Well, it’s official.
On Thursday, June 7th, Florida A&M and its Board of Trustees voted unanimously to become a member of the Southwestern Athletic Conference as of July 1, 2021, joining North Carolina A&T as the second program that will leave the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference next year.
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"This is an exciting time for Florida A&M," FAMU head coach Willie Simmons told HERO Sports. "The SWAC is one of the most historic conferences in all of intercollegiate athletics and we are extremely optimistic about the direction the conference is headed under the leadership of commissioner Dr. Charles McClelland. From a football perspective, the opportunity to renew some of our traditional rivalries like Southern, Grambling, Jackson State, and Alabama State is very exciting for our amazing fan base."
Before the vote, the BOT were presented with a “Blueprint of Transition”, which detailed both the benefits of leaving and the drawbacks of remaining in the MEAC. Coincidentally, both mainly revolved around finances.
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A study conducted by Collegiate Sports Partners determined that FAMU, which had a budget of slightly over $10.7 million in 2019, would be best served, both financially and athletically, by moving their membership to the SWAC.
For those that are familiar, the concept of changing conferences is not new to the Rattlers. A 149-page report, which was prepared for former interim AD Michael Smith and released to the Tallahassee Democrat in 2014, detailed various financial issues that continue to plague FAMU's athletic department.
It was proposed this week that a move to the SWAC will provide FAMU with significant opportunities to increase revenue, reduce expenses and align with sister institutions that are engaged in a sound financial model that includes conference distributions and other revenue-generating opportunities.
According to the presentation, the SWAC has an average revenue intake of $10.3 million, with various Sponsorships, Funds and Grants distributed within the conference that are significantly higher than the MEAC ($400,000 annually). The SWAC also offers additional revenue opportunities of $1.4 million that the MEAC cannot offer, which include their annual Football Championship Game.
It continues by stating that the MEAC has television, apparel and sponsorship deals that are “prohibitive” and “don’t benefit the universities that they are supposed to serve” while the SWAC allows its members autonomy of multimedia and apparel agreements.
The sponsorship and licensing deals within the SWAC account for 8.4 percent in overall revenue for the conference, with four schools bringing in over $1 million.
The study also suggested that such a move would reduce the cost of travel.
Located in Tallahassee, FAMU leads the MEAC in distance traveled and travel expenses, according to the report. On average, MEAC schools are 700 miles from Tallahassee compared to the average of 518 miles for schools in the SWAC, with six of the SWAC institutions (Alabama A&M, Alabama State, Alcorn State, Jackson State, Mississippi Valley State, Southern) within 500 miles of campus versus two within the MEAC (Bethune-Cookman, South Carolina State).
That reduction in travel will cut travel expenses by 30 percent ($400,000).
Reducing travel distance also makes it logistically feasible to include The Marching 100 in more away game travel.
The presentation also suggests that the SWAC aligns with FAMU in multiple areas, including national brands and a similar fan base that will frequently visit Tallahassee.
As a conference, the SWAC led FCS football in total attendance with 793,835 in 2019, outgaining the Big Sky by 57,221 with 26 less games. The SWAC also led FCS in average attendance with 15,266 per game, with three schools in the Top 10 (#1 Jackson State, #4 Alabama State, #7 Southern) and five in the Top 20 (#12 Alcorn, #20 Grambling). That mark of close to 15.3K is 5,500 more than the second-place conference, the MEAC, which was led by, you guessed it, FAMU (16,537).
That type of fan presence by FAMU led to its brand presence being three times as many views as any other MEAC school on ESPN, according to a MEAC report.
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