St. Francis dropping from D-I to PAC
AP Photo/Jeff Dean
St. Francis is the latest addition to the Presidents’ Athletic Conference.
But the Red Flash likely won’t be the last.
St. Francis University in Loretto announced on March 25 plans to re-classify from NCAA Division I to NCAA Division III, joining the PAC as the league’s 13th full-time member.
St. Francis will become a full-time PAC member with voting and membership rights effective July 1, 2025, with competition beginning in the 2026-27 academic year.
“Just seeing the media responses to the news (of St. Francis moving down) it seems to be the consensus feeling that this is just the beginning,” said PAC commissioner Joe Onderko.
“Schools are taking a hard look at, and I think that it’s not because schools suddenly decided we don’t like being at (the Division I) level, it’s more a question of being at that level has changed dramatically. I think there’s just no other way to put it. I mean between NIL and the transfer portal, it is a different world from even five years ago.”
There are other pending matters such as NCAA Division I roster restrictions and House settlements related to NIL rights.
In the fall, Carnegie Mellon withdrew as a football member of the PAC to join the Centennial Conference beginning in 2025.
The move scuttled the PAC’s plans to divide into two, six-team divisions in 2025 and hold a championship game between division winners.
CMU and Case Western Reserve, who have played as football affiliates in the PAC since 2014, are both full members of the University Athletic Association, which does not sponsor football.
CMU, which has been a member of the UAA since leaving the PAC in the late 1980s, was expected to be part of the new, two-division football alignment in the PAC starting with the 2025 season.
CMU joined the PAC in 1968, then withdrew from the conference following the 1989-1990 academic year. At the time, the Tartans’ hierarchy said it desired to “go in a different direction.”
At that point, the PAC had just five members – Bethany, Grove City, Thiel, Washington & Jefferson and Waynesburg. Hiram decided to return last year.
Having St. Francis join is a boon for the PAC, which will consider adding other schools if the right situation surfaces.
“The Presidents’ Athletic Conference is looking forward to welcoming Saint Francis University to the PAC,” said Doug Lee, president at Waynesburg University and chair of the PAC Presidents’ Council. “Their commitment to creating an atmosphere for scholar-athletes to compete in the unique and exciting dimension of Division III athletics will further enhance the strong tradition of excellence upheld by our member institutions.”
Onderko admits further expansion would be considered.
“We are truly the presidents’ conference,” he explained. “Ultimately, what we do is in the control of our presidents and one of the things they’ve said is they don’t necessarily have a number in mind, but if they’re comfortable …
“If somebody comes to us who we feel is a fit and is going to bring us value and they want to be partners who we feel shares our culture we’re going to consider that. I don’t think we expand just to expand. There must be a commonality with them. Do I see us bringing in a public school? I really couldn’t because we’ve seen examples of public schools and private schools in the same conference and there’s challenges with that quite frankly. But if somebody comes to us to express interest, we would evaluate that, and if we feel there’s a good fit and it’s going to make us a stronger league, then absolutely we will consider it.”