NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO) is the preseason favorite in the inaugural Big South-OVC Football Association football poll. The league's head coaches voted Tuesday as part of Media Day activities at the Sheraton Music City Hotel in Nashville.
The SEMO Redhawks, the 2022 Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) co-champion received six of ten first-place votes. SEMO would receive a total of 96 points to claim the preseason pole position. The preseason runner-up, Gardner-Webb, the 2022 Big South champion, received 86 points, including two first-place votes. Tennessee-Martin (UT Martin), the other OVC co-champion, earned one first-place vote, finishing third overall with 85 points.
All three members of the new league have been ranked in at least one preseason poll ahead of the 2023 campaign. SEMO would go as high as ranking ninth in two preseason polls.
Tennessee Tech led all remaining OVC member schools with 58 points for a fourth-place prediction and the remaining first-place vote. Just behind Tech was Tennessee State with 57 points. New member Lindenwood University finished seventh with 45, followed by Eastern Illinois with 33.
Bryant led the remaining Big South member schools with a sixth-overall finish with 48 points. Charleston Southern would finish ninth with 30 points, while Robert Morris would finish last with 12 points.
The necessity of the Big South-OVC football merger
Member schools of the Big South and OVC conferences have been leaving for other conferences as early as 2021. Between 2021 and 2023, both conferences were unable to secure automatic bids for the Division I FCS Playoffs.
The dominoes started toppling with the ASUN Conference choosing to sponsor football in the Football Championship Subdivision. After the 2021 season, Big South saw the departures of Kennesaw State and the University of North Alabama. On the OVC front, Austin Peay would make a similar exit.
In January 2022, more announcements of member school departures would emerge. Big South's Hampton University and Monmouth University would leave for the Colonial Athletic Association. North Carolina A&T and Campbell University would make similar exits as of July 1. OVC would see the departure of Murray State University to the Missouri Valley Conference and the Missouri Valley Football Conference.
However, the conferences would make gains of their own. Big South would add Bryant University for football only. Bryant's other sports in the athletic program are affiliated with the America East Conference.
Meanwhile, in February 2022, the OVC would add Lindenwood University, which was transitioning from a Division II school. Lindenwood is not eligible for the postseason until the 2026-27 season. As a result, it does not count toward the football membership for the automatic FCS playoffs qualifying bid until then.
The OVC would add Western Illinois University in May. Western Illinois will be making the move for most sports from the Summit League. Its football program is currently in the Missouri Valley Football Conference. The Leathernecks are playing out the 2023 season before joining the Big South-OVC in 2024.
SEMO starts league action on September 2
Charleston Southern, Eastern Illinois, Lindenwood, and Tennessee Tech will open the 2023 season on Thursday, Aug. 31.
Charleston Southern hosts North Greenville in a 6 p.m. Eastern opening-day game. The game will air on ESPN+.
Also hosting is Lindenwood, who will be playing Wisconsin-Stevens Point in another ESPN+ televised game at 7 p.m.
Eastern Illinois will be playing the Sycamores of Indiana State on the road in Terre Haute at 6 p.m. Eastern. Currently, it will not be airing on television.
Also not airing on TV will be Tennessee Tech, who will be in Greenville, S.C. to take on Furman. Kickoff will be at 7 p.m. Eastern.
The six remaining members will begin league play on Saturday, September 2. They include:
- Robert Morris at Air Force (Altitude Network, 11 a.m. Mountain)
- Tennessee State at Notre Dame (NBC, 3:30 p.m. Eastern)
- Gardner-Webb at Appalachian State (ESPN+, 3:30 p.m. Eastern)
- Bryant at UNLV (MWN, 1 p.m. Pacific)
- UT Martin at Georgia (ESPN+, 6 p.m. Eastern)
- SEMO at Kansas State (ESPN+, 6 p.m. Central)
League play is scheduled for Saturday, September 9. The regular season concludes Saturday, Nov. 18. The Big South-OVC champion will receive the league’s automatic bid to the FCS Playoffs.
The full league schedule is below:
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