Governors State University Adds Athletics

If you want to talk about Monmouth University Football, Quincy University Basketball, Notre Dame Men's Soccer, or whatever, this is the place.
Post Reply
wiu712
Posts: 6864
Joined: Tue Apr 22, 2014 2:05 pm

Governors State University is located in University Park, Illinois (30 miles south of Chicago).

GSU will be come a full 4-year university this fall when they will admit their first freshman class and opens its first residence hall.

In addition, GSU will be starting intercollegiate athletics. The team name of "Jaguars" was recently selected. Athletic teams will be phased in over a five year period. The search for conference membership has begun and should be finalized in spring 2015.

GSU currently offers six Sports Clubs: basketball, softball, bowling, golf, volley ball and table tennis.
User avatar
sealhall74
Posts: 5770
Joined: Fri Apr 18, 2014 1:18 pm
Location: Wherever, Windblows

What NCAA/NAIA division(s) are they aiming for in athletics?
Embrace the pace of the race.
wiu712
Posts: 6864
Joined: Tue Apr 22, 2014 2:05 pm

The plan is to start Junior Varsity teams in both Women's Volleyball and Men's Basketball this fall (the 2014-2015 season) that will compete against other schools.

GSU will be applying to the NAIA with hopes of being accepted to field teams for the 2015-2016 school year.

GSU began its search in February for the team name/mascot by taking suggestions from students, staff, faculty, and residents of the surrounding communities. It received over 400, more than half of which were unique.

The university’s search committee then voted to narrow the choices down to four finalists: the Jaguars, the Prairie Wolves, the Gladiators, and the Bengals. After an artist designed sketches of what the mascot could look like, the university then put the choice to an open vote online.

GSU received an overwhelming response, logging over 30,000 online votes.

The Jaguar is GSU’s first mascot. It stands among other firsts for the university coming this fall, including the first freshman class, the opening of its first student residence hall, and the beginning of intercollegiate play for its first sports teams.
User avatar
sealhall74
Posts: 5770
Joined: Fri Apr 18, 2014 1:18 pm
Location: Wherever, Windblows

wiu712 wrote:The plan is to start Junior Varsity teams in both Women's Volleyball and Men's Basketball this fall (the 2014-2015 season) that will compete against other schools.

GSU will be applying to the NAIA with hopes of being accepted to field teams for the 2015-2016 school year.
The NCAA DIs could learn a thing or two from the NAIA (or even their own DIIIs) which has more schools offering JV programs to their student athletes. Seems to me it would instantly solve two big problems. One, there would be fewer kids riding the pine for the first two years only to end up transferring somewhere else just to get some playing time. Two, scheduling. Western and others have have a hard time getting good teams to come in and play them at home. Probably be a lot easier to entice a Wisconsin Badger JV team to drop in for a visit. The Western JV team would provide good competition for nearby DIIIs or other Illinois DI JV squads. Sure, it would cost of few extra bucks but would be worth it IMO.
Embrace the pace of the race.
Post Reply