The University of Texas at Dallas has initiated its transition to Division II of the NCAA, accepting an invitation to join the Lone Star Conference (LSC) as a full member.
All 15 men’s and women’s varsity sports in which UT Dallas competes will move to the new league. A three-year provisional period is required to switch from NCAA Division III. UT Dallas has been a member of Division III and the American Southwest Conference (ASC) for the entirety of the athletic department’s history, beginning in 1998.
“As we continue to rise in size and stature as a university, we’ve recognized for some time how our place in smaller-school Division III athletics is an anomaly among our peers,” said UT Dallas President Richard C. Benson, the Eugene McDermott Distinguished University Chair of Leadership.
“Changing NCAA athletics classification to the better fit of Division II makes sense as we seek to give all of our students opportunities to achieve at the highest levels of competition — inside and outside of the classroom,” he said. “We’re excited to see yet another aspect of UTD’s campus experience take a large step forward and look forward to joining the Lone Star Conference, one of the most highly regarded Division II athletic conferences in the country.”
The 17 LSC member institutions that UT Dallas will be joining span three states — 13 in Texas, with the remaining four in Oklahoma and New Mexico. This includes current members Angelo State University, Cameron University, Dallas Baptist University, Eastern New Mexico University, Lubbock Christian University, Midwestern State University, Oklahoma Christian University, St. Edward’s University, St. Mary’s University, Texas A&M International University, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Texas Woman’s University, UT Permian Basin, UT Tyler, West Texas A&M University and Western New Mexico University. Fellow ASC member Sul Ross State University also has accepted an invitation to join the LSC.
“Changing NCAA athletics classification to the better fit of Division II makes sense as we seek to give all of our students opportunities to achieve at the highest levels of competition — inside and outside of the classroom.”
UT Dallas President Richard C. Benson
“We are delighted to be joining the Lone Star Conference as we transition to NCAA Division II,” said Angela Marin, UTD’s director of athletics. “We thank the American Southwest Conference and its members for 25 memorable years. Our decision to depart the ASC was a difficult one, but we believe this is an exciting opportunity for our institution.”
Marin noted that the LSC, which has deep roots in Texas dating to 1931, is regarded as an elite Division II conference with 77 NCAA team national championships in the past 40 years.
“Its core values of competitive and academic excellence, student-athlete well-being, respect, leadership-building and community service align with ours at UT Dallas,” she said. “It’s an opportunity to build new rivalries and rekindle old ones with programs with rich athletic traditions.”
UTD is in the first phase of a $30 million facility upgrade that includes a new track and field facility and upgrades to the baseball and soccer fields.
“Our program is poised to take this step to compete at a national level in Division II,” Marin said.
Designated as such since 1973, NCAA D-II provides a level of competition bridging Division I and the scholarship-prohibited Division III. D-II is home to 300 members across the 50 states, plus Puerto Rico and Canada.
UT Dallas, home to more than 31,000 students, is an innovative institution in the heart of North Texas. UTD offers rigorous academic programs, with curricula serving a variety of undergraduate and graduate student interests. With seven schools offering more than 145 undergraduate and graduate programs, plus professional certificates and fast-track programs, UTD also is recognized as an R1 institution — a Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education denoting the top tier of doctoral institutions with very high research activity.