Centenary Talk

If you are a casual fan of Division III athletics, the fact that Centenary College in Louisiana is making the transition from Division I to Division III might have slipped below your radar screen. The announcement which was made in late July opened the door for the possibility that HSU and Centenary might be reunited as conference foes.

Both HSU and Centenary were charter members of the Division I Trans America Athletic Conference which was founded in September, 1978. The Cowboys and Gents were joined by Houston Baptist, Mercer, Northeast Louisiana, Oklahoma City, Pan American and Samford. When HSU first started traveling to Shreveport, there were no casinos on the river front, so it looked considerably different than it does now. At that time it would have been hard to see Don Henley of the Eagles on a local television station, much less appearing at a casino as he recently did.

There will be a great deal of work for Centenary as they plot their course for Division III. Like HSU, they will have to work hard to win back some of the fans they lost because of the decision to discontinue athletic scholarships. The coaches who will succeed at this level will realize that recruiting at the Division III level is difficult work. We are constantly recruiting our student-athletes, even when they are on campus and are enrolled. And it appears that Centenary does have the facilities and the location to recruit and retain talented student-athletes. These student athletes will be able to give the school local and regional exposure once they begin to succeed at the Division III level.

There is speculation about which conference Centenary will join when they are granted full membership into Division III. Both the American Southwest Conference and the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference can offer valid reasons for Centenary to join their respective leagues. The Presidents of both conferences will be responsible for making the final decision. If they join the SCAC, it will still be a positive move for our league as we will have one more potential regional opponent for either the regular season or the post-season. If they join the ASC, it will balance out the eastern division of the league and help provide another scheduled Division III opponent for many of our sports that struggle to find D-III games.

We wish Centenary the best of luck as they go through this difficult process. I hope their fans and alumni will be patient as the administration made a tough decision during this current economic crisis. And while we don’t know when and where they will be as a Division III member, we look forward to the chance to compete with them.
Cowboy Up,

John Neese