Murray State makes it official: Racers are leaving OVC for a new league home
In another blow to the Ohio Valley Conference, the Murray State Board of Regents on Friday officially accepted a bid to join the Missouri Valley Conference.
Murray State, one of the founding members of the OVC, will leave for the MVC on July 1, 2022, becoming the 11th member of the Missouri Valley.
“We are very excited as we advance Murray State University and Racer Athletics into our second century,” Murray State President Bob Jackson said in a news release. “The Missouri Valley Conference is one of the premier conferences in Division I athletics and we look forward to continuing our long record of success in this conference.”
The schools Murray State will be competing against in the MVC are: Belmont, Bradley, Drake, Evansville, Illinois State, Indiana State, Missouri State, Northern Iowa, Southern Illinois (Carbondale) and Valparaiso.
In recent years in men’s basketball, Loyola (Chicago) has been the most visible MVC program, reaching the Final Four in 2018 and bouncing No. 1 seed Illinois from the NCAA Tournament in the round of 32 last season.
However, Loyola is joining the Atlantic 10 on the same date Murray State moves to the MVC.
“On behalf of our student-athletes, coaches, administrators and staff, we are collectively honored and thrilled to join the Missouri Valley Conference,” said Kevin Saal, Murray State Athletics Director and a former assistant AD at Kentucky. “Membership in this preeminent, and historically elite-performing conference, occurs as a direct result of the contributions of thousands of Racers who have come before us.”
In conjunction with the move to the MVC for most of its sports programs, Murray State is also applying for membership in the the Missouri Valley Football Conference, a separate stand-alone, football-only conference.
According to Murray State, MSU and MVFC officials “are actively engaged in the membership process.” Murray State said its rifle team, currently ranked No. 6 in the country, will continue to compete in the OVC.
For Murray State’s flagship men’s basketball program, the MVC should provide a bigger platform than the OVC, albeit one likely filled with greater competitive challenges.
“The Missouri Valley Conference is one of the premier basketball leagues in the country,” Murray State men’s hoops coach Matt McMahon said in the school news release. “We look forward to both the opportunities and the challenges that this historic day presents.”
Murray State has played in the men’s NCAA Tournament 17 times, seven of them in the 21st century.
MVC Commissioner Jeff Jackson gave a nod to Murray State’s men’s hoops tradition. “Everyone is aware of the tremendous success Murray has had, especially in the sport of basketball,” Jackson said in the MSU news release. “The Racers will be a fantastic addition to our Conference.”
Murray State’s departure is only the latest exit from the OVC, which has been hemorrhaging members.
Eastern Kentucky and Jacksonville State officially left the OVC to join the ASUN on July 1 of last year (Jacksonville State has subsequently accepted an invitation to join Conference-USA). Austin Peay has announced plans to join the ASUN for the 2022-23 school year.
Meanwhile, Belmont announced only months before Murray that it was leaving the OVC for the MVC.
The OVC formed in 1948 as a Kentucky-centric league consisting of Eastern Kentucky, Evansville, Louisville, Morehead State, Murray State and Western Kentucky.
Once Murray departs, Morehead will be the sole Kentucky school remaining in the OVC.
Other teams still in the OVC are Eastern Illinois, Southeast Missouri State, Southern Illinois (Edwardsville), Tennessee Martin, Tennessee State and Tennessee Tech.
Arkansas Little Rock is slated to join the OVC on July 1, 2022.
In a statement released by the league, OVC Commissioner Beth DeBauche said the Ohio Valley Conference is looking forward with a “focus on membership growth.
“We are talking to institutions that share our philosophy and want to prosper in today’s intercollegiate athletic environment by being part of the OVC,” DeBauche said in the news release.
