Marshall Accepts Invitation to Sun Belt Conference

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Marshall Athletics has accepted an invitation to join the Sun Belt Conference, the department announced Saturday. The Thundering Herd will join the league no later than July 1, 2023.

Marshall University is a public research university located along the banks of the Ohio River in Huntington, West Virginia. Founded in 1837, the university has an enrollment of nearly 13,000 students and employs more than 3,000 people in the Tri-State region of West Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky. U.S. News & World Report ranked Marshall University among its Best National Universities in 2020, and the school achieved a research milestone in 2018 when Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education selected Marshall University as an "R2" research institution – the second highest in the nation – which places the school among the top six percent of college universities in the nation.

The student-centered research university has campuses in Huntington, South Charleston, Point Pleasant, Teays Valley and Beckley. Marshall, which has 57 baccalaureate degree programs, 52 master's degree programs and four doctoral degree programs, has more than 90,000 alumni. Marshall University Medicine has been a leading voice in the fight against the opioid epidemic, and the Marshall Sports Medicine Institute houses all of the disciplines related to sports medicine under one roof, providing advanced coordinated care. U.S. News also recognized the Brad D. Smith Schools of Business as being among the best undergraduate business schools in the nation.

The addition of Marshall will bring the number of Sun Belt members to 15, with the Thundering Herd joining current members—App State, Little Rock, Arkansas State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Louisiana, ULM, South Alabama, UTA, Texas State and Troy—and new additions Southern Miss and Old Dominion, which were welcomed to the Sun Belt Conference this week.

The Sun Belt Conference was founded in 1976 and began sponsoring football in 2001. Over the course of the past five football seasons, the conference has posted an FBS-leading .692 winning percentage in bowl games, going 18-8 over the stretch.

The Sun Belt sponsors 17 NCAA sports and annually awards nearly $134 million in financial aid to more than 4,600 student-athletes. App State, Arkansas State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Louisiana, ULM, South Alabama, Texas State and Troy comprise the league's 10 football members. Little Rock and UTA compete as Sun Belt members in sports other than football.

What They're Saying About Marshall's Move to the Sun Belt Conference

Marshall President Jerome A. Gilbert
"Today is a time for a new beginning for Marshall Athletics. Conference USA has been good to us over the years, and we are grateful for that. But when conditions change and it is time to act, you have to look to the future. The Sun Belt will be good for the future of Marshall Athletics, and I am excited that we are going in this new direction. Go Herd."

Marshall University President-Elect Brad D. Smith
"Marshall is well positioned for an exciting future in the Sun Belt Conference. Our brand, our athletic programs and our incredible fans earned this opportunity. This is a strong move forward for our university, our athletes and our fans."

Marshall Interim Director of Athletics Jeff O'Malley
"We're excited for Marshall University to begin a new era in the Sun Belt Conference. During our comprehensive and thoughtful discussions over the past weeks and months, it became clear that the Sun Belt offered a perfect fit for our school and athletic department. There's an energy in the league that meshes nostalgic rivalries with new opponents that will delight our fan base.

"Marshall was uniquely positioned in this round of realignment because of the number of options we had, which is a testament to our strong national brand, reputation and passionate fan base.

"I want to express my gratitude and appreciation to Conference USA for a great relationship over the years. Thank you."

Keith Gill, Sun Belt Commissioner
"Today we welcome Marshall University to the Sun Belt Conference. This is another big day for our conference. Marshall's football tradition and passionate fans bring a strong presence to the Sun Belt. Their natural rivals are in our footprint and make our East Division even more competitive than it already was. I am grateful to Marshall President Dr. Jerome Gilbert, Chairman of the Marshall Board of Governors Patrick Farrell and Interim Athletics Director Jeff O'Malley for their leadership during this process and look forward to working closely with President-Elect Brad D. Smith."

Dr. Kelly Damphousse, Chancellor at Arkansas State University and President of the SBC Board of Directors
"Amid national realignment discussions, our presidents and chancellors have expressed confidence in the SBC leadership and our member configuration (especially with the recent additions of Southern Miss and Old Dominion). As I shared with MU leadership, the Sun Belt CEOs believe that Marshall University mirrors our conference's athletics and academic missions, while also capitalizing on regionality goals. My colleagues and I look forward to welcoming President-Elect Brad Smith and the Herd to the Sun Belt Conference!"

MARSHALL ATHLETICS POINTS OF PRIDE
-1992 and 1996 Division I-AA Football National Champions.

-2020 Men's Soccer National Champion.

-Two Heisman Trophy finalists: Randy Moss (1997) and Chad Pennington (1999)

-Approximately $75 million in new or renovated facilities in the past decade, including the construction of the Chris Cline Athletic Complex, which includes the multi-purpose indoor facility; the Buck Harless Student-Athlete Academic Center; the Sports Medicine Institute; Joe and Pam Gillette Athletic Training Facility; Chad Pennington Hall of Fame; and Jeff Small Indoor Track.

-Student-athletes annually compete at the top of Conference USA academically, frequently ranking in the top three in number of those with an Academic Medal and on the Commissioner's Honor Roll. In Spring 2020, student-athletes endured the pandemic for its best academic semester in school history with an average term GPA of 3.25 and 3.20 overall GPA. Six programs finished with their best team GPA in program history.

-The athletic department has improved or maintained its graduation success rate in seven consecutive years. In May 2020, it was announced that seven athletic programs had a perfect single-year academic progress rate score.

-Football: Most wins in Conference USA since 2013

-Football: No. 1 nationally in bowl winning percentage (minimum 10 appearances).

-Men's Soccer: Finished 2020 and Began 2021 Ranked No. 1

-Football: Most C-USA championship appearances by any C-USA East Division team over the past seven seasons.

-Football: In 2020, multi-week stay in the College Football Playoff rankings for the first time in school history; ended program's 17-year drought with win against a Top 25 team; first win against a nationally ranked opponent in the history of Joan C. Edwards Stadium; first win against a Top 25 team in Huntington in 44 years.

-Men's Soccer: Stadium record of 3,033 for WVU-Marshall home match, the highest attendance for a Division I soccer match in the state's history.

-Men's Soccer: Back-to-back Conference USA regular season champion (2019 & 2020).

-Men's Soccer: Hosted highest attended second round NCAA Tournament match Most Wins (2019).

-Men's Basketball: Conference USA tournament championship (2018).

-Men's Basketball: First NCAA Tournament Appearance in 30 years.

-Student-athletes account for more than 20,000 hours of community service every year, giving back to Huntington and surrounding areas by visiting elementary schools, regular hospital visits and the football team's annual Toy Drive, which consistently generates thousands of donated toys that go to needy children in surrounding areas.

-Interim Director of Athletics Jeff O'Malley was named the NCAA Men's Basketball Rules Committee secretary-rules editor, effective Sept. 1, 2022.

-Voice of the Thundering Herd, Steve Cotton, has won a state record 14 West Virginia Broadcaster of the Year awards.

-Assistant Athletic Director Chuck McGill has won nine West Virginia Sportswriter of the Year awards, the longest active streak of any sportswriter or sportscaster in the nation.

-Men's Basketball: First NCAA Tournament win in school history (13 seed over a 4 seed, 2018).

-2018-19: An athletic department record of four (4) programs won a postseason tournament game (Football; Men's Basketball; Women's Basketball; Softball).

-2017-18: One (1) of eight (8) Division I schools to win a bowl game and NCAA men's basketball tournament game that year, along with Alabama, Duke, Florida State, Kansas State, Michigan State, Ohio State and Purdue.

-2018: The Big Green Scholarship Foundation, the fundraising arm for Marshall Athletics, was voted as the No. 1 charity in West Virginia by Business.org, citing the organization's excellence in transparency and fiscal responsibility.

-HerdVision, the athletic department's digital sports network, is at the top of Conference USA in terms of quality of broadcast and serves as a recruiting tool for students who aspire to work in video or production. A collection of at least 30 students work for HerdVision to produce more than 100 live streaming events annually, which are broadcast on platforms such as ESPN+, ESPN3 and CUSAtv.

-From Aug. 1, 2020 through Dec. 8, 2020, the Marshall athletic department generated $74.8 million in media exposure for the school during football season, a figure boosted by nationally televised wins on ESPN and CBS, an eight-week run in the Top 25, an unprecedented multi-week appearance in the College Football Playoff poll and an engaging social media presence on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram that has Marshall ranked No. 1 in Conference USA in social media engagement.

-In 2017-18, the athletic department generated $121.9 million in value exposure for the school with games appearing on ESPN, TNT and TBS through a winning football season, bowl game victory, Conference USA men's basketball championship and NCAA tournament appearance.

Marshall University Athletics

Marshall Accepts Invitation to Sun Belt Conference

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