboys | ? | |||
| Mayagüez, Puerto Rico | 1911 | Public | 10,716 | Bulldogs | ? | |||
| San Juan, Puerto Rico | 1903 | Public | 11,493 | Gallitos & | ||||
| Jerezanas | ? | |||||||
| **Salem University** | Salem, West Virginia | 1888 | Private | |||||
| (For-profit) | 894 | Tigers | 2010; | |||||
| 2016 |
;Notes:
Former members
| Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Enrollment | Nickname | Joined | Left | Colors | Current |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| conference | |||||||||
| **Bluefield State University** | Bluefield, West Virginia | 1895 | Public | ||||||
| (HBCU) | 1,246 | Big Blue | 2013 | 2023 | Central (CIAA) | ||||
| Denver, Colorado | 1864 | Nonsectarian | 14,130 | Pioneers | 1990 | 1998 | Summit | ||
| **Emory & Henry University** | Emory, Virginia | 1836 | Private | 1,250 | Wasps | 2021 | 2022 | South Atlantic (SAC) | |
| **Oakland City University** | Oakland City, Indiana | 1885 | Private | 2,350 | Mighty Oaks | 2006 | 2020 | River States (RSC) | |
| Green Bay, Wisconsin | 1965 | Public | 11,188 | Phoenix | 1973 | 1981 | Horizon | ||
| Milwaukee, Wisconsin | 1956 | Public | 22,481 | Panthers | 1964; | ||||
| 1987 | 1973; | ||||||||
| 1990 | Horizon | ||||||||
| **Wright State University** | Fairborn, Ohio | 1964 | Public | 17,074 | Raiders | 1970 | 1987 | Horizon | |
| **Youngstown State University** | Youngstown, Ohio | 1908 | Public | 15,058 | Penguins | 1960 | 1981 | Horizon |
;Notes:
Men's sponsored sports by school
Departing members in pink.
| School | Baseball | Basketball | Cross | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| country | Soccer | Tennis | Track | ||||||||||
| & field | |||||||||||||
| outdoor | Volleyball | Wrestling | Total | ||||||||||
| IND | |||||||||||||
| sports | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | |||||||||
| UPR Bayamón | |||||||||||||
| UPR Mayagüez | |||||||||||||
| UPR Río Piedras | |||||||||||||
| Salem | MEC |
Women's sponsored sports by school
Departing members in pink.
| School | Basketball | Cross | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| country | Soccer | Softball | Tennis | Track | ||||||||
| & field | ||||||||||||
| outdoor | Volleyball | Total | ||||||||||
| IND | ||||||||||||
| sports | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | ||||||||
| UPR Bayamón | ||||||||||||
| UPR Mayagüez | ||||||||||||
| UPR Río Piedras | ||||||||||||
| Salem | PBC |
Other sponsored sports by school
| School | Men | Women | Swimming | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| & diving | Water | |||||
| polo ‡ | Swimming | |||||
| & diving | Water | |||||
| polo ‡ | ||||||
| Salem | MEC | WWPA | MEC | WWPA |
- ‡ — D-I sport
Baseball independents
Does not include all-sports independent teams that sponsor the sport (Salem), since they have been listed before.
Current members
| Institution | Location | Nickname | Primary | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| conference | Bluefield State University | Virginia State University | |||
| Bluefield, West Virginia | Big Blue | CIAA | |||
| Ettrick, Virginia | Trojans | CIAA |
Football independents
Does not include all-sports independent teams that sponsor the sport, since they have been listed before.
Current members
| Institution | Location | Nickname | Primary | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| conference | Northeastern State University | |||
| Tahlequah, Oklahoma | RiverHawks | MIAA |
Future members
| Institution | Location | Nickname | Primary |
|---|---|---|---|
| conference |
Soccer independents
Does not include all-sports independent teams that sponsor the sport (UPR Bayamón and Salem men's soccer and UPR Bayamón, UPR Río Piedras and Salem women's soccer), since they have been listed before.
Current members
| Institution | Location | Nickname | Primary | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| conference | (M) | (W) | Allen University | Bluefield State University | Edward Waters University | Shaw University | Virginia State University | |||
| Columbia, South Carolina | Yellow Jackets | SIAC | ||||||||
| Bluefield, West Virginia | Big Blue | CIAA | ||||||||
| Jacksonville, Florida | Lady Tigers | SIAC | ||||||||
| Jamestown, North Dakota | Jimmies | NSIC | ||||||||
| Raleigh, North Carolina | Bears | CIAA | ||||||||
| Ettrick, Virginia | Trojans | CIAA |
!class="unsortable"|(M) !class="unsortable"|(W) |}
--
Does not include all-sports independent teams that sponsor the sport, since they have been listed before.
Current members
| Institution | Location | Nickname | Primary |
|---|---|---|---|
| conference | (M) | (W) |
--
Wrestling independents
Does not include all-sports independent teams that sponsor the sport (UPR Mayagüez), since they have been listed before.
Current members
| Institution | Location | Nickname | Primary | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| conference | Felician University | Grand Valley State University | Simon Fraser University | |||
| Rutherford, New Jersey | Golden Falcons | CACC | ||||
| Allendale, Michigan | Lakers | GLIAC | ||||
| Burnaby, British Columbia | Red Leafs | GNAC |
Other sports
Golf
Does not include all-sports independent teams that sponsor the sport, since they have been listed before.
| Institution | Location | Nickname | Primary | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| conference | (M) | (W) | Bluefield State University | Daemen University | Post University | Roberts Wesleyan University | |||
| Bluefield, West Virginia | Big Blue | CIAA | |||||||
| Amherst, New York | Wildcats | ECC | |||||||
| Waterbury, Connecticut | Eagles | CACC | |||||||
| Chili, New York | Redhawks | ECC | |||||||
| Sparkill, New York | Spartans | ECC |
Rowing
Does not include all-sports independent teams that sponsor the sport, since they have been listed before.
| Institution | Location | Nickname | Primary | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| conference | Assumption University | Franklin Pierce University | (Jefferson) | |||
| Worcester, Massachusetts | Greyhounds | Northeast-10 | ||||
| Charleston, West Virginia | Golden Eagles | MEC | ||||
| Rindge, New Hampshire | Ravens | Northeast-10 | ||||
| Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Rams | CACC |
Swimming & diving
Does not include all-sports independent teams that sponsor the sport, since they have been listed before.
| Institution | Location | Nickname | Primary | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| conference | (M) | (W) | Roberts Wesleyan University | |||
| North Chili, New York | Redhawks | ECC |
Tennis
Does not include all-sports independent teams that sponsor the sport (all of them in men's & women's tennis), since they have been listed before.
| Institution | Location | Nickname | Primary | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| conference | (M) | (W) | Bluefield State University | Colorado Mesa University | Colorado State University Pueblo | Johnson C. Smith University | Shaw University | Virginia State University | |||
| Bluefield, West Virginia | Big Blue | CIAA | |||||||||
| Grand Junction, Colorado | Mavericks | RMAC | |||||||||
| Pueblo, Colorado | ThunderWolves | RMAC | |||||||||
| Charlotte, North Carolina | Golden Bulls | CIAA | |||||||||
| Raleigh, North Carolina | Bears | CIAA | |||||||||
| Petersburg, Virginia | Trojans | CIAA |
Sports not sponsored by D-II
| Institution | Location | Nickname | Primary | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| conference | Sport | Bluefield State University | California State University, Los Angeles | Chaminade University of Honolulu | Coker University | Colorado Mesa University | Concordia University–Irvine | Hawaii Pacific University | Lincoln Memorial University | McKendree University | Southwest Baptist University | Spring Hill College | Texas A&M University–Kingsville | Tusculum University | Vanguard University | Wayne State College | |||
| Bluefield, West Virginia | Big Blue | CIAA | |||||||||||||||||
| Los Angeles, California | Golden Eagles | CCAA | Beach volleyball | ||||||||||||||||
| Honolulu, Hawaii | Silverswords | PacWest | Beach volleyball | ||||||||||||||||
| Hartsville, South Carolina | Cobras | SAC | |||||||||||||||||
| Grand Junction, Colorado | Mavericks | RMAC | Beach volleyball | ||||||||||||||||
| Irvine, California | Eagles | PacWest | Beach volleyball | ||||||||||||||||
| Honolulu, Hawaii | Sharks | PacWest | Beach volleyball | ||||||||||||||||
| Harrogate, Tennessee | Railsplitters | SAC | |||||||||||||||||
| Lebanon, Illinois | Bearcats | GLVC | Beach volleyball | ||||||||||||||||
| Bolivar, Missouri | Bearcats | GLVC | Beach volleyball | ||||||||||||||||
| Mobile, Alabama | Badgers | SIAC | Beach volleyball | ||||||||||||||||
| Kingsville, Texas | Javelinas | LSC | Beach volleyball | ||||||||||||||||
| Tusculum, Tennessee | Pioneers | SAC | Men's volleyball | ||||||||||||||||
| Costa Mesa, California | Lions | PacWest | Beach volleyball | ||||||||||||||||
| Wayne, Nebraska | Wildcats | NSIC | Beach volleyball |
References
References
- (November 1, 2024). "MEC Adds Salem as Associate Member in Wrestling, Swimming". Mountain East Conference.
- (November 20, 2023). "MIAA makes changes to Football lineup". Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association.
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