FAMU approves move from MEAC to SWAC

By Steven J. Gaither

Posted on June 4, 2020

One of the Crown Jewels in HBCU football ready to make the move to the SWAC.

Florida A&M’s Board of Trustees unanimously voted to move from the MEAC to the SWAC on Thursday morning. 

FAMU would leave the MEAC on June 30, 2021 and join the SWAC on July 1 of next year, pending approval by the SWAC’s member institutions. The school’s VP of Athletics, Kortne Gosha, all but assured that the SWAC was waiting to welcome FAMU with open arms during Wednesday’s special committee session. 

This move, coupled with North Carolina A&T’s impending move to the Big South, represents a striking blow to the MEAC.

When A&T and FAMU leave next summer, the MEAC will be down to nine full members, only seven of which play football. Delaware State, Morgan State, Howard, Norfolk State, North Carolina Central, South Carolina State, and Bethune-Cookman would be the remaining football-playing programs, along with Coppin State and Maryland-Eastern Shore.

FAMU originally joined the MEAC in 1979 after being long-time members of the SIAC and on the heels of its Division I-AA national title win. It would leave the conference in the mid-1980s and operate as an independent Division I-AA program for a few years before coming back into the fold. After briefly operating as a Division I-A independent in 2004, FAMU’s football program re-joined the MEAC the following year.

Check back with HBCU Gameday for continuing coverage on Florida A&M’s move to the SWAC.

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FAMU approves move from MEAC to SWAC