RICHMOND, VA — The University of Richmond has accepted an invitation to join the Patriot League in Spider football, the school announced Tuesday. The Spiders will join the CAA in 2024 and move to the Patriot League before the 2025 season. Richmond will participate in the Patriot League as an associate member in football only. All other Spider sports conference affiliations are unaffected.
This decision was made following a comprehensive review by the university of the football team's conference affiliation that began after the 2023 season in response to continued changes in the nation's FCS landscape.
“The Patriot League organization is an outstanding organization both athletically and academically, and we are excited to be a part of the 2025 football season,” said University of Richmond President Kevin F. Hallock. “The University of Richmond is firmly committed to not only meeting, but advancing the athletic goals of our student-athletes, and the Patriot League's upward trajectory provides an excellent environment for future success for Spider football. .”
Richmond becomes the eighth Patriot League football member, joining Bucknell, Colgate, Fordham, Georgetown, Holy Cross, Lafayette and Lehigh. The Spiders became the first school since 2004 to join or leave the Patriot League Football Conference.
“The Patriot League provides our football student-athletes and staff the opportunity to experience championship-level competition at the highest level in the FCS in a conference rich in tradition, academics and stability,” said Vice President and Athletics the manager said. John Hurt. “Joining the Patriot League will allow our football program to continue to compete for championships and achieve postseason success, which is so important to our players, the university, and Spiders around the world. It puts you in a great position.”
Richmond finished the 2023 CAA Championship season with the Spiders finishing 9-4 and advancing to the second round of the FCS Playoffs for the second straight season. UR is one of his eight schools to advance to the second round of the FCS playoffs in each of the past two seasons, along with Delaware State, Furman State, Montana State, Montana State, North Dakota State, Sacramento State and South Dakota State. This is his one school.
“I'm excited about what joining the Patriot League means for the future of our program,” said the Spider football head coach. Russ Hughesman. “This is a big change for Spider football, but our goals remain the same: win a conference championship, advance to the FCS playoffs, and compete for a national championship. The Patriot League has a great football program and a great There are a lot of schools and I think it's a good fit for Richmond. ”
Richmond's move to the Patriot League is the first for Spider football since 2007, when the Spiders won the South Division title in their first year of CAA football after competing in the Atlantic 10 from 1997 to 2006. The conference affiliation will be changed. Football member of the Southern Conference (1936-1975) and Yankee Conference (1986-1996).
“We are thrilled to welcome the University of Richmond as our eighth football member,” said Patriot League Commissioner Jennifer Heppell. “Richmond's consistent success on the field has made them the best program in the FCS, and their additions position the league for continued competitive success at the national level.” Our shared commitment to prioritizing a highly competitive academic and athletic experience over excellence makes them an ideal institutional partner for the Patriot Alliance.”
The Patriot League has had five teams finish in the top 25 in the final FCS coaches poll in three full seasons since the COVID-19 pandemic, with Holy Cross in the second round of the postseason in 2021. In 2022, they advanced to the quarterfinals. The league introduced athletic scholarships to football in 2013, allowing its schools to award up to 63 worth of athletic scholarship support for his FCS.
Richmond football won 13 conference championships, appeared in the NCAA playoffs 13 times and won the 2008 national championship, the school's first NCAA national title.
