American NCAA athletic conference (1990–95)
The Great Midwest Conference was an NCAA Division I athletics conference that existed from 1991 to 1995.
History
It was formed in 1990 with six members: Cincinnati and Memphis State (now Memphis ) from the Metro Conference , UAB from the Sun Belt Conference , Marquette and Saint Louis from the Midwestern Collegiate Conference (now the Horizon League ), and independent DePaul . Dayton joined in 1993. Cleveland State and Detroit-Mercy had some interest from coaches, while Louisville and Tulane were heavily favored by athletic directors.[ 2]
In 1995, six of the schools in the Great Midwest (except for Dayton, who joined the Atlantic 10 Conference ) joined with UNC Charlotte , Louisville , Southern Mississippi , Tulane , and South Florida of the Metro and Houston of the dissolving Southwest Conference and formed Conference USA .
Chronological timeline
1990 – The Great Midwest Conference was founded. Charter members included the University of Cincinnati and Memphis State University (now the University of Memphis) from the Metro Conference, the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) from the Sun Belt Conference , Marquette University and Saint Louis University from the Midwestern Collegiate Conference (now the Horizon League), and D-I Independent DePaul University , effective beginning the 1990–91 academic year.
1993 – University of Dayton joined the Great Midwest, effective in the 1993–94 academic year.
1995 – The Great Midwest ceased operations as an athletic conference, effective after the 1994–95 academic year; as many schools left to join their respective new home primary conferences, effective beginning the 1995–96 academic year: Cincinnati, DePaul, Marquette, Memphis, Saint Louis and UAB joined with the Metro Conference schools to form Conference USA, while Dayton joined the Atlantic 10 Conference (A-10).
Member schools
Final members
Institution
Location
Founded
Affiliation
Enrollment
Nickname
Joined
Left
Subsequent conference(s)
Current conference
University of Cincinnati
Cincinnati, Ohio
1819
Public
41,357
Bearcats
1991
1995
CUSA (1995–2005)original Big East (2005–2013)The American (2013–2023)
Big 12 (2023–present)
University of Dayton
Dayton, Ohio
1850
Catholic (Marianists )
11,186
Flyers
1993
1995
Atlantic 10 (A-10) (1995–present)
DePaul University
Chicago, Illinois
1898
Catholic(Vicentian )
24,966
Blue Demons
1991
1995
CUSA (1995–2005)original Big East (2005–2013)
Big East (2013–present)
Marquette University
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1881
Catholic(Jesuit )
12,002
Golden Eagles
1991
1995
CUSA (1995–2005)original Big East (2005–13)
Big East (2013–present)
University of Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee
1912
Public
22,365
Tigers
1991
1995
CUSA (1995–2013)
The American (2013–present)
Saint Louis University
St. Louis, Missouri
1818
Catholic(Jesuit)
13,785
Billikens
1991
1995
CUSA (1995–2005)
Atlantic 10 (A-10) (2005–present)
University of Alabama at Birmingham * (UAB)
Birmingham, Alabama
1936
Public
17,999
Blazers
1991
1995
CUSA (1995–2023)
The American (2023–present)
Notes
Membership timeline
Championships
The following were the locations of the GMC men's basketball tournament.
See also
References
Full members Affiliate members History
1 baseball
2 beach volleyball
3 bowling
4 leaving in 2026
5 leaving by 2027