Florida Gulf Coast Eagles | |
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University | Florida Gulf Coast University |
Conference | ASUN Conference (primary) CCSA (women's swimming & diving) |
NCAA | Division I |
Athletic director | Ken Kavanagh |
Location | Fort Myers, Florida |
Varsity teams | 15 (6 men's, 9 women's) |
Basketball arena | Alico Arena |
Baseball stadium | Swanson Stadium |
Softball stadium | FGCU Softball Complex |
Soccer stadium | FGCU Soccer Complex |
Aquatics center | Aquatics Center |
Tennis venue | FGCU Tennis Complex |
Mascot | Azul the Eagle |
Nickname | Eagles |
Fight song | Hail to the Eagles |
Colors | Cobalt blue and emerald green [1] |
Website | fgcuathletics |
The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles (also FGCU) refer to the fifteen intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Florida Gulf Coast University, located in unincorporated Lee County, Florida near Fort Myers, in intercollegiate athletics, including men and women's basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, and tennis; women's-only: softball, swimming and diving, indoor volleyball, and beach volleyball; and men's-only: baseball. The Eagles compete in the NCAA Division I and are members of the ASUN Conference (ASUN). FGCU is also notable as the youngest institution competing in NCAA Division I, having been officially founded in 1991 and started classes in 1997. [lower-alpha 1] Their mascot is Azul the Eagle.
FGCU athletics began in the NAIA. In 2002, Florida Gulf Coast became an independent member of NCAA Division II. [2] In 2006, Florida Gulf Coast applied for NCAA Division I status and became a transitory Division I effective in the 2007–08 season. [3] Florida Gulf Coast became a full Division I member on August 11, 2011. [4]
In the 2013 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, FGCU became the first number 15 seed to advance to the Sweet 16. [5] [6]
FGCU Athletics earned $4.5 million in revenue for the 2015 fiscal year, with revenue from ticket sales earning over $800,000 for FY 2015. Men’s basketball is the athletic department’s "cash cow." [7] Men's and women's basketball account for over $600,000, and baseball draws $28,000 in ticket revenue.
NCAA
Men's sports | Women's sports |
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Baseball | Basketball |
Basketball | Cross Country |
Cross Country | Golf |
Golf | Soccer |
Soccer | Softball |
Tennis | Swimming and diving |
Tennis | |
Volleyball | |
Beach Volleyball |
The FGCU baseball team became eligible to compete in the NCAA post season in the 2010 season after the two-year NCAA reclassifying period. FGCU has several former baseball players playing in the minor leagues, and has three MLB pitchers: Chris Sale (Boston Red Sox), Richard Bleier (Boston Red Sox and Team Israel), and Jacob Barnes (Los Angeles Angels).
In 2017, the Green and Blue appeared in the NCAA tournament for the first time in school history. FGCU defeated Michigan in the first game 10-6 before falling in the next two contests of the double-elimination regional to Davidson and UNC, respectively.
In 2012, FGCU's first year of full Division I post-season eligibility, the men's team played in the Atlantic Sun Championship final, losing to Belmont.
In 2013, the team won the Atlantic Sun championship, beating top-seeded Mercer in the conference tournament final. That earned the team an automatic invitation to the 2013 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. In its first-ever tournament appearance, the No. 15 seeded Eagles upset the No. 2 seeded Georgetown Hoyas in the first round of the tournament, [8] and the No. 7 seeded San Diego State Aztecs in the second round. [9] The Eagles became the seventh No. 15 seed to advance to the round of 32 [8] and the first to advance to the Sweet 16. [9]
On March 24, 2007, FGCU women's basketball team ended their 35–1 season with a loss in the Division II National Championship to Southern Connecticut State University. [10]
One year later, in 2008, the Women's Basketball team qualified for the WNIT, becoming the first team to qualify for the WNIT in its first season of Division I sports. [11] During the 2008 WNIT Tourney, the team became the first Atlantic Sun conference team to win a post-season game since 1998, when Florida International University won in the Women's NCAA tourney. [12] The Women's team won the Atlantic Sun Conference regular season championship with a conference record of 17–3 [13] but was ineligible to compete in the conference tourney, as the team was in transition from Division II to Division I athletics.
In the 2010–11 season, the FGCU woman's basketball team won the Atlantic Sun Conference again. In the 2011–12 Season, the Women's team won both the Atlantic Sun Conference's regular season and conference tourney titles, earning its first berth into the NCAA Women's Basketball Championship. The Eagles lost to St. Bonaventure University in the first round of the tournament 72-65 in Tallahassee, FL.
The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles men's soccer team represents Florida Gulf Coast University in all NCAA Division I men's soccer competitions. Founded in 2007, the Eagles are one of the youngest men's soccer programs in the country. The team made the NCAA tournament in the first year of eligibility, in 2011, and returned in 2012. They most recently returned to the NCAA tournament in 2014 where they lost to Coastal Carolina 1–0. The men's soccer team plays its home games at the FGCU Soccer Complex.
The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles women's soccer team represents Florida Gulf Coast University in all NCAA Division I women's soccer competitions. The Green and Blue have competed in the NCAA tournament 6 times, with a win against South Florida during the 2015 tournament. [14] The women's team played their first home NCAA tournament game in 2014, before a record crowd of 2,014 at the FGCU Soccer Complex. [15]
FGCU has a successful men's hockey program. Part of the ACHA, FGCU fields a hockey team at the D2 and D3 levels and often qualifies for the national championship tournaments. [16]
Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) is a public university in Lee County, Florida near Fort Myers. It is part of the State University System of Florida and is its second youngest member. The university was established on May 3, 1991, and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). It offers 58 bachelor's degree programs, 25 master's degree programs, 6 doctoral degree programs, and 12 graduate certificates.
The ASUN women's basketball tournament is a postseason tournament that determines which team receives the ASUN Conference's automatic bid into the NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament.
The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles men's basketball team is the men's basketball team that represents Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, Florida, United States. The school's team currently competes in the ASUN Conference.
The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles men's soccer team represents Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, Florida in all NCAA Division I men's soccer competitions. The Eagles compete in the Atlantic Sun Conference. The soccer team is one of several varsity sports teams that represent the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles.
Sherwood Terrell Brown is an American professional basketball player for the Montreal Alliance of the Canadian Elite Basketball League. From 2009 to 2013, he played college basketball at Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, Florida. Brown was named the Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Year in 2013 as a senior.
The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles women's basketball team is the women's basketball team that represents Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, Florida, United States. The school's team currently competes in the Atlantic Sun Conference.
Karl Wade Smesko is the current head coach of the Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) women's basketball team.
The 2015–16 Florida Gulf Coast Eagles men's basketball team represented Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) in the 2015–16 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. FGCU was a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference. They played their home games at Alico Arena and were led by third year head coach Joe Dooley. They finished the season 21–14, 8–6 in A-Sun play to finish in a three-way tie for second place. They defeated Kennesaw State, North Florida, and Stetson to be champions of the A-Sun tournament. They received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament where they defeated Fairleigh Dickinson in the First Four to advance to the first round where they lost to North Carolina.
The 2016–17 Florida Gulf Coast Eagles women's basketball team represented Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) in the 2016–17 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Eagles, led by 15th year head coach Karl Smesko, played their home games at Alico Arena and were members of the Atlantic Sun Conference. They finish the season 26–9, 12–2 in A-Sun play to finish in second place. They defeated North Florida, Jacksonville and Stetson to become champions of the ASUN Tournament and received an automatic bid to the NCAA women's tournament where they lost to Miami (FL) in the first round.
The 2016–17 Florida Gulf Coast Eagles men's basketball team represented Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) in the 2016–17 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. FGCU played their home games at Alico Arena in Fort Myers, Florida and were led by fourth-year head coach Joe Dooley as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference. They finished the regular season 26–8, 12–2 in ASUN play to win the regular season championship. As the No. 1 seed in the ASUN tournament, they defeated Stetson, Kennesaw State, and North Florida to win the tournament championship. As a result, they received the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament where they lost in the first round to Florida State.
The 2016 ASUN men's soccer tournament, the 38th edition of the tournament, determined the ASUN Conference's automatic berth into the 2016 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Championship.
The 2017–18 Florida Gulf Coast Eagles men's basketball team represented Florida Gulf Coast University in the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Eagles were led by fifth-year head coach Joe Dooley and played their home games at Alico Arena in Fort Myers, Florida as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference. They finished the season 23–12, 12–2 in ASUN play to win the ASUN regular season championship. In the ASUN tournament, they defeated USC Upstate and North Florida to advance to the championship game where they lost to Lipscomb. As a regular season conference champion who failed to win their conference tournament, they received an automatic bid to the National Invitation Tournament where they lost in the first round to Oklahoma State.
The 2017–18 Florida Gulf Coast Eagles women's basketball team represents Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) in the 2017–18 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Eagles, led by sixteenth year head coach Karl Smesko, play their home games at Alico Arena and were members of the Atlantic Sun Conference. They finish the season 31–5, 12–1 in A-Sun play to win the Atlantic Sun regular season champions. They also won the ASUN Tournament and received an automatic bid to the NCAA women's tournament where they upset Missouri in the first round before losing to Stanford in the second round.
The 2017 ASUN Conference men's soccer season was the 40th season of men's varsity soccer in the conference. The regular season began on August 25, 2017 and ended on October 28, 2017. The regular season culminated with the 2017 ASUN Men's Soccer Tournament, which was held from November 3–11, 2017. The tournament determined the conference's tournament champion, and automatic berth into the 2017 NCAA Division I Men's Soccer Tournament.
The 2017–18 ASUN Conference men's basketball season with practices in October 2017, followed by the start of the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season in November. Conference play began in January 2018 and concluded in February 2018. The season marked the 40th season of ASUN Conference basketball.
The 2018–19 Florida Gulf Coast Eagles women's basketball team will represent Florida Gulf Coast University during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Eagles, led by seventeenth year head coach Karl Smesko, will play their home games at the Alico Arena and were members of the Atlantic Sun Conference. They finish the season 28–4, 16–0 in A-Sun play to win the Atlantic Sun regular season. Florida Gulf Coast won the conference tournament championship game over Liberty, 72–49. They lost in the first round to Miami (FL).
O'Vonte Mullings is a Canadian soccer player who currently plays as a fullback for Akademisk Boldklub in the Danish 2nd Division.
The 2022–23 Florida Gulf Coast Eagles men's basketball team represented Florida Gulf Coast University in the 2022–23 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Eagles, led by first-year head coach Pat Chambers, played their home games at Alico Arena in Fort Myers, Florida as members of the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN). They finished the season 17–15, 7–11 in ASUN play, to finish in a tie for ninth place. As the No. 10 seed in the ASUN tournament, they lost to Queens in the first round.
The 2022 ASUN women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the ASUN Conference held from October 27 through November 4, 2022. The tournament was hosted at campus sites, with the #1 seed hosting two Quarterfinals and one Semifinal while the #2 seed hosted the other two Quarterfinals and Semifinal. The highest remaining seed hosted the final. The eight-team single-elimination tournament consisted of three rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The Lipscomb Bison were the defending tournament champions, and unable to defend their title, losing to Central Arkansas in a penalty-shoot out in the Quarterfinals. The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles won the tournament after defeating Liberty 4–3 in a penalty shoot-out in the final. It was Florida Gulf Coast's seventh overall title and first since 2017. All of the Eagle's titles have come under coach Jim Blankenship. As tournament champions, Florida Gulf Coast earned the ASUN's automatic berth into the 2022 NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament.
The 2023 ASUN women's soccer tournament was the postseason women's soccer tournament for the ASUN Conference held from October 26 through November 5, 2023. The tournament was hosted at campus sites, with the #3 and #6 seed hosting the First Round and Quarterfinals while the #1 seed hosted the Semifinals and Final. The eight-team single-elimination tournament consisted of four rounds based on seeding from regular season conference play. The Florida Gulf Coast Eagles were the defending tournament champions. The Eagles successfully defended their tile, defeating North Alabama in a penalty-shoot out in the Final. It was Florida Gulf Coast's eighth overall title. All of the Eagle's titles have come under coach Jim Blankenship. As tournament champions, Florida Gulf Coast earned the ASUN's automatic berth into the 2023 NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament.