National Collegiate Athletic Association

NCAA News Archive - 2010

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Mar 12, 2010 8:45:00 AM

Savannah State will join the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference as a provisional member, beginning July 1, 2010, and will become the only MEAC institution in Georgia.

The school first applied for membership in the conference in 2006, but financial aid violations in its football program led to probation from the NCAA's Committee on Infractions. The MEAC deferred the membership application until the probationary period ended in 2009.

The addition of Savannah State is the second expansion for the conference in the last six months. The MEAC added North Carolina Central in September 2009. The last institution to be added to the conference was Norfolk State in 1997.

Savannah State must increase student-athlete scholarships, its athletics budget and staffing levels by September 1, 2011, to receive full membership status.

Savannah State said the move allows the school to enhance its athletics programs and help build valuable relationships beyond the fields of competition.

"MEAC membership means a lot for our student-athletes, because they'll spend less time on the road and more time in class," said Claud Flythe, vice president for administration. "This gives our students the opportunity to interact with their peers from other HBCUs and for the first time in a long time, they can look forward to postseason play."

The addition completes the MEAC's goal of expanding to 14 schools, announced a year ago when the conference lifted a membership moratorium in place since 2007. At that time, Commissioner Dennis Thomas indicated the conference leaders wanted to move to divisional play to help with cost-containment and reduce missed class time.