The Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The KCAC is the oldest conference in the NAIA and the second-oldest in the United States, tracing its history to 1890.
Formerly | Kansas Intercollegiate Athletic Association Kansas Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Kansas College Athletic Conference |
---|---|
Association | NAIA |
Founded | 1890 |
Commissioner | Scott Crawford (since 2007) |
Sports fielded |
|
No. of teams | 14 |
Headquarters | Wichita, Kansas |
Official website | www |
Locations | |
On February 15, 1890, the Kansas Intercollegiate Athletic Association was formed; it was the first successful attempt to organize Kansas colleges for the purposes of promoting and regulating amateur intercollegiate athletics. In addition to the private universities and colleges, the conference also included Kansas State Agriculture College (now Kansas State University), the University of Kansas, and Washburn University. In November of that year, the first college football game in Kansas was played between the Kansas Jayhawks and Baker University.[1]
About 1902 the association allied with the Kansas College Athletic Conference, the first group to adopt a definite set of rules and regulations. By the 1920s the conference had changed its name to Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference and had grown to include 17 regular members and 2 allied members (no longer including the University of Kansas or Kansas State). In 1923 seven colleges withdrew to form the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
On December 1, 1928, the Kansas Intercollegiate Athletic Conference was formally disbanded and replaced by a new Kansas College Athletic Conference which included six members and formed the present legal entity. It was commonly referred to as the "Little Six", in contrast to the Big Six Conference that eventually became the current Big 12. By 1968 the conference grew to include 12 members. It was organized into Northern and Southern divisions until 1970 when three colleges withdrew to join Missouri-based conferences. In the mid-1970s the name was changed to its current form.[2]
In the 1905 season, the Coleman Company set up temporary gas-powered lighting for a night game against Cooper College (now called the Sterling Warriors). It was the first night football game played west of the Mississippi River.[3] Fairmount (now Wichita State University) won the game 24–0.[4]
On December 25, 1905, Fairmount played a game against the Washburn Ichabods using a set of experimental rules. The game was officiated by then Washburn head coach John H. Outland.
The experiment was considered a failure. Outland commented, "It seems to me that the distance required in three downs would almost eliminate touchdowns, except through fakes or flukes."[5] The Los Angeles Times reported that there was much kicking and that the game was considered much safer than regular play, but that the new rule was not "conducive to the sport."[6]
In his history of the sport of football, David M. Nelson concluded that "the first forward passes were thrown at the end of the 1905 season in a game between Fairmount and Washburn colleges in Kansas."[7] According to Nelson, Washburn completed three passes, and Fairmount completed two.
The KCAC currently has fourteen full members, all are private schools:
The KCAC currently has 15 associate members, all are private schools:
Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Enrollment | Nickname | Joined[a] | KCAC sport |
Primary conference |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Benedictine College | Atchison, Kansas | 1858 | Catholic (Benedictines) |
2,189 | Ravens | 2015m.lax. 2015w.lax. |
men's lacrosse women's lacrosse |
Heart of America (HAAC) |
Bethel University | Mishawaka, Indiana | 1947 | Missionary | 1,964 | Pilots | 2020m.sw. 2020w.sw. |
men's swimming women's swimming |
Crossroads |
Clarke University | Dubuque, Iowa | 1843 | Catholic (B.V.M.) |
1,075 | Pride | 2015m.lax. 2015w.lax. |
men's lacrosse women's lacrosse |
Heart of America (HAAC) |
Columbia College of Missouri | Columbia, Missouri | 1851 | Nonsectarian | 4,000 | Cougars | 2017m.lax. 2021w.lax. |
men's lacrosse eSports |
American Midwest |
Cottey College | Nevada, Missouri | 1884 | Nonsectarian | 300 | Comets | 2020 | women's flag football | American Midwest |
Culver–Stockton College | Canton, Missouri | 1853 | Disciples of Christ | 1,066 | Wildcats | 2019 | women's lacrosse | Heart of America (HAAC) |
Hastings College | Hastings, Nebraska | 1882 | Presbyterian (PCUSA) |
1,150 | Broncos | 2017 | women's wrestling | Great Plains (GPAC) |
University of Jamestown | Jamestown, North Dakota | 1883 | Presbyterian (PCUSA) |
1,000 | Jimmies | 2017w.wr. 2021w.sw. |
women's wrestling women's swimming |
Great Plains (GPAC) |
Midland University | Fremont, Nebraska | 1883 | Lutheran ELCA | 1,394 | Warriors | 2019m.lax. 2015w.lax. 2020w.wr. 2019m.sw. 2019w.sw. 2020w.f.fb. |
men's lacrosse women's lacrosse women's wrestling men's swimming women's swimming women's flag football |
Great Plains (GPAC) |
Missouri Baptist University[b] | Creve Coeur, Missouri | 1957 | Southern Baptist | 5,309 | Spartans | 2019m.lax. 2019w.lax. |
men's lacrosse women's lacrosse |
American Midwest |
Missouri Valley College | Marshall, Missouri | 1889 | Presbyterian (PCUSA) |
1,728 | Vikings | 2015m.lax. 2015w.lax. |
men's lacrosse women's lacrosse |
Heart of America (HAAC) |
Morningside University | Sioux City, Iowa | 1894 | United Methodist | 2,824 | Mustangs | 2019m.lax. 2019w.lax. 2020m.sw. 2020w.sw. |
men's lacrosse women's lacrosse men's swimming women's swimming |
Great Plains (GPAC) |
St. Ambrose University | Davenport, Iowa | 1882 | Catholic (Diocese of Davenport) |
3,607 | Fighting Bees | 2016m.lax. 2017w.lax. |
men's lacrosse women's lacrosse |
Chicagoland (CCAC) |
College of Saint Mary | Omaha, Nebraska | 1923 | Catholic (R.S.M.) |
1,070 | Flames | 2022 | women's swimming & diving | Great Plains (GPAC) |
William Penn University | Oskaloosa, Iowa | 1873 | Quakers | 1,550 | Statesmen | 2019m.lax. 2019w.lax. |
men's lacrosse women's lacrosse |
Heart of America (HAAC) |
The KCAC had 12 former full members, all but five were private schools:
The KCAC had four former associate members, all were private schools:
Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Enrollment | Nickname | Joined[a] | Left[b] | KCAC sport |
Primary conference |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Johnson & Wales University–Colorado | Denver, Colorado | 1914 | Nonsectarian | 1,291 | Wildcats | 2015 | 2018 | women's lacrosse | N/A[c] |
Lincoln College | Lincoln, Illinois | 1865 | Nonsectarian | 800 | Lynx | 2019m.sw. 2019w.sw. |
2021m.sw. 2021w.sw. |
men's swimming women's swimming |
N/A[d] |
Missouri Baptist University[e] | Creve Coeur, Missouri | 1957 | Southern Baptist | 5,309 | Spartans | 2017 | 2020 | women's wrestling | American Midwest |
St. Gregory's University | Shawnee, Oklahoma | 1914 | Catholic (Benedictines) |
692 | Cavaliers | 2015 | 2016 | men's lacrosse | N/A[f] |
Full member (all sports) Full member (non-football) Associate member (sport)
Sport | Men's | Women's |
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Baseball | ||
Basketball | ||
Cross Country | ||
Football | (flag) | |
Golf | ||
Lacrosse | ||
Soccer | ||
Softball | ||
Tennis | ||
Track & Field Indoor | ||
Track & Field Outdoor | ||
Volleyball | ||
Wrestling |