YSU football foe leaving Penguins conference

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (WKBN) – YSU football foe Missouri State University has officially accepted a bid to join Conference USA as a full-time member, effective July 1, 2025.

The school made the announcement on Friday.

Beginning in 2025, the Bears football program will compete in the NCAA’s Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) for the first time.

Missouri State has been a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference since 1990.

“Sincere thanks goes to Gateway and MVFC commissioner Patty Viverito. Those individuals recognized the potential of our university decades ago and honored us with an inclusive and competitive league that we have proudly represented and called home. We will always have strong ties to the MVC’s proud history and appreciate the camaraderie of the other Valley universities we have competed alongside during our tenure.”

The Bears will still compete in the MVFC for one final season in 2024.

“This is an exciting day for Missouri State,” said MSU President Clif Smart. “The opportunities associated with membership in an FBS conference allow us to continue to expand as a university and raise our reputation to the next level. We have valued our membership in the Missouri Valley Conference – a premier conference in the NCAA – and look forward to a final year in the league before we transition to CUSA.”

Missouri State will become the 12th full-time member of CUSA, which includes the following universities:

Florida International University (FIU), Miami, Florida
Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, Alabama
Liberty University, Lynchburg, Virginia
Louisiana Tech University, Ruston, Louisiana
Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, Tennessee
New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico
Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, Texas
University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), El Paso, Texas
Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, Kentucky
Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, Georgia (joining July 1, 2024)
University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware (joining July 1, 2025)

The Bears will compete in CUSA in the sports of football, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, softball, volleyball, women’s soccer, women’s cross country, men’s and women’s golf, women’s tennis, women’s track and field, and beach volleyball.

According to a release from the school, MSU’s application to change Division I classifications from FCS to FBS is also subject to formal approval by the NCAA.

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