List of NCAA rifle programs

The following is a list of universities and colleges who are members of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and field teams that are eligible to compete in the NCAA rifle championships. There are currently 30 NCAA rifle programs, representing 28 different institutions. The Citadel and VMI field seperate co-ed and women's teams.[1]

The NCAA began offering rifle as a varsity sport for the 1979–80 season.[2] The association's rules technically classify rifle as a men's sport, but it has been co-ed since its foundation, and institutions can offer men's, women's, and co-ed teams.[3] NCAA rules stipulate that members of Division I, Division II, and Division III are eligible for the same championship, and as such, teams of each division compete with each other throughout the season.[4]

There are five athletic conferences which offer rifle, three of which are rifle-only. The Mid-Atlantic Rifle Conference (MAC) was formed in 1978, two years prior to the NCAA offering the sport,[5] the Great America Rifle Conference (GARC) was founded in 1997,[6] and the Patriot Rifle Conference (PRC) was founded in 2013.[7] In addition, the all-sports Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) has offered rifle since 1994,[8] while the Southern Conference (SoCon) followed suit in 2016,[9] having previously offered rifle as a varsity sport until 1986.[10]

Current teams

Institution Nickname Community State Enrollment (2024)[a] Division Type Current conference[b] First year Reference
Air Force Falcons Air Force Academy CO 4,094 I Coed PRC 1979 [12]
Akron Zips Akron OH 11,160 I Coed GARC 1979 [13]
Alaska Nanooks Fairbanks AK 5,638 II Coed PRC 1979 [7]
Army Black Knights West Point NY 4,473 I Coed GARC 1979 [2]
Georgia Southern Eagles Statesboro GA 23,618 I Women SoCon 2013 [14]
Jacksonville State Gamecocks Jacksonville AL 8,863 I Coed Independent 1979 [2]
John Jay Bloodhounds New York City NY 11,939 III Coed MAC 1979 [2]
Kentucky Kentucky Lexington KY 25,534 I Coed GARC 1979 [2]
Memphis Tigers Memphis TN 15,770 I Coed GARC 1993 [15]
MIT Engineers Cambridge MA 4,535 III Coed MAC 1979 [2]
Morehead State Eagles Morehead KY 8,258 I Coed OVC 1993 [16]
Mount Aloysius Mounties Cresson PA 2,942 III Coed MAC 2024 [17]
Murray State Racers Murray KY 8,281 I Coed OVC 1979 [2]
Navy Midshipmen Annapolis MD 4,474 I Coed GARC 1979 [2]
Nebraska Cornhuskers Lincoln NE 19,701 I Women PRC 1998 [18]
North Georgia Nighthawks Dahlonega GA 18,329 II Coed SoCon 2011 [19]
Norwich Cadets Northfield VT 2,635 III Coed MAC 1979[c] [21]
Ohio State Buckeyes Columbus OH 46,815 I Coed PRC 1979 [2]
Ole Miss Rebels Oxford MS 21,585 I Women PRC 1996 [22]
Schreiner Mountaineers Kerrville TX 1,120 III Coed MAC 2024 [23]
TCU Horned Frogs Fort Worth TX 11,049 I Women PRC 1979 [2]
The Citadel Bulldogs Charleston SC 2,737 I Coed SoCon 1979 [24]
Women 2015
UAB Blazers Birmingham AL 11,959 I Coed SoCon 1992 [9]
UT Martin Skyhawks Martin TN 6,817 I Coed OVC 1980 [25]
UTEP Miners El Paso TX 21,118 I Women PRC 1979 [2]
VMI Keydets Lexington VA 1,527 I Coed[d] SoCon 1979 [26]
Women 2009
West Virginia Mountaineers Morgantown WV 18,206 I Coed GARC 1979 [2]
Wofford Terriers Spartanburg SC 1,817 I Coed SoCon 2003 [27]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Data sourced from undergraduate enrollment totals provided by the U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges Ranking website[11]
  2. ^ The university's rifle conference, not necessarily its primary athletic conference
  3. ^ Norwich discontinued its rifle program in 2005 and re-established it in 2022[20]
  4. ^ Previously men-only, women were allowed to join starting in 1998, making it a coed team[26]

References

  1. ^ "NCAA Standings". National Collegiate Athletics Association. Retrieved March 5, 2026.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "1980 National Collegiate Rifle Championships Handbook". National Collegiate Athletics Association. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  3. ^ Brown, Jason J. (March 6, 2017). "A Brief History of the NCAA Rifle Championship". National Rifle Association. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  4. ^ "2025-26 Prechampionships Manual" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletics Association. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  5. ^ "About the Mid-Atlantic Rifle Conference". Mid-Atlantic Rifle Conference. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  6. ^ "2012 Rebel Rifle" (PDF). Ole Miss Rebels. University of Mississippi. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  7. ^ a b "UAF joins new Patriot Rifle Conference". University of Alaska at Fairbanks. May 24, 2013. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  8. ^ "CSU joins Ohio Valley Conference to Compete in Rifle". Columbus State University. April 27, 2012. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  9. ^ a b "UAB Rifle to Join Southern Conference". UAB Blazers. University of Alabama at Birmingham. December 9, 2015. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  10. ^ "SoCon 2024-25 Rifle Record Book" (PDF). Southern Conference. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  11. ^ "U.S. News Best Colleges". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  12. ^ "2025-26 Rifle Record Book" (PDF). Air Force Falcons. United States Air Force Academy. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  13. ^ "2020 Rifle NCAA Media Guide" (PDF). Akron Zips. University of Akron. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  14. ^ "Georgia Southern Adds Women's Rifle". Georgia Southern Eagles. Georgia Southern University. April 15, 2013. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  15. ^ "Hello American Athletic Conference: We Are Memphis Rifle". Memphis Tigers. University of Memphis. July 16, 2013. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  16. ^ "Morehead State University 2008-2009 Rifle". Morehead State Eagles. Morehead State University. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  17. ^ "Mount Aloysius College". Mid-Atlantic Rifle Conference. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  18. ^ "Husker Rifle History". Nebraska Cornhuskers. University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  19. ^ "North Georgia Rifle Historical Records Book & Archive" (PDF). North Georgia Nighthawks. University of North Georgia. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  20. ^ "Rifle: Norwich captures 50-point victory over Plattsburgh State in first meet since 2005". Norwich Cadets. Norwich University. October 17, 2022. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  21. ^ "Norwich University". Mid-Atlantic Rifle Conference. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  22. ^ Cleveland, Rick (March 4, 2021). "Ole Miss shoots — literally — for state's first Division I team national crown". Mississippi Today. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  23. ^ "Schreiner University". Mid-Atlantic Rifle Conference. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  24. ^ "Rifle Year by Year Results". The Citadel Bulldogs. The Citadel. Retrieved March 7, 2026.
  25. ^ "1981 National Collegiate Rifle Championships Handbook". National Collegiate Athletics Association. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
  26. ^ a b "Women's Rifle Gets Historic First Win". VMI Keydets. Virginia Military Institute. October 27, 2009. Retrieved March 7, 2026.
  27. ^ Dugan, Ashley (February 28, 2023). "All About The Wofford College Rifle Team". Shooting Sports USA. National Rifle Association. Retrieved March 6, 2026.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.