The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level, which operates in the Upper Midwest of the United States. Nine of its members are in Minnesota, with three members in South Dakota, two members in North Dakota, and one member in Nebraska. It was founded in 1932. With the recent NSIC expansion, the original six member schools have been reunited.
David Edward Bailiff is an American football coach and former player. He was most recently the head coach at Texas A&M University–Commerce from 2019 to 2022; prior to that he was the head coach at Rice University in Houston, Texas from 2007 to 2017. During his tenure as head coach, the Rice Owls played in four bowl games, winning three of them, and won the 2013 Conference USA football championship, the first outright conference title for Rice in 56 years. He also coached at his alma mater, Texas State University, where he led the Bobcats to the NCAA Division I-AA National Semifinals in 2005.
The Texas A&M University-Commerce Lions are the athletic teams that represent Texas A&M University–Commerce, located in Commerce, Texas, in NCAA Division I intercollegiate sports. The Lions compete as members of the Southland Conference for all 12 varsity sports. Texas A&M University–Commerce previously played in the NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference from 1931 to 2022.
The Montana State Bobcats football program competes in the Big Sky Conference of the NCAA's Division I Football Championship Subdivision for Montana State University. The program began in 1897 and has won three national championships. It is the only college football program in the nation to win national championships on three different levels of competition, NAIA, NCAA Division II, and NCAA Division I-AA. Through the 2022 season, the Bobcats had played in 1,049 games with an all-time record of 525–492–32.
The 2008 NCAA Division II football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division II level, began on August 30, 2008, and concluded with the NCAA Division II Football Championship on December 15, 2008 at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Alabama, hosted by the University of North Alabama. The Minnesota–Duluth Bulldogs defeated the Northwest Missouri State Bearcats, 21–14, to win their first Division II national title.
The Northwest Missouri State Bearcats football program represents Northwest Missouri State University in college football. They participate in Division II sports within the NCAA. The team plays their home games at Bearcat Stadium, located on campus in Maryville, Missouri.
The 2009 NCAA Division II football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division II level, began on August 29, 2009, and concluded with the NCAA Division II Football Championship on December 12, 2009 at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Alabama, hosted by the University of North Alabama. The Northwest Missouri State Bearcats defeated the Grand Valley State, 30–23, to win their third Division II national title.
The Minnesota State Mavericks are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Minnesota State University, Mankato. The school's athletic program includes 21 varsity sports teams. More than 600 students participate each year in athletics for the university. Most of the university's athletic teams compete at the NCAA Division II level in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). The men's and women's ice hockey teams compete at the Division I level, respectively in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) and Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA). Minnesota State began competition in the NSIC in 2008–09, due to the dissolution of the North Central Conference. It was also one of the seven WCHA men's hockey members that left that league after the 2020–21 season to reestablish the CCHA, a move that led to the demise of the men's side of the WCHA.
The Minnesota State Mavericks football program is the intercollegiate American football team for the Minnesota State University, Mankato located in the U.S. state of Minnesota.
The Minnesota State Mavericks men's ice hockey team is an NCAA Division I college ice hockey program that represents Minnesota State University, Mankato. The Mavericks compete in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA). Their home arena is the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center located in downtown Mankato, Minnesota.
The 2013 NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament involved 64 schools playing in a single-elimination tournament to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division II college basketball as a culmination of the 2012–13 basketball season.
The 1998 NCAA Division II football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division II level, began on September 5, 1998, and concluded with the NCAA Division II Football Championship on December 12, 1998, at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Alabama, hosted by the University of North Alabama. The Northwest Missouri State Bearcats defeated the Carson–Newman, 24–6, to win their first Division II national title.
The 1999 NCAA Division II football season, part of college football in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association at the Division II level, began on August 28, 1999, and concluded with the NCAA Division II Football Championship on December 11, 1999, at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Alabama, hosted by the University of North Alabama.
The 2014 NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament was a single-elimination tournament involving 64 teams that was played to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division II college basketball as a culmination of the 2013–14 basketball season.
The Texas A&M–Commerce Lions football team is the college football program representing Texas A&M University–Commerce. The school competes in the Southland Conference (SLC) in Division I FCS of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Prior to joining the Southland, they competed in the Lone Star Conference of Division II. The A&M–Commerce football team plays its home games at Ernest Hawkins Field at Memorial Stadium on the university campus in Commerce, Texas. On Dec. 16, 2017, A&M-Commerce won its first NCAA Division II national championship, by defeating West Florida, 37-27, in Kansas City. The Lions recorded a perfect record in 1934, won the NAIA National Championship in 1972, and have amassed a total of 24 LSC conference championships since joining as a charter member in 1931. On September 28, 2021, the university accepted an invitation from the Southland Conference, moving the university's athletics programs up to the NCAA Division I level. This ended a 90-year affiliation with the Lone Star Conference, as A&M-Commerce was the last founding member remaining. The football team will compete at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision level beginning in the 2022 season.
Colby Don Carthel is an American football coach who is the head coach at Stephen F. Austin State University, a position he has held since December 2018. Colby's first head coaching stint was at Texas A&M University-Commerce, where he won the Division II National Championship in 2017. Previous to his time as head coach, he was the defensive coordinator for his father and former West Texas A&M University head coach, Don Carthel, from 2006 to 2012. He played college football at Angelo State University, where he was an all-conference linebacker.
The 2019 NCAA Division II Football Championship Game was a postseason college football game that determined a national champion in NCAA Division II for the 2019 season. It was played at McKinney ISD Stadium in McKinney, Texas, on December 21, 2019, with kickoff at 3:00 p.m. EST, and television coverage on ESPNU.
The 2015 Shepherd Rams football team represented Shepherd University as a member of the Mountain East Conference (MEC) during the 2015 NCAA Division II football season. Led by 29th-year head coach Monte Cater, the Rams compiled an overall record of 13–1 with a mark of 10–0 in conference play, winning the MEC title. Shepherd advanced to the NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs and received a first-round bye. They beat IUP in the second round, Slippery Rock in the quarterfinals, and Grand Valley State in the semifinals, before losing the NCAA Division II Championship Game to Northwest Missouri State. The Rams played their home games at Ram Stadium in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.
The 2013 Shepherd Rams football team represented Shepherd University as a member of the Mountain East Conference (MEC) during the 2013 NCAA Division II football season. Led by 27th-year head coach Monte Cater, the Rams compiled an overall record of 11–1 with a mark of 9–0 in conference play, winning the MEC title. Shepherd advanced to the NCAA Division II Football Championship playoffs and received a first-round bye. They beat Winston-Salem State in the second round before losing to West Chester in the quarterfinals. The Rams played their home games at Ram Stadium in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.
The 2017 Shepherd Rams football team represented Shepherd University during the 2017 NCAA Division II football season as a member of the Mountain East Conference (MEC). They were led by head coach Monte Cater, in his 31st and final season at Shepherd, and finished the season 10–1. With a conference record of 10–0, they were named MEC champions for the third straight year and advanced to the Division II Playoffs, losing in the first round to Findlay. The Rams played their home games at Ram Stadium in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.
