The Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) was formed in 1902 and is the third oldest athletic conference in the United States. Its current commissioner is Sarah Otey. Former commissioners include Mike Cleary, who was the first General Manager of a professional basketball team to hire an African American head coach, and would later run the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA). The Ohio Athletic Conference competes in the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

Division III In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Thir ...

. Through the years, 31 schools have been members of the OAC. The enrollments of the current ten member institutions range from around 1,000 to 4,500. Member teams are located in

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

History

The Ohio Athletic Conference was found in 1902 with six charter members— Case Tech,

Kenyon Kenyon may refer to: Names * Kenyon (given name) * Kenyon (surname) Places * Kenyon, Cheshire, United Kingdom, a village * Kenyon, Minnesota, United States, a city * Kenyon, Rhode Island, United States, a village * Kenyon, former name of Pineridg ...

, Oberlin,

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

Ohio Wesleyan Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU) is a private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Delaware, Ohio. It was founded in 1842 by methodist leaders and Ohio Valley, Central Ohio residents as a nonsec ...

, and

Western Reserve The Connecticut Western Reserve was a portion of land claimed by the Colony of Connecticut and later by the state of Connecticut in what is now mostly the northeastern region of Ohio. The Reserve had been granted to the Colony under the terms o ...

. By 1934, the conference reached an all-time high of twenty-four members, seeing many schools come and go throughout the upcoming decades. By 2000, the conference solidified to its current form with the addition of its final school, Wilmington, to ten members.

Conference timeline

* 1902 - The Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) was founded. Charter members included

Case Institute of Technology Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a private research university in Cleveland, Ohio. Case Western Reserve was established in 1967, when Western Reserve University, founded in 1826 and named for its location in the Connecticut Western Res ...

Kenyon College Kenyon College is a private liberal arts college in Gambier, Ohio. It was founded in 1824 by Philander Chase. Kenyon College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Kenyon has 1,708 undergraduates enrolled. Its 1,000-acre campus is se ...

Oberlin College Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio. It is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational liberal arts college in the United S ...

Ohio State University The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best publ ...

Ohio Wesleyan University Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU) is a private liberal arts college in Delaware, Ohio. It was founded in 1842 by methodist leaders and Central Ohio residents as a nonsectarian institution, and is a member of the Ohio Five – a consortium ...

and

Western Reserve University Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

, effective beginning the 1902-03 academic year. * 1907 -

Denison University Denison University is a private liberal arts college in Granville, Ohio. One of the earliest colleges established in the former Northwest Territory, Denison University was founded in 1831. The college was first called the Granville Literary and ...

Heidelberg College Heidelberg University is a private university in Tiffin, Ohio. Founded in 1850, it was known as Heidelberg College until 1889 and from 1926 to 2009. It is affiliated with the United Church of Christ. History Heidelberg University was founded b ...

(now Heidelberg University) and the

College of Wooster The College of Wooster is a private liberal arts college in Wooster, Ohio. Founded in 1866 by the Presbyterian Church as the University of Wooster, it has been officially non-sectarian since 1969 when ownership ties with the Presbyterian Church ...

joined the OAC, effective in the 1907-08 academic year. * 1909 -

Wittenberg College Wittenberg University is a private liberal arts college in Springfield, Ohio. It has 1,326 full-time students representing 33 states and 9 foreign countries. Wittenberg University is associated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Americ ...

(now Wittenberg University) joined the OAC, effective in the 1909-10 academic year. * 1910 - The

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,00 ...

and

Ohio University Ohio University is a Public university, public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confeder ...

joined the OAC, effective in the 1910-11 academic year. * 1911 - Miami University of Ohio joined the OAC, effective in the 1911-12 academic year. * 1912 - Ohio State left the OAC, effective after the 1911-12 academic year. * 1914 -

Mount Union College The University of Mount Union is a private university in Alliance, Ohio. Founded in 1846, the university was affiliated with the Methodist Church until the spring of 2019. In the fall of 2020, Mount Union had an enrollment of 1,958 undergraduate ...

(now the University of Mount Union) joined the OAC, effective in the 1914-15 academic year. * 1915 - The

University of Akron The University of Akron is a public research university in Akron, Ohio. It is part of the University System of Ohio. As a STEM-focused institution, it focuses on industries such as polymers, advanced materials, and engineering. It is classified ...

and

Baldwin Wallace College Baldwin Wallace University (BW) is a private university in Berea, Ohio. It was founded in 1845 as Baldwin Institute by Methodist businessman John Baldwin. The school merged with nearby German Wallace College in 1913 to become Baldwin-Wallace C ...

(now Baldwin Wallace University) joined the OAC, effective in the 1915-16 academic year. * 1916 -

Ohio Northern University Ohio Northern University (Ohio Northern or ONU) is a private United Methodist Church–affiliated university in Ada, Ohio. Founded by Henry Solomon Lehr in 1871, ONU is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. It offers over 60 programs to ...

joined the OAC, effective in the 1916-17 academic year. * 1919 - Baldwin Wallace left the OAC, effective after the 1918-19 academic year. * 1920 -

Hiram College Hiram College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Hiram, Ohio. It was founded in 1850 as the Western Reserve Eclectic Institute by Amos Sutton Hayden and other members of the Disciples of Christ Church. The college is nonsectarian and coe ...

joined the OAC, effective in the 1920-21 academic year. * 1921 -

Otterbein College Otterbein University is a private university in Westerville, Ohio. It offers 74 majors and 44 minors as well as eight graduate programs. The university was founded in 1847 by the Church of the United Brethren in Christ and named for United Bre ...

(now Otterbein University) and St. Xavier College (now Xavier University) joined the OAC, effective in the 1921-22 academic year. * 1922 -

Muskingum College Muskingum University is a private liberal arts college in New Concord, Ohio. Chartered in 1837 as Muskingum College, the institution is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). Collectively, the university's alumni are referred to as the ...

(now Muskingum University) joined the OAC, effective in the 1922-23 academic year. * 1923 - Baldwin Wallace re-joined back to the OAC for a second time, effective in the 1923-24 academic year. * 1924 - Cincinnati left the OAC, effective after the 1923-24 academic year. * 1926 -

Marietta College Marietta College (MC) is a private liberal arts college in Marietta, Ohio. It offers more than 50 undergraduate majors across the arts, sciences, and engineering, as well as Physician Assistant, Psychology, Clinical Mental Health Counseling, an ...

joined the OAC, effective in the 1926-27 academic year. * 1927 -

Capital University Capital University (Capital, Cap, or CU) is a private university in Bexley, Ohio. Capital was founded as the Theological Seminary of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Ohio in 1830, and later was associated with that synod's successor, the Ame ...

joined the OAC, effective in the 1927-28 academic year. * 1928 - Denison, Miami, Ohio, Ohio Wesleyan and Wittenberg left the OAC to form the

Buckeye Conference The Buckeye Athletic Association, also known as the Buckeye Conference, was an athletic league formed out of members of the Ohio Athletic Conference. Its original membership in 1926 included Ohio Wesleyan University (Battling Bishops), Ohio Univer ...

alongside Cincinnati (who left 4 years prior), effective after the 1927-28 academic year. * 1931 -

Ashland College Ashland University is a private university in Ashland, Ohio. The university consists of a main campus and several off-campus centers throughout central and northern Ohio. Ashland was founded in 1878 as Ashland College. It is affiliated with The ...

(now Ashland University) joined the OAC, effective in the 1931-32 academic year. * 1932 - Western Reserve left the OAC, effective after the 1931-32 academic year. * 1932 -

John Carroll University John Carroll University is a private Jesuit university in University Heights, Ohio. It is primarily an undergraduate, liberal arts institution accompanied by the John M. and Mary Jo Boler College of Business. John Carroll has an enrollment of 3, ...

, Kent State College (now Kent State University) and

Toledo University The University of Toledo (UToledo or UT) is a public research university in Toledo, Ohio. It is the northernmost campus of the University System of Ohio. The university also operates a Health Science campus, which includes the University of T ...

(now the University of Toledo) joined the OAC, effective in the 1932-33 academic year. * 1933 - Bowling Green State College (now Bowling Green State University) joined the OAC, with Denison re-joining for a second time as well, effective in the 1933-34 academic year. * 1934 - Wittenberg re-joined back to the OAC for a second time, effective in the 1934-35 academic year. * 1935 - Hiram left the OAC, effective after the 1934-35 academic year. * 1936 - Baldwin Wallace, Case Tech, John Carroll, Toledo and Xavier were suspended from the OAC for a violation of the opening date of football practice, all of them (except Xavier) were re-instated back the following school year. * 1936 - Akron and Xavier left the OAC, effective after the 1935-36 academic year. * 1942 - Bowling Green State left the OAC, effective after the 1941-42 academic year. * 1947 - Ohio Wesleyan re-joined back to the OAC for a second time, effective in the 1947-48 academic year. * 1944 - Akron re-joined back to the OAC for a second time, effective in the 1944-45 academic year (with football re-joining in the 1948 fall season (1948-49 academic year). * 1947 - Ohio Northern left the OAC, effective after the 1946-47 academic year. * 1947 - Ohio Wesleyan re-joined back to the OAC for a second time, effective in the 1947-48 academic year. * 1948 - Ashland and Case Tech, alongside Baldiwn Wallace for a second time, left the OAC, effective after the 1947-48 academic year. * 1949 - John Carroll and Toledo left the OAC, effective after the 1948-49 academic year. * 1951 - Kent State left the OAC, effective after the 1950-51 academic year. * 1951 - Hiram re-joined back to the OAC for a second time, effective in the 1951-52 academic year. * 1961 - Baldwin Wallace re-joined back to the OAC for a third time, effective in the 1946-47 academic year. * 1966 - Akron left the OAC for a second time, effective after the 1965-66 academic year. * 1971 - Hiram left the OAC for a second time, effective after the 1970-71 academic year. * 1973 - Ohio Northern re-joined back to the OAC for a second time, effective in the 1973-74 academic year. * 1984 - Kenyon, Oberlin and Wooster left the OAC, alongside Denison and Ohio Wesleyan for a second time, to form the

North Coast Athletic Conference The North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) is an NCAA Division III athletic conference composed of colleges located in Ohio and Indiana. When founded in 1984, the league was a pioneer in gender equality, offering competition in a then-unprecede ...

(NCAC), effective after the 1983-84 academic year. * 1989 - Wittenberg left the OAC for a second time, effective after the 1988-89 academic year. * 1989 - Hiram re-joined back to the OAC for a third time, alongside John Caroll who re-joined for a second time, effective in the 1989-90 academic year. * 1999 - Hiram left the OAC for a third time, effective after the 1998-99 academic year. * 2000 - Wilmington College of Ohio joined the OAC, effective in the 2000-01 academic year. * 2011 -

Defiance College Defiance College is a private college located in Defiance, Ohio and affiliated with the United Church of Christ. The campus includes eighteen buildings and access to the Thoreau Wildlife Sanctuary. History The college began as Defiance Female ...

joined the OAC as an associate member for men's and women's swimming and diving, effective in the 2011-12 academic year. * 2012 -

Transylvania University Transylvania University is a private university in Lexington, Kentucky. It was founded in 1780 and was the first university in Kentucky. It offers 46 major programs, as well as dual-degree engineering programs, and is accredited by the Southern ...

joined the OAC as an associate member for men's and women's swimming and diving, effective in the 2012-13 academic year. * 2015 -

Manchester University , mottoeng = Knowledge, Wisdom, Humanity , established = 2004 – University of Manchester Predecessor institutions: 1956 – UMIST (as university college; university 1994) 1904 – Victoria University of Manchester 1880 – Victoria Univer ...

joined the OAC as an associate member for men's and women's swimming and diving, effective in the 2015-16 academic year.

Member schools

Current members

The OAC currently has nine full members, all are

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

schools: ;Notes:

Former members

The OAC had 20 former full members, all but seven were

schools: ;Notes:

Former associate members

The OAC had three former associate members, all were

schools:

Membership timeline

DateFormat = yyyy ImageSize = width:900 height:auto barincrement:20 Period = from:1902 till:2027 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal PlotArea = right:30 left:0 bottom:50 top:5 Colors = id:barcolor value:rgb(0.99,0.7,0.7) id:line value:black id:bg value:white PlotData= width:15 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s bar:1 color:powderblue from:1902 till:1948 text: Case Tech (1902–1948) bar:2 color:powderblue from:1902 till:1984 text:

(1902–1984) bar:3 color:powderblue from:1902 till:1984 text: Oberlin (1902–1984) bar:4 color:powderblue from:1902 till:1912 text:

(1902–1912) bar:5 color:powderblue from:1902 till:1928 text:

(1902–1928) bar:5 color:powderblue from:1947 till:1984 text: (1947–1984) bar:6 color:powderblue from:1902 till:1932 text:

(1902–1932) bar:7 color:powderblue from:1907 till:1928 text: Denison (1907–1928) bar:7 color:powderblue from:1933 till:1984 text:(1933–1984) bar:8 color:powderblue from:1907 till:end text:

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...

(1907–present) bar:9 color:powderblue from:1907 till:1984 text: Wooster (1907–1984) bar:10 color:powderblue from:1909 till:1928 text:

Wittenberg Wittenberg ( , ; Low Saxon language, Low Saxon: ''Wittenbarg''; meaning ''White Mountain''; officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg (''Luther City Wittenberg'')), is the fourth largest town in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Wittenberg is situated on the Ri ...

(1909–1928) bar:10 color:powderblue from:1934 till:1989 text:(1934–1989) bar:11 color:powderblue from:1910 till:1924 text:

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

(1910–1924) bar:12 color:powderblue from:1910 till:1928 text:

(1910–1928) bar:13 color:powderblue from:1911 till:1928 text: Miami (Oh.) (1911–1928) bar:14 color:powderblue from:1914 till:end text: Mount Union (1914–present) bar:15 color:powderblue from:1915 till:1936 text:

Akron Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city prop ...

(1915–1936) bar:15 color:powderblue from:1944 till:1966 text:(1944–1966) bar:16 color:powderblue from:1915 till:1919 text: Baldwin Wallace (1915–1919; 1923–1948) bar:16 color:powderblue from:1923 till:1948 text: bar:16 color:powderblue from:1961 till:end text:(1961–present) bar:17 color:powderblue from:1916 till:1947 text: Ohio Northern (1916–1947) bar:17 color:powderblue from:1973 till:end text:(1973–present) bar:18 color:powderblue from:1920 till:1935 text: Hiram (1920–1935) bar:18 color:powderblue from:1951 till:1971 text:(1951–1971) bar:18 color:powderblue from:1989 till:1999 text:(1989–1999) bar:19 color:powderblue from:1921 till:end text: Otterbein (1921–present) bar:20 color:powderblue from:1921 till:1936 text: Xavier (Oh.) (1921–1936) bar:21 color:powderblue from:1922 till:end text: Muskingum (1922–present) bar:22 color:powderblue from:1926 till:end text:

Marietta Marietta may refer to: Places in the United States *Marietta, Jacksonville, Florida *Marietta, Georgia, the largest US city named Marietta *Marietta, Illinois *Marietta, Indiana *Marietta, Kansas *Marietta, Minnesota *Marietta, Mississippi *Mar ...

(1926–present) bar:23 color:powderblue from:1927 till:end text:

Capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...

(1927–present) bar:24 color:powderblue from:1931 till:1948 text: Ashland (1931–1948) bar:25 color:powderblue from:1932 till:1949 text:

John Carroll John Carroll may refer to: People Academia and science *Sir John Carroll (astronomer) (1899–1974), British astronomer *John Alexander Carroll (died 2000), American history professor *John Bissell Carroll (1916–2003), American cognitive sci ...

(1932–1949) bar:25 color:powderblue from:1989 till:end text: (1989–present) bar:26 color:powderblue from:1932 till:1951 text: Kent State (1932–1951) bar:27 color:powderblue from:1932 till:1949 text: Toledo (1932–1949) bar:28 color:powderblue from:1933 till:1942 text: Bowling Green State (1933–1942) bar:29 color:powderblue from:2000 till:end text: Wilmington (OH) (2000–present) ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:5 start:1902 TextData = fontsize:M textcolor:black pos:(300,30) # tabs:(0-center) text:"Ohio Athletic Conference Membership History"

Sports

In 2018–19, the OAC sponsors the following championships:

Facilities

OAC Tournament Championship History

Men's Swimming & Diving

* 2016-19: John Carroll * 2006-16: Ohio Northern

Women's Swimming & Diving

* 2017-19: John Carroll * 2015-16: Mount Union

Men's Basketball

* 2020-22: Marietta * 2019-20: Mount Union * 2018-19: Baldwin Wallace * 2017-18: John Carroll * 2016-17: Marietta * 2015-16: John Carroll * 2014-15: Mount Union * 2013-14: Wilmington * 2012-13: Marietta * 2011-12: Capital * 2010-11: Marietta * 2009-10: Wilmington * 2008-09: John Carroll * 2007-08: Heidelberg * 2006-07: Capital

Women's Basketball

*2022: Baldwin Wallace * 2020-21: John Carroll * 2019-20: Baldwin Wallace * 2018-19: John Carroll * 2017-18: Marietta * 2016-17: Ohio Northern * 2015-16: Mount Union * 2014-15: Baldwin Wallace * 2013-14: Capital * 2012-13: Ohio Northern * 2009-10, 2010–11, 2011-12: Mount Union * 2008-09: Capital * 2007-08: Baldwin Wallace * 2005-06, 2006-07: Wilmington * 2002-03, 2003-04: Wilmington

Football

* 2017–19;2021: Mount Union * 2016: John Carroll * 1995–2015: Mount Union * 1994: Baldwin Wallace/John Carroll/Mount Union * 1992–1993: Mount Union * 1991: Baldwin Wallace * 1990: Mount Union * 1989: John Carroll * 1988: Baldwin Wallace/Wittenberg

Baseball

* 2021-22: Marietta * 2019: Otterbein * 2018: Baldwin Wallace * 2017: Otterbein * 2015–16: Marietta * 2014: John Carroll * 2013: Mount Union * 2011–12: Marietta * 2010: Heidelberg

Men's Soccer

* 2018-19: John Carroll * 2017: Otterbein * 2016: John Carroll * 2015: Ohio Northern * 2014: Heidelberg * 2010–13: Ohio Northern * 2009: Capital and Ohio Northern (tie) * 2008: Ohio Northern * 2004: Wilmington * 2000: Wilmington

Women's Soccer

* 2019: Ohio Northern * 2018: Otterbein * 2017: Ohio Northern * 2016: Mount Union * 2013–15: Capital * 2012: Ohio Northern * 2011: Capital * 2010: Otterbein

Women's Volleyball

* 2018–19: Ohio Northern * 2017: Otterbein * 2016: Ohio Northern * 2015: Heidelberg * 2011–14: Mount Union * 2010: Heidelberg * 2009: Ohio Northern * 2008: Heidelberg

Men's Golf

* 2015–19: Otterbein * 2014: Baldwin Wallace * 2011: Mount Union * 2009–10: Otterbein * 2007–08: Mount Union * 1998–06: Otterbein * 1997: John Carroll * 1996: Otterbein * 1994–95: John Carroll * 1992–93: Otterbein * 1991: Heidelberg and Hiram (tie) * 1990: John Carroll * 1988–89: Wittenberg * 1987: Muskingum

Men's Wrestling

* 2016–19: Baldwin Wallace * 2012–14: Heidelberg * 2011: Mount Union * 2006–10: Heidelberg * 2002–05: John Carroll * 2001: Ohio Northern * 2000: Muskingum

Men's Cross Country

* 2018-2019: Otterbein * 2015–2017: Ohio Northern * 2012–2014: Mount Union * 2011: Ohio Northern * 2010: Mount Union * 2009: Heidelberg * 2007–2008: Ohio Northern * 2005–2006: Mount Union * 2003–2004: Otterbein * 2001–2002: Mount Union * 2000: Heidelberg

Women's Cross Country

* 2015–18: Otterbein * 2014: Mount Union * 2013: John Carroll * 2010–12: Ohio Northern * 2009: Baldwin Wallace * 2008: Ohio Northern * 2007: Baldwin Wallace * 2006: Ohio Northern

Men's Lacrosse

* 2016–19: John Carroll * 2013–15: Otterbein

Women's Lacrosse

* 2014–19: Mount Union

References

External links

* {{NCAA Division III football conference navbox