GEORGETOWN, Texas – Southwestern University announced Thursday that it has entered into an affiliate membership agreement with the American Southwest Conference (ASC) for football. The Pirates, along with Texas Lutheran University, will become affiliate members of the league beginning with the 2017 season.
The remainder of Southwestern's 19 intercollegiate programs will continue membership with the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference. The Pirates became members of the conference in 1994 after moving to the NCAA Division III level.
"We are very excited about our partnership with the American Southwest Conference," President Edward Burger said. "We thoughtfully explored several options, but the ASC was the absolute best fit for our football program and our University. Joining the ASC reinforces our commitment to student-athlete success, as we continue to challenge our bright players to think, create and connect, both academically and athletically."
"This is yet another historic day for Southwestern Athletics," Director of Athletics Dr. Glada Munt said. "Our football team has found a home in arguably the top Division III football conference in the nation. This move is a perfect fit for our football program, allowing us to re-establish rivalries with institutions that we competed against in the old Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association and it helps us maintain our student-athletes' interests in receiving a quality education."
Founded in 1996, the ASC currently is home to 13 institutions at the Division III level, including eight that sponsor football – Belhaven, East Texas Baptist, Hardin-Simmons, Howard Payne, Louisiana College, Mary Hardin-Baylor, McMurry and Sul Ross State.
"We are excited to welcome the Southwestern University football program to the American Southwest Conference," Commissioner Amy Carlton said. "The additions of both Southwestern and Texas Lutheran have not only strengthened our ties to the state of Texas and the broader ASC region (Louisiana and Mississippi), but it solidifies our commitment to the student-athlete experience and the Division III philosophy.
"I have admired Southwestern's commitment to its student-athletes and its desire to provide the best opportunities to be successful both in the classroom and on the playing field."
The conference has produced 122 All-Americans on the gridiron, including 34 first-teamers. The league also has sent 25 teams to the NCAA Championships in the past 20 years, recording 34 victories and one appearance by Mary Hardin-Baylor in the 2004 Stagg Bowl, Division III's national championship game.
Additionally, 111 Academic All-Americans have been honored between the current 13 ASC members.
The ASC produced two playoff teams in 2015, Hardin-Simmons and Mary Hardin-Baylor. With the addition of Texas Lutheran, the league boasts three teams ranked in the latest D3football.com Top 25 poll.
Southwestern reinstated its football program in 2013, following a 63-year hiatus. The Pirates completed the 2015 season with a 2-8 mark under head coach Joe Austin, which included a 7-6 victory over ASC member McMurry on Sept. 12.
The Pirates began playing football in 1908 and were a charter member of the Southwest Conference. Southwestern also won back-to-back Sun Bowls in 1944 and '45.
Southwestern University
Southwestern is a selective, nationally recognized undergraduate liberal arts university located in Georgetown, Texas. Established in 1840, it is the first institution of higher learning in Texas. Southwestern's residential campus offers a true liberal arts education with small classes and numerous collaborative undergraduate research opportunities. Its academic offerings include Paideia, an innovative and interdisciplinary approach to study and close faculty-student compete on one of the 20 NCAA Division III varsity teams. For more information on Southwestern, visit southwestern.edu.