Pittsburg State Gorillas | |
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University | Pittsburg State University |
Conference | The MIAA |
NCAA | Division II |
Athletic director | Jim Johnson |
Location | Pittsburg, Kansas |
Varsity teams | 12 |
Football stadium | Brandenburg Field at Carnie Smith Stadium |
Basketball arena | John Lance Arena |
Mascot | GUS the Gorilla |
Nickname | Gorillas |
Fight song | "On to Victory!" |
Colors | Crimson and gold [1] |
Website | pittstategorillas |
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The Pittsburg State Gorillas, commonly referred to as Pitt State, are the athletic teams that represent Pittsburg State University. They are in the NCAA Division II as a member of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA). The Gorillas previously competed in the Central States Intercollegiate Conference (CSIC) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1976–77 to 1988–89; in the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) from 1972–73 to 1975–76; in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) from 1968–69 to 1971–72; in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (CIC) from 1923–24 to 1967–68; and in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) from 1902–03 to 1922–23.
Pittsburg State competes in 14 intercollegiate varsity sports:
Men's sports | Women's sports |
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Baseball | Basketball |
Basketball | Cross country |
Cross country | Soccer |
Football | Softball |
Golf | Track and field† |
Track and field† | Volleyball |
† – Track and field includes both indoor and outdoor |
The Pitt State football program began in 1908 under head coach Albert McLeland. Since that time, the program has produced the most wins in NCAA Division II history. It has been National Champions on four occasions; 1957, 1961, 1991 and 2011. Pittsburg State defeated Wayne State University, MI, 35-21 to claim its most recent national championship in 2011. During the 2004 season, the Gorillas finished 14–1, losing 31–36 to Valdosta State University in the NCAA Division II National Football Championship.
Pittsburg State has won, outright or shared, a total of 27 conference championships during the 96-year history of its intercollegiate program, including 13 conference titles in the last 19 seasons under Coach Chuck Broyles PSU reached the Division II National Championship game in 2004, 1995, and 1992. Its games with fellow MIAA Division II powerhouse Northwest Missouri State University were played at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, in the Fall Classic at Arrowhead from 2002 until 2013. 26,695 attended the 2002 game—the most of any Division II game. [2]
Sport | Association | Division | Year | Opponent/Runner-up | Score/Points |
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Football (2) | NCAA | Division II | 1991 | Jacksonville State* | 23-6 |
2011 | Wayne State (MI) | 35-21 | |||
Men's indoor track and field (3) | NCAA | Division II | 2018 | Tiffin | 49-48 (+1) |
2023 | Adams State | 86-42 (+44) | |||
2024 | Grand Valley State | 69-56.5 (+12.5) | |||
Men's outdoor track and field (3) [3] | NCAA | Division II | 2022 | West Texas A&M | 70–61 (+9) |
2023 | West Texas A&M | 62–47 (+15) | |||
2024 | West Texas A&M | 78–64 (+14) | |||
Women's outdoor track and field (2) [4] | NCAA | Division II | 2016 | St. Augustine's | 52–51 (+1) |
2024 | Adams State | 100–72 (+28) |
The official mascot of Pitt State Athletic teams is Gus the Gorilla, designed in by L. Michael Hailey in 1985. Pitt State is the only college in the nation with the Gorilla as its official mascot for its men's and women's teams. [5]
Pittsburg State University is a public university in Pittsburg, Kansas, United States. It enrolls approximately 7,400 students and is a member of the Kansas Board of Regents.
John Lance Arena is a 3,500 seat multi-purpose arena in Pittsburg, Kansas. It was built in 1971 and saw its first game played on December 4, 1971. It is the home of the Pittsburg State University Gorillas basketball teams.
The Kansas City metropolitan area has a long history of sports, which has included national championship teams and championship title events.
The Central Missouri Mules and Jennies are the athletic teams that represent the University of Central Missouri, located in Warrensburg, Missouri, in intercollegiate sports at the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Central Missouri has primarily competed in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association since its founding in the 1912–13 academic year.
The Emporia State Hornets are the athletic teams that represent Emporia State University (ESU). The women's basketball and softball teams use the name Lady Hornets. The university's athletic program fields 15 varsity teams in 11 sports all of whom have combined to win 50 conference championships as well as three national championships. Corky the Hornet serves as the mascot representing the teams, and the school colors are black and gold. Emporia State participates in the NCAA Division II and has been a member of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) since 1991.
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 Northwest Missouri State−Pittsburg State football rivalry, also known as the Fall Classic at Arrowhead, is a college football game between Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) rivals Northwest Missouri State University and Pittsburg State University. From 2002 to 2013, the game was played at Arrowhead Stadium, home of the Kansas City Chiefs. The games were played at the teams' home field, due to being unable to reach terms with the Kansas City Chiefs, from 2014 to 2018. The game returned to Arrowhead Stadium in 2019, but has been played on campus since.
Clarence Eugene Iba is a former American college basketball coach. He was previously the Pittsburg State Gorillas men's basketball coach until 2010. He was head coach at Houston Baptist from 1977 to 1985, Baylor from 1985 to 1992, and Pittsburg State from 1995 to 2010. He is the son of college basketball coach Clarence Iba and nephew of college basketball coach Hank Iba.
The Pittsburg State Gorillas football team represents Pittsburg State University in collegiate level football. The Pittsburg State football team was formed in 1908, competes in NCAA Division II and is affiliated with the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA). The Gorillas play their home games at Carnie Smith Stadium, more commonly referred to as "The Jungle", in Pittsburg, Kansas. Pittsburg State has won more games than any other program in NCAA Division II history. It has won four national championships and 27 conference championships, including 13 conference titles in 20 seasons under former head coach Chuck Broyles.
The Fort Hays State Tigers are the athletic teams that represent Fort Hays State University, located in Hays, Kansas, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the NCAA Division II ranks, primarily competing in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) for most of its sports since the 2006–07 academic year; while its men's soccer team competes in the Great American Conference (GAC). The Tigers previously competed in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) from 1989–90 to 2005–06 ; in the Central States Intercollegiate Conference (CSIC) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1976–77 to 1988–89; in the Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) from 1972–73 to 1975–76; in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (CIC) from 1923–24 to 1967–68; and in the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) from 1902–03 to 1922–23.
The Northeastern State RiverHawks are the athletic teams that represent Northeastern State University, located in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, in intercollegiate sports as a member of the Division II level of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), primarily competing in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) for most of its sports since the 2012–13 academic year; while its men's soccer team competes in the Great American Conference (GAC). The RiverHawks previously competed as an NCAA D-II Independent during the 2011–12 school year; in the D-II Lone Star Conference (LSC) from 1997–98 to 2010–11; and in the Oklahoma Intercollegiate Conference (OIC) of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) from 1974–75 to 1996–97.
The Emporia State Lady Hornets basketball team represents Emporia State University and competes in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) of the NCAA Division II. On April 28, 2023, Brian Ostermann was announced as the eighth head coach.
Jory Michael Collins is an American women's college basketball coach currently serving as the head coach for the North Dakota State program. From 2010 until 2018, Collins was the head coach at Emporia State University. Collins led the Emporia State Lady Hornets to eight consecutive winning seasons. Collins is the second winningest coach in Emporia State history with a record of 199–58 (.774).
The Emporia State Hornets basketball team represents Emporia State University in Emporia, Kansas, in the NCAA Division II men's basketball competition. The team is coached by Tom Billeter, who is in his first season as head coach. The Hornets compete in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association.
The 2015 Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association football season was contested by twelve United States collegiate athletic programs that compete in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) under the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for the 2015 college football season. The season began on Thursday, September 3, 2015.
The 2016 Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association football season is made up of 12 United States collegiate athletic programs that compete in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) under the NCAA Division II for the 2016 college football season. The season began on Thursday, September 1, 2016. Northwest Missouri State enters the season as the Conference and National Champions.
The 1991 Pittsburg State Gorillas football team was an American football team that won the 1991 NCAA Division II national championship.
James R. Johnson is an American university sports administrator and a former NCAA Division II conference commissioner. Johnson is currently the athletic director for Pittsburg State University, an NCAA Division II sports program in Pittsburg, Kansas. Previously, Johnson was the Commissioner of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA).
Lane R. Lord is an American college women's basketball coach currently coaching at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV). He was previously the head coach at Pittsburg State University, a position he held from 2007 to 2018. While Lord was at Pittsburg State, the program won a conference regular season championships and appeared in four NCAA tournaments. Prior to his most recent post, Lord was the head coach for at Barton Community College from 2004 to 2007, where he led the school to three consecutive winning seasons, and one Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference West Division co-regular season championship. Lord also taught and coached at Wichita Heights High School from 1995 to 2004.