Realignment Afoot For D1A College Conferences
Realignment Afoot For D1A College Conferences
A look at what might change in D1A Conferences in the 2017-18 season.
The D1A conferences are meeting this week, and a few realignments are expected among its members.
The Liberty Conference has already formed and features a large number of teams from the Northeast, including Iona and Delaware, which are moving out of Rugby East. The new conference will also include several DIAA and even a couple of DII teams -- Albany, Binghamton, Boston College, Brockport, Colgate, Connecticut, Cortland, Fordham, Rutgers, Stony Brook, and Syracuse.
The Liberty Conference is pushing for D1A recognition and could well get it. Meanwhile, Rugby East loses Iona and Delaware, and there is a still a ton of speculation about the future of Wheeling Jesuit. After the school dismissed head coach Tommy Duffy after one season, basically without explanation, WJU then announced that it will field a men's football team for the first time ever. That announcement included a pointed comment that Wheeling Jesuit will refocus on conference play, and the message appears to be that rugby will be somewhat de-emphasized. Coaches within the Rugby East have said privately that they are unsure whether WJU will return.
That leaves the Rugby East with Penn State, Army, Kutztown, St. Bonaventure, Buffalo, and (probably) West Virginia. That's a solid group, but it will likely be augmented by Notre Dame College out of Cleveland. There's even speculation that American International College could find a home there. AIC is the defending East Coast Rugby Conference champion, but the ECRC was basically eliminated when most of the teams moved to the Liberty. AIC has yet to find a place and could be an independent. However, located in Springfield, MA, and not far from Army, or even SBU or Buffalo, the Yellow Jackets could make it work in the Rugby East if they and the conference want it to happen.
Further West, the D1A West is expected to welcome BYU into the fold after the Cougars played an independent schedule last season. BYU would enter D1A West as the conference favorite.
The PAC Rugby Conference could see a little change as Arizona State is currently dealing with the fallout from an incident last spring (a non-student was playing for the Arizona State B side against Arizona when he allegedly kicked an Arizona player and then fled the scene -- the guest player was arrested). The ASU rugby team is still working with its administration to find a path back to playing, but right now things remain up in the air. Without Arizona State, the PAC would drop to five teams -- Cal, UCLA, Utah, Arizona, and USC. Travel considerations have made it difficult for members from Oregon and Washington to be part of this conference, at least until now.
And in the Mid-South, expect Arkansas State and Clemson to be full participants in a five-team conference that still includes Life, Lindenwood, and Davenport.
The Liberty Conference has already formed and features a large number of teams from the Northeast, including Iona and Delaware, which are moving out of Rugby East. The new conference will also include several DIAA and even a couple of DII teams -- Albany, Binghamton, Boston College, Brockport, Colgate, Connecticut, Cortland, Fordham, Rutgers, Stony Brook, and Syracuse.
The Liberty Conference is pushing for D1A recognition and could well get it. Meanwhile, Rugby East loses Iona and Delaware, and there is a still a ton of speculation about the future of Wheeling Jesuit. After the school dismissed head coach Tommy Duffy after one season, basically without explanation, WJU then announced that it will field a men's football team for the first time ever. That announcement included a pointed comment that Wheeling Jesuit will refocus on conference play, and the message appears to be that rugby will be somewhat de-emphasized. Coaches within the Rugby East have said privately that they are unsure whether WJU will return.
That leaves the Rugby East with Penn State, Army, Kutztown, St. Bonaventure, Buffalo, and (probably) West Virginia. That's a solid group, but it will likely be augmented by Notre Dame College out of Cleveland. There's even speculation that American International College could find a home there. AIC is the defending East Coast Rugby Conference champion, but the ECRC was basically eliminated when most of the teams moved to the Liberty. AIC has yet to find a place and could be an independent. However, located in Springfield, MA, and not far from Army, or even SBU or Buffalo, the Yellow Jackets could make it work in the Rugby East if they and the conference want it to happen.
Further West, the D1A West is expected to welcome BYU into the fold after the Cougars played an independent schedule last season. BYU would enter D1A West as the conference favorite.
The PAC Rugby Conference could see a little change as Arizona State is currently dealing with the fallout from an incident last spring (a non-student was playing for the Arizona State B side against Arizona when he allegedly kicked an Arizona player and then fled the scene -- the guest player was arrested). The ASU rugby team is still working with its administration to find a path back to playing, but right now things remain up in the air. Without Arizona State, the PAC would drop to five teams -- Cal, UCLA, Utah, Arizona, and USC. Travel considerations have made it difficult for members from Oregon and Washington to be part of this conference, at least until now.
And in the Mid-South, expect Arkansas State and Clemson to be full participants in a five-team conference that still includes Life, Lindenwood, and Davenport.