Following an announcement made by the university and conference Friday, Kennesaw State is set to join Conference USA by 2024.
The Owls will be heading to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) after participating in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) since 2009. This shift is expected to begin following the conclusion of the 2022 football season, and all sports will be fully transitioned by July 1, 2024.
KSU will be joining Conference USA (C-USA) as its 10th institution. Following a meeting with university stakeholders, the University System of Georgia Chancellor Sonny Perdue provided final consent by the Board of Regents this past Friday, Oct. 14. The decision came after the C-USA Board of Directors voted unanimously to offer KSU a member spot in Sept. 2022.
C-USA Commissioner Judy MacLeod says adding KSU “continues to build upon our strong foundation.” The Owls bring aboard an enrollment of 43,000 students and 17 men’s and women’s sports for the conference to sponsor. Since becoming a Division I university in 2005, KSU has achieved 43 conference championships and 11 regular season titles across men’s and women’s sports.
This news comes just after KSU President Kathy Schwaig’s Investiture where she expressed her thrill for the conference shift. “On behalf of Kennesaw State University, I am pleased to formally accept the invitation to join Conference USA,” President Schwaig said Friday, “This step was not one taken lightly, but with thoughtful review and analysis of the benefits to elevated competition for our student-athletes, the expanded opportunities for research and academic engagement and the advancement of a unique and exciting student experience at KSU.”
Although the Owls will be a part of C-USA by 2024, they will not be eligible to compete in any postseason or bowl play until 2026. NCAA rules require teams transitioning to FBS to go through a two-year ineligibility period in which they are unable to participate in postseason play.
KSU, along with Liberty, Jacksonville State, Sam Houston State, and New Mexico State, is slated to join current C-USA schools, Louisiana Tech, MTSU, Florida International, Western Kentucky, and UTEP, all by the fall 2024 season.
