The Tulsa Golden Hurricane are the athletic teams that represent the University of Tulsa . These teams are referred to as the Tulsa Golden Hurricane (or variously as TU or Tulsa). Before adopting the name Golden Hurricane in 1922, the University of Tulsa (TU) had many unofficial team nicknames including Kendallites (from TU's predecessor institution Henry Kendall College ), Presbyterians (from the university's founding by the Presbyterian Church ), Tulsans, Tigers, Orange and Black, and Yellow Jackets. The name "Golden Tornadoes" was chosen by TU football coach H.M. Archer (1922–24) based on new gold and black uniforms (rather than the previous orange and black) and a remark made during practice of the team "roaring through opponents" (during a season when TU went undefeated, including wins over Texas A&M and the University of Arkansas ). However, it was quickly discovered that the same name had been chosen in 1917 by Georgia Tech . Archer then substituted the term " hurricane " for " tornado " and a team vote prior to leaving for the game against Texas A&M confirmed the official nickname as "Golden Hurricane".
74-487: NCAA The Tulsa Golden Hurricane is a member of the American Athletic Conference (The American). The Golden Hurricane were members of Conference USA from 2005 to 2014, winning 40 conference championships, including 16 postseason titles and nine regular season crowns (including three West Division titles). It's the most CUSA titles (Rice is second with 16) since the league realigned in 2005–06. It
148-575: A traveling trophy , the Mayor's Cup . Tulsa is also known for developing many coaches who have gone on to great success in the NCAA, including current Texas Tech men's basketball coach Tubby Smith , who won a national championship while he coached at the University of Kentucky , Kansas' Bill Self , and one of Arkansas' most notable former coaches, Nolan Richardson , who is the only head coach to win
222-471: A 478–199 record, and was the fourth winningest coach in college baseball when the program ended. In recent years, the university has been reported on several occasions to be considering whether to restore the baseball program; a formal study was conducted in 2009 after the Tulsa Drillers moved into their new downtown stadium , leaving Drillers Stadium potentially available for college baseball, but
296-581: A brief legal dispute, CUSA and the three schools reached a settlement that allowed those schools to join the SBC in 2022. With three men's soccer schools now joining in 2022 instead of 2023, the SBC announced it would reinstate men's soccer at that time. The new full members were joined by three full SBC members and three new associate members. Coastal Carolina played the 2021 season in CUSA. The other two full SBC members, Georgia Southern and Georgia State , played in
370-457: A football scholarship from Southern Methodist University (SMU). He became a starter at quarterback as a sophomore, registering 74 completions (led the conference) out of 129 attempts (second in the conference) for 693 yards (second in the conference), one touchdown and 6 interceptions. In 1961, he transferred to the University of Tulsa after a 2–7–1 football season, which led to the firing of head coach Bill Meek . In 1963 after sitting out
444-457: A full member, and Rutgers, Temple , Virginia Tech , and West Virginia as football-only members. Rutgers and West Virginia were offered full all-sports membership in 1995, while Virginia Tech waited until 2000 for the same offer. Temple football was kicked out after the 2004 season, but rejoined in 2012 and intended to become a full member in 2013. The unusual structure of the Big East, with
518-692: A full title for each co-champion. Accurate as of June 14, 2023. *- Does not include vacated championships †- No longer a member of the AAC ‡- Affiliate member No current American Conference member has won an NCAA team championship while a member of the conference. The only school to have won a fully recognized NCAA title while in The American, UConn, left for the Big East Conference in 2020. Several members have won national titles before joining The American. Another former member, SMU, won
592-547: A future draft pick, as would the New York Jets in the 25th round (195th overall) of the 1964 AFL Draft . Rhome began his professional career in 1965 as the third quarterback behind Don Meredith and Craig Morton ; he got a chance to start one game that same year against the Cleveland Browns (17-23 loss). He would serve in a backup role until the start of the 1969 season when Roger Staubach joined
666-536: A loss, set during the same stretch of 39 games from 1988 to 1992. The Golden Hurricane has twice reached the elite-eight of the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship , falling to eventual champion Indiana in 2004 and top seeded Akron in 2009. Tulsa has participated in 11 NCAA tournaments (1991, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016) and has been frequently ranked in the top 25. The school has produced first team All-American , Ryan Pore , who played for
740-508: A member of The American, whether or not the conference sponsored that sport at the time. The conference began football during the 1991–92 season, and it was a founding member of the Bowl Championship Series . Previously, conference opponents operated on a two-year cycle, as a home-and-home series. Jerry Rhome Jerry Byron Rhome (born March 6, 1942) is an American former professional football player who
814-531: A number of NCAA records, including the largest number of touchdowns in a game, in a season, and the most consecutive passes without an interception in a football season and in his career. Rhome also won the Sammy Baugh Trophy in 1964, and had his Number 17 jersey retired by the school. In 1984, he was inducted into the University of Tulsa Athletic Hall of Fame. In 1988, he was inducted into
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#1732791669205888-464: A perpetual smirk. This representation of Captain 'Cane was named by Fox Sports as the second worst mascot in the country. From 1977 to 1994, the mascot was known as Hurc or Huffy . In 2009, Captain Cane was redesigned as a human superhero with the power to summon weather. As of July 2, 2015, Tulsa has 3 team national championships (one NCAA and two AIAW titles), all in women's golf. During
962-508: A possible move to that league. However, on October 1, the MW announced that its current membership would remain intact for the foreseeable future, removing its 12 football members (including football-only member Hawaiʻi ) from the list of potential new members for The American. For its part, The American officially denied extending invitations to the two Colorado schools. Later that month on October 18, 2021, Yahoo Sports reported that The American
1036-582: A prominent figure in Tulsa soccer for over 20 years. The team plays in the Hurricane Soccer & Track Stadium . The Golden Hurricane Tennis program has string of success, including men's Missouri Valley championships in 1995 and 1996, men's Conference USA championships in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2011 and women's Conference USA championships in 2007, 2008, 2010, and 2011. In 2007, Tulsa's top-ranked player Arnau Brugués-Davi ranked as high as #1 in
1110-479: A total of 16 bowl games and Tulsa was the first university to play in five straight New Year's Day bowl games: the 1942 Sun Bowl , 1943 Sugar Bowl , 1944 Sugar Bowl , 1945 Orange Bowl , and 1946 Oil Bowl . Tulsa football finished the 1991 season ranked 21st in the nation by the Associated Press and USA Today/Coaches polls. During the 2008 season Tulsa football was ranked as high as 19th nationally by
1184-562: A varsity team in eight men's sports and ten women's sports. Tulsa has the smallest undergraduate enrollment of all schools that participate in NCAA Division I FBS football . The football team was most recently coached by Kevin Wilson , He replaced Phillip Montgomery , who replaced Bill Blankenship , who replaced Todd Graham who had replaced Steve Kragthorpe , who led the team to three bowl games in four seasons before accepting
1258-597: A women's swimming & diving affiliate after the other schools fully joined The American. On September 1, 2023, SMU accepted an invitation to join the Atlantic Coast Conference for the 2024–25 season. With this the American was now down one team. On October 25, 2023, Army announced it would be joining the conference as a football-only member beginning in 2024, joining fellow service academy Navy. The annual Army–Navy Game , typically played at
1332-464: A year, Rhome starred at Tulsa, passing for 1,909 yards, 10 touchdowns, and suffering 13 interceptions. He improved as a senior, with 2,870 passing yards, 32 touchdowns and just 4 interceptions, while leading the nation in total offense (3,128 yards). He finished second in the voting for the Heisman Trophy —to John Huarte of Notre Dame—in one of the closest elections ever recorded. Rhome held
1406-495: Is headquartered in Irving, Texas , and led by Commissioner Tim Pernetti , who replaced the retiring Mike Aresco on June 1, 2024. The Big East Conference was founded in 1979 as a basketball conference and included the colleges of Providence , St. John's , Georgetown , and Syracuse , which in turn invited Connecticut (UConn), Holy Cross , Rutgers , and Boston College to be members. UConn and Boston College would accept
1480-401: Is one of two conferences to emerge from the all-sports Big East in 2013. While the other successor, which does not sponsor football, purchased The Big East Conference name, The American inherited The Old Big East's structure and is that conference's legal successor . However, both conferences claim 1979 as their founding date, and the same history up to 2013. The American Athletic Conference
1554-488: Is the only full member that does not sponsor football . Seven full members have left the conference. Six affiliate members have left the conference. Five other schools were affiliate members for one year before becoming full conference members. The American currently sponsors championship competition in 10 men's and 11 women's NCAA sanctioned sports. James Madison , Old Dominion , and Vanderbilt are affiliate members for women's lacrosse. Under NCAA rules reflecting
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#17327916692051628-499: The Big 12 Conference was on the verge of inviting four schools— including American Athletic Conference members Cincinnati , Houston , and UCF . Later that month, all three schools received and accepted membership offers on the date of the presidents' meeting, with the official announcement stating only that they would join the Big 12 no later than 2024–25. On June 10, 2022, The American and
1702-727: The Big 12 Conference , College Football Playoff , and the National Football Foundation . The conference also moved the men's basketball tournament to the region, to be played at the new Dickies Arena until 2022. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic , some member schools have eliminated sports due to budget constraints. The University of Cincinnati eliminated its men's soccer program while East Carolina University canceled men and women's swimming and diving teams and tennis teams. Women's rowing member San Diego State University dropped that sport effective with
1776-488: The Big East Conference , which would rename itself the following day as the American Athletic Conference (The American). With The American dropping women's rowing at the end of the 2023–24 season, Tulsa became an affiliate of the Big 12 Conference in that sport. Tulsa has won six national championships (three NCAA): four in women's golf and two in men's basketball. The University of Tulsa currently fields
1850-688: The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) era in college football, and The American inherited that status in the BCS's final season. With the advent of the College Football Playoff in 2014, The American became a "Group of Five" conference , which shares one automatic spot in the New Year's Six bowl games . The league is the product of substantial turmoil in The Old Big East during The 2010–14 conference realignment period . It
1924-944: The College Football Hall of Fame . He also was inducted into the Oklahoma Sports Hall of Fame, the Texas High School Hall of Fame, the Inaugural Class of the Dallas Independent School District Athletic Hall of Fame and the Sunset High School Hall of Fame. Knowing that he had one more year of eligibility, the Dallas Cowboys selected him in the thirteenth round (172nd overall) of the 1964 NFL draft with
1998-553: The College World Series twice, finishing in second and third place. In 1969 the Golden Hurricane made it to the final game of the double-elimination tournament before losing to Arizona State . First baseman Steve Caves and third baseman Les Rogers were named to the all-tournament team. In 1971 Tulsa lasted until the next-to-last game of the tournament before being eliminated. First baseman Jerry Tabb
2072-619: The Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). Member universities represent a range of private and public research universities of various enrollment sizes located primarily in urban metropolitan areas in the Northeastern , Midwestern , and Southern regions of the United States. The American's legal predecessor, the original Big East Conference , was considered one of the six collegiate power conferences of
2146-489: The Montreal Expos and was selected to five All-Star teams. Other Hurricanes who played in the majors included Bud Bloomfield , Steve Bowling, Mark Calvert , Mardie Cornejo , Mike Sember , and Jerry Tabb. Tulsa dropped its baseball program in 1980, citing rising costs and the need to fund a full women's sports program. Gene Shell , who had coached the program from 1965 to 1980, finished his career at Tulsa with
2220-483: The Mountain West Conference ). Any of several schools could potentially fill the non-football slot, with Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports considering VCU to be "the most logical target there." Thamel dismissed the prospect of the American adding a new all-sports member, saying "there's no obvious candidate who could add value in both basketball and football." On June 24, 2019, it was reported that
2294-524: The Portland Timbers , and Kansas City Wizards of Major League Soccer . Terry Boss of Seattle Sounders FC and Lawson Vaughn of D.C. United are former Golden Hurricane currently playing in MLS. Dominic Cervi plays for Celtic F.C. of Glasgow , Scotland , and fellow goalkeeper Tyrel Lacey has signed with FC Lyn Oslo of Oslo , Norway . Since 1995, the head coach has been Tom McIntosh,
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2368-622: The Sun Belt Conference effective in 2023, aligning its men's soccer program with that of West Virginia , the only pre-2023 Big 12 member sponsoring men's soccer. Cincinnati would remain in The American as a women's lacrosse affiliate, but left after the 2024 season when the Big 12 added that sport. In late September 2021, several national media outlets reported that Mountain West Conference (MW) members Air Force and Colorado State had approached The American regarding
2442-425: The "football" and "non-football" schools, led to instability in the conference. The waves of defection and replacement brought about by the conference realignments of 2005 and the early 2010s revealed tension between the football-sponsoring and non-football schools that eventually led to the split of the conference in 2013. The conference was reorganized following the tumultuous period of realignment that hobbled
2516-458: The 1980 and 1982 AIAW titles and the 1982 and 1988 NCAA titles, with the 1988 title later vacated. Golfers Nancy Lopez (1976), Kathy Baker (1982 AIAW), and Melissa McNamara (1988) have won individual national titles. Other notable Golden Hurricane female golfers are Stacy Prammanasudh and Kelly Robbins . The team has won 12 conference championships: The men's golf team has won 11 conference championships: Tulsa's baseball team played in
2590-406: The 2002 WNIT, making it to the second round. The Tulsa Men's Soccer team has a strong history since it became a varsity sport in 1980. TU has won four conference championships (1991 MVC, 2007, 2008, 2009 C-USA) and eight conference tournaments (1991 MVC, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2012 C-USA, 2014, 2015, 2016 AAC). Tulsa holds the NCAA record for both consecutive home wins and consecutive home games without
2664-459: The 2020–21 season. Old Dominion was previously added to The American for women's rowing beginning in the 2018–19 season. The American moved their headquarters from Providence, Rhode Island to Irving, Texas . This was a planned move, to better centralize the conference offices with the member schools. Irving is in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex , which is also home to the headquarters of
2738-809: The 2023 equestrian title the year before it left for the ACC, but that sport does not yet have full NCAA recognition. Equestrian is recognized by the NCAA as part of its Emerging Sports for Women program, but championships are organized by the National Collegiate Equestrian Association (NCEA) instead of the NCAA. Excluded from these lists are all national championships earned outside the scope of NCAA competition , including Division I FBS football titles, Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association titles, women's AIAW titles, NCEA titles, retroactive Helms Athletic Foundation titles, and ITA tennis titles. Includes all titles won while
2812-597: The AP poll, and 18th in both the BCS rankings and USA Today/Coaches poll. Tulsa also led all Division I FBS schools in total offense in 2008 (7,978 yds) and in 2007 (7,832 yds). Tulsa football finished the 2010 season ranked 24th in the Associated Press poll and finished the 2012 season ranked 25th in the USA Today/Coaches poll. The University of Tulsa has three Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees. Steve Largent and
2886-495: The American, the conference's likeliest response would be to bring in two new schools—one for football only and a second in non-football sports, similar to the American's sequential additions of Navy and Wichita State. The most likely prospects for football-only membership were seen as Army (currently an FBS independent, with most of its other sports in the Patriot League ), and Air Force (currently an all-sports member of
2960-437: The Big East between 2010 and 2013. The Big East was one of the most severely impacted conferences during the early-2010s conference realignment period. In all, 14 member schools announced their departure for other conferences, and 15 other schools announced plans to join the conference (eight as all-sports members, and four for football only). Three of the latter group later backed out of their plans to join (one for all sports, and
3034-469: The Big East had formally approved an invitation for UConn to join the conference. On June 26, 2019, the UConn Board of Trustees accepted the invitation. On July 26, media reports indicated that UConn and The American had reached a buyout agreement that confirmed UConn's Big East arrival date as July 1, 2020, paying the American a $ 17 million exit fee. It was widely reported that UConn was "rejoining"
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3108-501: The Big East, given that the Huskies would be reunited with many of the schools against which it played for three decades in the original Big East. Indeed, UConn was the last charter member of the old Big East still playing in The American. The American took a number of steps to stabilize the conference after the departure of UConn. The first move was the addition of Old Dominion University as an affiliate member in women's lacrosse for
3182-692: The MAC. The new associates were Kentucky and South Carolina , which had been single-sport CUSA members since 2005; and West Virginia , which had previously announced that it would move men's soccer from the Mid-American Conference to CUSA in 2022. CUSA was then left with only four men's soccer programs for 2022 ( Charlotte , FIU , Florida Atlantic , and UAB ), with all but FIU set to become full American members in 2023. The American accordingly brought all four schools in as new men's soccer members for 2022, with FIU remaining an affiliate after
3256-486: The NCAA passing and receiving records, some of which still stand today. The Tulsa Golden Hurricane basketball program has had a history of success, including NIT championships in 1981 and 2001, an Elite Eight appearance in 2000, three Sweet Sixteen appearances, and 14 trips to the Big Dance . The Golden Hurricane have a long-standing basketball rivalry with Oral Roberts Golden Eagles . The two teams have exchanged
3330-642: The NJCAA tournament (with Western Texas Junior College), the NIT (with Tulsa), and the NCAA tournament (with Arkansas). The current men's basketball head coach is Frank Haith . In 2006, the Tulsa women's basketball team earned its first appearance in the NCAA tournament by winning Conference USA's regular-season and tournament championships. The Golden Hurricane's accomplishment came after back-to-back 19-win seasons and WNIT appearances in 2004 and 2005. Tulsa also appeared in
3404-424: The SBC in 2023. The CAA responded by invoking a provision of its bylaws to ban JMU from further conference championship events. The SBC responded by pushing JMU's entry forward to 2022. Soon after this, the other three CUSA members set to move to the SBC in 2023 ( Marshall , Old Dominion , and Southern Miss , with Marshall and ODU sponsoring men's soccer) announced that they would instead leave in 2022. Following
3478-517: The Shockers the league's first full non-football member since the Big East split. On June 21, 2019, a Boston-area sports news website, Digital Sports Desk , revealed that UConn was expected to announce by the end of the month that it would leave the American for the Big East Conference in 2020. The story was picked up by multiple national media outlets the next day. The main issue that reportedly had to be resolved prior to any official announcement
3552-893: The conclusion of the regular season, will continue to be played annually as a non-conference game and will not count towards conference standings. However, it is possible for the two teams to meet a second time in a season in the American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game , should they finish as the top two teams in the conference. Full members (all-sports) Full members (non-football) Affiliate members (football-only) Affiliate member (other sport) Other Conference Other Conference The conference currently has 13 full member institutions – and six affiliate members – in 13 states, including Alabama, California, Florida, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. Wichita State
3626-631: The conference confirmed their 2023 entry date on June 16, 2022. A series of further realignment moves centering on the Sun Belt Conference (SBC) led to The American's men's soccer league expanding earlier than planned. This sequence began in November 2021 when James Madison announced its departure from the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA; since renamed the Coastal Athletic Association ) to join
3700-499: The end of the 2020–21 season. In late July 2021, founding Big 12 members Oklahoma and Texas jointly announced that they planned to leave the conference no later than 2025, and formally requested an invitation from the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Shortly thereafter, The American became a peripheral player in this saga when the Big 12 sent a cease and desist letter to current broadcast partner ESPN, charging
3774-451: The head coaching job at the University of Louisville after the 2006–7 season. Graham, a former Tulsa defensive coordinator , returned to the team after serving as the head coach at Rice University for one season. Tulsa has appeared in five bowl games between the 2003 and 2008 seasons, including four straight: the 2005 Liberty Bowl , 2006 Armed Forces Bowl , 2008 GMAC Bowl , and 2009 GMAC Bowl . Tulsa's football teams have appeared in
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#17327916692053848-643: The invitation, while Holy Cross soon thereafter declined the invitation, and Rutgers eventually declined and remained in the Atlantic 10 Conference (then known as the Eastern 8 Conference). Seton Hall was then invited as a replacement and the conference started play with seven members. Villanova and Pittsburgh joined shortly thereafter under the leadership of the first Big East commissioner, Dave Gavitt . The conference remained largely unchanged until 1991, when it began to sponsor football, adding Miami as
3922-489: The large number of male scholarship participants in football and attempting to address gender equity concerns (see also Title IX ), each member institution is required to provide more women's varsity sports than men's. Men's varsity sports not sponsored by The American which are played by conference schools: Women's varsity sports not sponsored by The American which are played by conference schools: Shared titles (ex: 2014 football, 2020 men's basketball) are counted as
3996-584: The late Jim Finks were members of the 1995 class, while Bob St. Clair was a 1990 inductee. TU shares the lead for the most NFL Hall of Famers among the Division I FBS football schools in the state of Oklahoma. The University of Tulsa can also take much of the credit for developing the passing game in collegiate football in the 1960s. Tulsa led the nation in passing in 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965 and 1966. Quarterbacks Jerry Rhome (1964) and Billy Guy Anderson (1965) and receiver Howard Twilley (1964–65) set most of
4070-478: The nation and a four time All-American, advanced to the quarterfinals of the singles competition at the NCAA Men's Tennis Championship , improving on his 2006 round of sixteen appearance. The University of Tulsa also boasts one of the nation's top tennis facilities, the Michael D. Case Tennis Center , which was host to the 2004 and 2008 NCAA tennis championships. TU has won four team national titles in women's golf:
4144-526: The network with conspiring to damage the league by luring Oklahoma and Texas to the SEC, and also alleging that the network encouraged an unnamed conference to raid the Big 12 to pave the way for an earlier departure by Oklahoma and Texas. A later media report identified that other conference as The American. ESPN issued an official denial of the Big 12 charges, and officials from The American declined to comment. On September 3, Sports Illustrated reported that
4218-452: The next several years, The American did not discuss the addition of any new members. However, in March 2017, media reports indicated that the conference was seriously considering adding one or more new members specifically as basketball upgrades. Wichita State , Dayton , and VCU were reportedly considered, with Wichita State being seen as the strongest candidate. By the end of that month, it
4292-626: The nickname "The American" because it was thought "AAC" would cause too much confusion with the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). Louisville and Rutgers spent one season in the newly renamed conference. On July 1, 2014, Louisville joined the ACC and Rutgers joined the Big Ten Conference . On that same day, East Carolina , Tulane , and Tulsa joined The American for all sports, while Sacramento State and San Diego State joined as affiliate members for women's rowing. Navy joined as an affiliate member in football on July 1, 2015. For
4366-503: The one they would receive by remaining with the football schools. In March 2013, representatives of the Catholic 7 announced they would leave the conference effective June 30, 2013, retaining the Big East name, $ 10 million, and the right to hold the conference's basketball tournament at Madison Square Garden . Following the announcement of the departure of the Catholic 7 universities, the remaining ten football-playing members started
4440-678: The one year of overlapping dual NCAA and AIAW championships (1981–82), Tulsa was the only school to win both championships in one sport. Tulsa has won one NCAA team national championship. See also: American Athletic Conference The American Athletic Conference ( AAC ), also known as The American , is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States, featuring 13 full member universities and six affiliate member universities that compete in The National Collegiate Athletic Association 's (NCAA) Division I . Its football teams compete in
4514-425: The other two for football only). On December 15, 2012, the Big East's seven remaining non-FBS schools, all Catholic institutions consisting of DePaul , Georgetown , Marquette , Providence , St. John's , Seton Hall , and Villanova announced that they voted unanimously to leave the Big East Conference effective June 30, 2015. The "Catholic 7", by leaving, were looking for a more lucrative television deal than
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#17327916692054588-526: The others fully joined The American. Similar changes came to women's swimming & diving, again due in part to SBC expansion. Of the schools leaving CUSA for the SBC in 2022, Marshall and Old Dominion sponsor that sport, and incoming American members Florida Atlantic, North Texas, and Rice also sponsor the sport (although Rice fields swimmers only, with no divers). The American brought the aforementioned future full members, plus FIU, into its women's swimming & diving league. As with men's soccer, FIU remained
4662-463: The process of selecting a new name for the conference and choosing a new site to hold its basketball tournament. Various names were considered, with the "America 12" conference reportedly one of the finalists until rejected by college presidents sensitive of adding a number to the end of the conference name. On April 3, 2013, the conference announced that it had chosen a new name: American Athletic Conference. The conference also revealed that it prefers
4736-499: The school concluded that the financial demands of adding a new sport were more than it could accept. The Golden Hurricane softball team won Conference USA regular season and tournament championships in 2006 and 2009. The men's golf team won the Conference USA championship in 2007. From 1994 to 2009, Tulsa's mascot was Captain 'Cane , an anthropomorphized golden hurricane with human attributes such as biceps, clothes, and
4810-513: The team, and at his request the Cowboys traded Rhome to the Cleveland Browns in exchange for a third round draft choice, later used to select Charlie Waters in the 1970 NFL draft . In 1969 , although Rhome was a backup to Bill Nelsen , the information he provided about the Cowboys offense helped the Browns beat them in a 38-14 Conference Championship playoff win. On January 27, 1970 , he
4884-429: The three departing schools announced a buyout agreement had been reached, confirming those schools' 2023 departure date. At the time, it was possible that Cincinnati and UCF could remain in the conference as affiliate members for women's lacrosse and men's soccer, respectively, as the Big 12 does not sponsor those sports, though no formal announcement was made. UCF would later accept an offer of men's soccer membership from
4958-754: Was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys , Cleveland Browns , Houston Oilers and Los Angeles Rams . He closed out his professional career with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at the University of Tulsa . Rhome attended Sunset High School in Texas, where he played football for his father, Byron Rhome . He also practiced basketball and baseball . Rhome accepted
5032-673: Was a member of the Western Athletic Conference from 1996–2004 and the Missouri Valley Conference from 1935 to 1996. In 1985, the MVC dropped football so Tulsa participated as an Independent in football, but remained as an MVC member in other sports, including basketball. Prior to 1935, Tulsa was a member of several conferences. On April 2, 2013, Tulsa announced that in July 2014 it would leave CUSA for
5106-526: Was claimed off the waiver wire by the Los Angeles Rams , where he was a backup for one year. On August 24, 1972 , he was released after the Rams acquired quarterback Pete Beathard . In October 1972 , he signed with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League . On December 18, he announced his retirement. After he finished his pro playing career, Rhome became an assistant coach at
5180-433: Was named the tournament's most valuable player; pitcher Steve Rogers and outfielder Steve Bowling were also named to the all-tournament team. Tulsa held the number one ranking in the polls for part of the 1972 season before being knocked out of that year's playoffs at the district level. Of the Tulsa baseball players who later played in the major leagues, the most successful was Steve Rogers, who pitched for 12 years with
5254-474: Was preparing to receive applications from six of the 14 members of Conference USA — Charlotte , Florida Atlantic , North Texas , Rice , UAB , and UTSA . This would make The American a 14-full-member conference. The next day, ESPN reported that all six schools had submitted applications, and that each would receive a formal letter by the end of that week (October 22) detailing the terms of conference expansion. All six schools were accepted on October 21, and
5328-562: Was reported that talks between the American and Wichita State had advanced to the point that the two sides were discussing a timeline for membership, with the possibility of the Shockers joining as a full but non-football member as early as the 2017–18 school year. The report indicated that a final decision would be made in April. The conference's board of directors voted unanimously on April 7 to add Wichita State effective in July 2017, making
5402-431: Was the future of UConn football, as the Big East does not sponsor that sport, and sources indicated that the American had no interest in retaining UConn as a football-only member. Reportedly, American Athletic Conference insiders were not surprised by UConn's prospective move, as that school had been vigorously opposed to that league's most recently announced television deal. National media believed that should UConn leave
5476-472: Was traded to the Houston Oilers in exchange for a third round draft choice, that they gave back to the Dallas Cowboys in payment for their original trade. Rhome would only play as a backup for the Houston Oilers for a year. On August 17, 1971 , he was waived after the team decided to keep rookies Dan Pastorini and Lynn Dickey , to back up starter Charley Johnson . On August 19, 1971 , he
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