Oklahoma Christian to apply for membership in NCAA Division II

OKLAHOMA CITY (Feb. 6, 2012) – Oklahoma Christian University plans to apply for membership in NCAA Division II, the university’s president-elect, John deSteiguer, announced on Monday.

The university also has been accepted into the Heartland Conference, pending approval of the application by the NCAA, and will play a full Heartland Conference schedule during the 2012-13 school year.

“Oklahoma Christian has a long and storied athletic tradition,” deSteiguer said. “We’ve been very successful in the NAIA through the years. Now it’s time for Oklahoma Christian to apply for membership in NCAA Division II. It’s the best thing for our student-athletes, our coaches and our fans.”

OC has held membership in the NAIA since the 1960s and has been a member of the Sooner Athletic Conference since its creation more than 30 years ago, but changes in the composition of the NAIA, along with the growth of the university, have led OC to re-evaluate its affiliations.

Since 2006, OC has been engaged in a community-wide discussion and study regarding national affiliation. Led by Athletic Director Curtis Janz and overseen by President Dr. Mike O’Neal, the President’s Advisory Council and the university’s Board of Trustees, this has been a comprehensive study of the university’s athletic programs, institutional framework and long-term strategy and fit. This process has included OC’s senior administrators, staff, faculty, students, alumni, boosters and community neighbors.
 
Through this process, the university determined its strategic values and long-term vision are more closely aligned with those of NCAA Division II. OC already is functioning on an NCAA Division II level in terms of budget, staffing, sports sponsorship, scholarship support, academic standards, rules and governance, marketing, competitive success, student experience and other factors.

In April 2011, the OC Board of Trustees approved the filing of an application for NCAA Division II affiliation. The university will submit that application to the NCAA on June 1, 2012, Janz said.

OC is an athletically competitive institution and has great potential for success in the NCAA. OC finished eighth among NAIA institutions in the NACDA Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup all-sports standings during the 2009-10 school year and was 10th during the 2010-11 school year. During 2011, OC claimed its third and fourth NAIA team championships, as the Eagles’ men’s golf team won the national tournament in Silvis, Ill., in May and the men’s cross country team prevailed at the national meet in Vancouver, Wash., in November.

OC student-athletes also have been successful in the classroom. The university has more than 200 student-athletes, who posted a combined grade point average of 3.2 during the 2010-11 school year. Nineteen OC athletes were named as NAIA Scholar-Athletes in 2010-11, while 10 have earned the honor so far during the 2011-12 school year.
 
The Heartland Conference consists of Dallas Baptist University in Dallas; Newman University in Wichita, Kan.; Oklahoma Panhandle State University in Goodwell; St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas; St. Mary’s University in San Antonio; Texas A&M International University in Laredo, Texas; the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith, the University of Texas-Permian Basin in Odessa, Texas; and McMurry University in Abilene, Texas.

OC offers varsity programs in men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, softball, men’s and women’s tennis, men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s cross country and men’s and women’s track and field.

EAGLE EYE BLOG

Chuck White’s final home game

This video features scenes from Chuck White’s final home game as OC’s head baseball coach. Coach White was the driving force in the revival of the baseball program and the construction of Dobson Field and the Bobby Murcer Indoor Training Facility.

OC Softball vs. Oklahoma Baptist—April 28, 2012

OC Baseball vs. Mid-America Christian—April 26, 2012