The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) is a college athletic conference headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, which is made up of historically black universities in the southern United States. It participates in the NCAA’s Division I for all sports; in football, it participates in the second-tier Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), still frequently referred to by its former designation of Division I-AA.

The SWAC is one of four conferences (the others being the Ivy League, Northeast Conference, and the Pioneer Football League) which do not participate in postseason play in the FCS football tournament-and is the only one of the four whose members offer a full complement of scholarships for football. The SWAC splits its schools into two divisions, and instead plays a conference championship game. Furthermore, one SWAC match - the Southern (BR) vs Grambling State game - is positioned on the schedule after the NCAA tournament has begun. In addition to the Bayou Classic being played after the start of the NCAA Tournament, Alabama State University plays non-conference foe Tuskegee University (SIAC) annually on Thanksgiving Day (The Turkey Day Classic).

These moves have been criticized by other conferences containing historically black universities, especially the only other Division I conference made up entirely of such schools, the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, which annually places its champion into the FCS tournament.

Current member schools

Institution

Location

Founded

Affiliation

Enrollment

Alabama A&M University

Normal, Alabama

1875

Public

6,323

Alabama State University

Montgomery, Alabama

1867

Public

7,134

Alcorn State University

Lorman, Mississippi

1871

Public

2,705

University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff

Pine Bluff, Arkansas

1873

Public

3,303

Grambling State University

Grambling, Louisiana

1901

Public

4,999

Jackson State University

Jackson, Mississippi

1877

Public

8,351

Mississippi Valley State University

Itta Bena, Mississippi

1950

Public

3,621

Prairie View A&M University

Prairie View, Texas

1876

Public

8,100

Southern University

Baton Rouge, Louisiana

1880

Public

9,438

Texas Southern University

Houston, Texas

1947

Public

11,365

 

Teams

    * Alabama A&M Bulldogs and Lady Bulldogs

    * Alabama State Hornets and Lady Hornets

    * Alcorn State Braves (no nickname for women’s teams)

    * Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions

    * Grambling State Tigers and Lady Tigers

    * Jackson State Tigers and Lady Tigers

    * Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils and Devilettes

    * Prairie View Panthers and Lady Panthers

    * Southern Jaguars

    * Texas Southern Tigers and Lady Tigers

Former members (and years of membership)

    * Arkansas AM&N (from 1936 to 1970; returned as Arkansas-Pine Bluff in 1997)

    * Bishop College (from 1920 to 1956)

    * Langston University (from 1931 to 1957)

    * Paul Quinn College (from 1920 to 1929)

    * Sam Houston College (from 1920 to 1959)

    * Texas College (from 1920 to 1961)

    * Wiley College (from 1920 to 1968)

Conference facilities

School

Football stadium

Capacity

Basketball arena

Capacity

Alabama A&M

Louis Crews Stadium

21,000

Elmore Gymnasium

6,000

Alabama State

Crampton Bowl

21,800

Joe L. Reed Acadome

8,000

Alcorn State

Jack Spinks Stadium

22,500

Davey Whitney Complex

7,000

Arkansas Pine Bluff

Lion Stadium

12,500

K.L. Johnson Complex

4,500

Grambling State

Eddie Robinson Stadium

19,800

Memorial Gym

2,200

Jackson State

Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium

62,000

Williams Assembly Center

8,000

Mississippi Valley State

Rice-Totten Field

10,000

Harrison HPER Complex

5,000

Prairie View A&M

Blackshear Stadium

6,000

William Nicks Building

5,520

Southern

Ace W. Mumford Stadium

28,400

F.G. Clark Center

7,500

Texas Southern

Alexander Durley Sports Complex (primary)

5,600

Health and Physical Education Arena

8,100

 

Reliant Stadium (secondary)

68,000

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