Born said Lamar is in the middle of buyout negotiations with the conference, but declined to give specifics on what that financial hit might be. вЂњI think the NCAA will take notice when it comes to Selection Sunday time,вЂќ Price said.ДЇor now, Lamar is focused on playing out the remainder of its commitment to the Southland. Lamar menвЂ™s basketball coach Tic Price said a more competitive WAC can only help the Cardinals. That potentially means increased revenue sharing for teams that qualify for March Madness - a fact that Evans said heвЂ™s well aware of at Lamar. In basketball, Lamar now joins a league that has an opportunity to compete for multiple NCAA tournament bids on a yearly basis. вЂњI think the opportunity to possibly move into the FBS world is something for recruits that will be very exciting and interesting,вЂќ Morgan said. He too expressed his excitement for the conference move and couldnвЂ™t help looking ahead to a possible transition into the FBS. Lamar head football coach Blane Morgan was the WAC Offensive Player of the Year at Air Force in 1998. Still, he said the both the leagueвЂ™s and LamarвЂ™s first priority is establishing a strong FCS presence. The WAC has not participated in football since the 2012 season.Д«orn acknowledged that multiple schools within the WAC have expressed a desire to move into the FBS at some point in the future. ItвЂ™s yet to be determined if Lamar will continue Southland rivalries with schools like McNeese, although that opportunity could certainly arise in non-conference play. Hurd said the conference вЂњfully intendsвЂќ to have an FCS schedule ready by the start of the fall 2021 season, although Born said Lamar will have to вЂњget creativeвЂќ with scheduling to make things work logistically. We fully understand the value they bring to another association, and we wish them success and more of the accolades they realized during their long-standing membership here.вЂќ вЂњThese members have long prospered in the Southland with competitive success, academic achievement, media growth and geographic proximity. вЂњThroughout 2020, some Southland Conference member institutions have actively considered opportunities elsewhere, and that will lead to league realignment in the coming year,вЂќ Burnett said. Southland commissioner Tom Burnett addressed the leagueвЂ™s departures Thursday morning. Instead of allowing the four Texas schools to stay through June of 2022 as originally planned, the Southland made a вЂњsudden changeвЂќ earlier this week, Hurd said, forcing Lamar, SFA, Sam Houston and ACU to leave at the end of the 2021 athletic year. While all Lamar sports will transition to the WAC in 2022, football will do so sooner because of an вЂњexpeditedвЂќ decision by the Southland Conference, according to WAC commissioner Jeff Hurd. That division format will help cut travel costs for Olympic sports and was a major part of LamarвЂ™s decision to join the WAC, according to CardinalsвЂ™ athletic director Marco Born. The other division will include Southern Utah, Dixie State, New Mexico State, Grand Canyon University, California Baptist University, Seattle University and Utah Valley. One division will consist of the Texas-based institutions including current WAC members Tarleton State and UT Rio Grande Valley. The new WAC additions will create a 13-team conference that will be divided into two divisions for sports other than football and basketball. вЂњThe institutions that we are joining are likewise in high-growth modes.вЂќ вЂњThe growth that (Lamar) has experienced of late is certainly on peopleвЂ™s radar,вЂќ Evans added. вЂњAs a result of the expansion of the WAC and because our close rivals are joining the league, it simply makes sense, individually, and collectively for the whole group, that Lamar University join this increasingly competitive conference,вЂќ he said. With geographical rivals Sam Houston and SFA leaving the Southland, Evans said it didnвЂ™t make sense to stay.

Lamar president Kenneth Evans said the Beaumont-based university, which has approximately 17,500 students currently enrolled, had been targeted by the WAC since last fall and discussions had been ongoing for months. Lamar has been in the Southland since 1998 and was a charter member of the league in 1963 before leaving for stints in the American South and Sun Belt conferences.

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