View source for Sooner Athletic Conference

{{Short description|American college athletic conference}}
{{more citations needed|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox sports league
| name            = Sooner Athletic Conference
| title           = 
| logo            = Sooner Athletic Conference logo.png
| logo_size       = 200
| color           = #ED1C2E; border:2px solid #000000
| font_color      = white
| map          =  
| map_size     = 
| founded         = {{start date and age|1978}}
| association     = [[National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics|NAIA]]
| teams           = 13
| sports          = 18
| mens            = 9
| womens          = 9
| headquarters    = Oklahoma City, OK
| region          = [[South Central United States]]
| commissioner    = John Martin
| website         = {{url|https://soonerathletic.org/| soonerathletic.org}}
}}

The '''Sooner Athletic Conference''' ('''SAC''') is a [[List of college athletic conferences in the United States|college athletic conference]] affiliated with the [[National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics]] (NAIA). Originally developed as a five-team conference of Oklahoma-based schools, the SAC now boasts 13 schools in a league that spans five states – [[Arkansas]], [[Kansas]], [[Missouri]], [[Oklahoma]], and [[Texas]].

As of August 2021, SAC member institutions have collected 109 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) team championships – the most among NAIA conferences – since the league formed in 1978.

The SAC crowns league champions in 18 intercollegiate sports – nine for women and nine for men. Women's sports are basketball, softball, golf, tennis, cross country, soccer, volleyball, indoor track & field, outdoor track & field, and wrestling. Men's sports are football, basketball, baseball, golf, tennis, cross country, indoor track & field, outdoor track & field, soccer, and wrestling. The newest conference sport is women's wrestling, added for the 2019–20 season.

The conference is known for a rich basketball tradition.  Member schools have won the [[NAIA national men's basketball championship|men's NAIA tournament]] 12 times and [[NAIA Women's Basketball Championships|women's NAIA tournament]] 16 times. SAC member schools also boast 14 NAIA national titles in men's golf, 13 in softball, 12 in women's indoor track and field, 10 in women's golf, 10 in men's cross country, 6 in men's tennis, 5 in women's outdoor track and field, 5 in men's indoor track and field, 4 in men's outdoor track and field, 2 in baseball, 2 in competitive cheer, and 1 in men's soccer for a total of 112.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://soonerathletic.org/sports/2020/12/2/GEN_1202204952.aspx|title=Conference History}}</ref>

==History==
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Originally developed as a five-team conference of Oklahoma-based schools, the SAC now boasts 12 schools in a league that spans four states (Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas and Kansas). The league's newest addition is the University of North Texas Dallas, which entered the conference as a full member for 2021-22 and an associate member in 2020-21. The SAC added Central Christian College of Kansas and Oklahoma Panhandle State University to the fold for 2017-18, then dropped to 11 schools when St. Gregory's announced its closure in November 2017. The league added Langston University in 2018-19 as its first Historically Black College and University (HBCU) member, then dropped Bacone (Okla.) College after that same year.

Throughout the league's history, the SAC continues to be known as the conference "Where Champions Play".  Various institutions have competed under the SAC banner over the years. Today only the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma remains from the original group that was formed when Bethany Nazarene (now Southern Nazarene), Oklahoma Baptist, Oklahoma Christian, and Phillips University withdrew from the Texoma Conference to form the SAC.

Membership has changed over the years with today's current members being admitted as follows: Oklahoma City (1986), Wayland Baptist (1994), John Brown (1995), Mid-America Christian (2007), Southwestern Assemblies of God (2013), Texas Wesleyan (2013), Southwestern Christian (2013), Bacone (2014), Central Christian (2017), Oklahoma Panhandle State (2017), and North Texas–Dallas (2020).

The league also includes associate members on a per-sport basis, with University of Houston–Victoria, University of the Southwest, and University of St. Thomas being part of the SAC in women's golf since 2017. Lyon College has been an associate member for women's wrestling since 2019.

Past members of the SAC include: Oklahoma Baptist, Oklahoma Christian, Southern Nazarene, Rogers State, Lubbock Christian, Northwestern Oklahoma State, Northwood, St. Gregory's and Bacone.

The league also includes associate members on a per-sport basis. Arizona Christian University, Lyon (Ark.) College, Ottawa University-Arizona and Texas College became SAC members for football in 2018-19 with Louisiana College joining for 2021–22.

===Chronological timeline===
* 1978 – The Sooner Athletic Conference (SAC) was founded. Charter members included [[Southern Nazarene University|Bethany Nazarene College]] (now Southern Nazarene University), [[Oklahoma Baptist University]], [[Oklahoma Christian University]], [[Phillips University]] and the [[University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma]] (USAO), beginning the 1978–79 academic year.
* 1980 – [[John Brown University]] joined the Sooner in the 1980–81 academic year.
* 1983 – John Brown left the Sooner to become an [[NAIA independent schools|NAIA Independent]] after the 1982–83 academic year.
* 1986 – [[Oklahoma City University]] joined the Sooner in the 1986–87 academic year.
* 1994 – USAO left the Sooner to join the [[Oklahoma Intercollegiate Conference (1974–1997)|Oklahoma Intercollegiate Conference]] (OIC) after the 1993–94 academic year.
* 1994 – [[Lubbock Christian University]] and [[Wayland Baptist University]] joined the Sooner in the 1994–95 academic year.
* 1995 – John Brown rejoined the Sooner in the 1995–96 academic year.
* 1998 – Phillips left the Sooner as the school ceased operations after the 1997–98 academic year.
* 1998 – [[St. Gregory's University]] joined the Sooner in the 1998–99 academic year.
* 2000 – USAO rejoined the Sooner in the 2000–01 academic year.
* 2001 – [[Northwestern Oklahoma State University]] joined the Sooner in the 2001–02 academic year.
* 2007 – [[Mid-America Christian University]] and [[Rogers State University]] joined the Sooner in the 2007–08 academic year.
* 2012 – Three institutions left the Sooner and the NAIA to join the [[NCAA Division II|Division II]] ranks of the [[National Collegiate Athletic Association]] (NCAA) and to join their respective new home primary conferences, all effective after the 2011–12 academic year:
** Northwestern Oklahoma State and Southern Nazarene to the [[Great American Conference]] (GAC)
** and Oklahoma Christian to the [[Heartland Conference]]
* 2013 – Lubbock Christian and Rogers State left the Sooner and joined the NCAA Division II ranks and the Heartland after the 2012–13 academic year.
* 2013 – [[Northwood University|Northwood University–Texas]], [[Nelson University|Southwestern Assemblies of God University]] (now Nelson University), [[Southwestern Christian University]] and [[Texas Wesleyan University]] joined the Sooner in the 2013–14 academic year.
* 2014 – Northwood–Texas left the Sooner as the school ceased operations after the 2013–14 academic year.
* 2015 – Oklahoma Baptist left the Sooner and the NAIA to join the NCAA Division II ranks and the GAC after the 2014–15 academic year.
* 2015 – [[Bacone College]] joined the Sooner in the 2015–16 academic year.
* 2016 – The [[University of Houston–Victoria]] (UHV), the [[University of the Southwest]] and the [[University of St. Thomas (Texas)|University of St. Thomas]] joined the Sooner as associate members for women's golf in the 2017 spring season (2016–17 academic year).
* 2017 – [[Central Christian College of Kansas]] and [[Oklahoma Panhandle State University]] joined the Sooner in the 2017–18 academic year.
* 2017 – [[Indiana Institute of Technology]] (Indiana Tech) and [[Lourdes University]] joined the Sooner as associate members for men's wrestling in the 2017–18 academic year.
** the [[University of Houston–Victoria]] (UHV), the [[University of the Southwest]] and the [[University of St. Thomas (Texas)|University of St. Thomas]] for women's golf
* 2017 – St. Gregory's (Okla.) left the Sooner as the school announced that it would close at the end of the fall 2017 semester during the 2017–18 academic year.
* 2018 – [[Langston University]] joined the Sooner in the 2018–19 academic year.
* 2018 – Five institutions joined the Sooner as associate members, all effective in the 2018–19 academic year:
** [[Arizona Christian University]], [[Lyon College]], [[Ottawa University#Arizona Spirit|Ottawa University–Arizona]] and [[Texas College]] for football
** and [[Rochester Christian University|Rochester College]] (later Rochester University, now Rochester Christian University) for men's wrestling
* 2019 – Bacone left the Sooner to become an [[NAIA independent schools|NAIA Independent]] as part of the [[NAIA independent schools|Association of Independent Institutions]] (AII) after the 2018–19 academic year.
* 2019 – Houston–Victoria (UHV) and Southwest (N.Mex.) left the Sooner as an associate member for women's golf after the 2019 spring season (2018–19 academic year).
* 2019 – St. Thomas (Tex.) left the Sooner as an associate member for women's golf, as the school announced to move up to the [[NCAA Division III]] ranks and the [[Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference]] (SCAC) after the 2019 spring season (2018–19 academic year).
* 2019 – Three institutions joined the Sooner as associate members (and/or added other single sports into their affiliate memberships), both effective in the 2019–20 academic year:
** [[Cleary University]] for men's wrestling
** and Lyon and [[Waldorf University]] for women's wrestling
* 2020 – Five institutions left the Sooner as associate members (and/or removed other single sports from their affiliate memberships), all effective after the 2019–20 academic year:
** Cleary, Indiana Tech, Lourdes and Rochester Christian for men's wrestling
** and Waldorf for women's wrestling
* 2020 – The [[University of North Texas at Dallas]] joined the Sooner as a provisional (associate) member for some sports in the 2020–21 academic year.
* 2021 – North Texas–Dallas has upgraded to full (active) membership within the Sooner in the 2021–22 academic year.
* 2021 – [[Arkansas Baptist College]] and [[Louisiana Christian University|Louisiana College]] (now Louisiana Christian University) joined the Sooner as associate members for football in the 2021 fall season (2021–22 academic year).
* 2022 – [[Jarvis Christian University|Jarvis Christian College]] (now Jarvis Christian University) joined the Sooner as an associate member for men's and women's wrestling in the 2022–23 academic year.
* 2023 – Two institutions left the Sooner and the NAIA as associate members for football, both effective after the 2022 fall season (2022–23 academic year):
** Lyon to join the [[NCAA Division III]] ranks as an [[NCAA Division III independent schools]] (while they now currently compete in the [[Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference]] (SCAC), beginning in the 2024 fall season) for that sport
** and Arizona Christian to join the [[Frontier Conference]] for that sport
* 2023 – Arkansas Baptist and [[North American University]] joined the Sooner as associate members for football in the 2023 fall season (2023–24 academic year).
* 2024 – The [[College of the Ozarks]] (CofO) joined the Sooner in the 2024–25 academic year.
* 2025 – North American left the Sooner as an associate member for football after the 2024 fall season (2024–25 academic year), as the school announced it would discontinue its football program.

==Member schools==
===Current members===
The Sooner currently has 13 full members, all but four are [[Private university|private]] schools:

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"
! Institution
! Location
! Founded
! Affiliation
! Enrollment
! Nickname
! Joined{{efn|group=full|Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.}}
|-
| '''[[Central Christian College of Kansas]]'''
| [[McPherson, Kansas]]
| 1884
| [[Free Methodist Church|Free Methodist]]
| 1,013
| [[Central Christian Tigers|Tigers]]
| 2017
|- 
| '''[[John Brown University]]'''
| [[Siloam Springs, Arkansas]]
| 1919
| [[Interdenominationalism|Interdenominational]]
| 2,708
| [[John Brown Golden Eagles|Golden Eagles]]
| 1980;<br />1995{{efn|group=full|John Brown left the SAC after the 1982–83 school year; before rejoining in the 1995–96 school year.}}
|- 
| '''[[Langston University]]'''
| [[Langston, Oklahoma]]
| 1897
| Public<br />{{small|([[Historically black colleges and universities|HBCU]])}}
| 2,554
| [[Langston Lions|Lions]]
| 2018
|- 
| '''[[Mid-America Christian University]]'''<br />(MACU)
| [[Oklahoma City|Oklahoma City, Oklahoma]]
| 1953
| [[Church of God (Anderson, Indiana)|Church of God]]
| 2,405
| [[Mid-America Christian Evangels|Evangels]]
| 2007
|-
| '''[[Nelson University]]'''{{efn|group=full|Formerly known as '''Southwestern Assemblies of God University''' prior to 2024.}}
| [[Waxahachie, Texas]]
| 1927
| [[Assemblies of God USA|Assemblies of God]]
| 2,080
| [[Nelson Lions|Lions]]
| 2013
|-
| {{sort|North Texas–Dallas|'''[[University of North Texas at Dallas]]'''}}<br />(UNT Dallas)
| [[Dallas|Dallas, Texas]]
| 2000
| Public
| 4,100
| [[UNT Dallas Trailblazers|Trailblazers]]
| 2020{{efn|group=full|North Texas–Dallas joined the SAC as an associate (provisional) member during the 2020–21 school; before becoming an active (full) member in the SAC for all sports, beginning the 2021–22 school year.}}<ref>{{cite news |url=https://midwestsports.net/unt-dallas-newest-sooner-athletic-conference-member/ |title=UNT Dallas newest Sooner Athletic Conference member |publisher=Midwest Sports Net |date=June 11, 2020 |access-date=July 28, 2020}}</ref>
|-
| '''[[Oklahoma City University]]'''
| [[Oklahoma City|Oklahoma City, Oklahoma]]
| 1904 
| [[United Methodist Church|United Methodist]]
| 2,968
| [[Oklahoma City Stars|Stars]]
| 1986
|-
| '''[[Oklahoma Panhandle State University]]'''
| [[Goodwell, Oklahoma]]
| 1909
| Public
| 1,207
| [[Oklahoma Panhandle State Aggies|Aggies]]
| 2017
|-
| {{sort|Ozarks|'''[[College of the Ozarks]]'''}}{{efn|group=full|name=NCCAA|This institution holds dual membership with the [[National Christian College Athletic Association]] (NCCAA).}}
| [[Point Lookout, Missouri]]
| 1906
| Presbyterian<br />{{small|(PCUSA)}}
| 1,508
| [[College of the Ozarks Bobcats|Bobcats]]
| 2024
|-
| {{sort|Science|'''[[University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma]]'''}}<br />(USAO)
| [[Chickasha, Oklahoma]]
| 1908
| Public
| 813
| [[USAO Drovers|Drovers]]
| 1978;<br />2000{{efn|group=full|USAO left the SAC after the 1993–94 school year; before rejoining in the 2000–01 school year.}}
|-
| '''[[Southwestern Christian University]]'''
| [[Bethany, Oklahoma]]
| 1946
| [[International Pentecostal Holiness Church|Pentecostal]]
| 764
| [[Southwestern Christian Eagles|Eagles]]
| 2013
|-
| '''[[Texas Wesleyan University]]'''
| [[Fort Worth, Texas]]
| 1890
| United Methodist
| 2,373
| [[Texas Wesleyan Rams|Rams]]
| 2013
|-
| '''[[Wayland Baptist University]]'''
| [[Plainview, Texas]]
| 1908
| [[Baptist General Convention of Texas|Baptist]]
| 5,077
| [[Wayland Baptist Pioneers|Pioneers]]
| 1994
|}

;Notes:
{{notelist|group=full}}

===Associate members===
The Sooner currently has six associate members, all but one are [[Private university|private]] schools:

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"
! Institution
! Location
! Founded
! Affiliation
! Enrollment
! Nickname
! Joined{{efn|group=assoc|Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.}}
! Sooner<br />sport
! Primary<br />conference
|-
| '''[[Arkansas Baptist College]]'''{{efn|group=assoc|Arkansas Baptist competed in the Sooner as an associate member for men's wrestling.}}
| [[Little Rock, Arkansas]]
| 1884
| [[Baptists|Baptist]]
| 525
| [[Arkansas Baptist Buffaloes|Buffaloes]]
| 2023
| football
| [[NAIA independent schools|Continental]]
|-
| '''[[Jarvis Christian University]]'''{{efn|group=assoc|Formerly known as Jarvis Christian College until 2022.}}
| [[Hawkins, Texas]]
| 1912
| [[Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)|Disciples of Christ]]{{efn|group=assoc|name=HBCU|Also a [[Historically black colleges and universities|historically black college and university]].}}
| 550
| [[Jarvis Christian Bulldogs|Bulldogs]]
| 2022{{sup|m.wr.}}<br />2022{{sup|w.wr.}}
| men's wrestling<br />women's wrestling
| [[Red River Athletic Conference|Red River (RRAC)]]
|-
| '''[[Louisiana Christian University]]'''{{efn|group=assoc|Formerly known as Louisiana College until late 2021 (during the 2021–22 school year).}}
| [[Pineville, Louisiana]]
| 1906
| [[Southern Baptist Convention|Baptist]]
| 1,200
| [[Louisiana Christian Wildcats and Lady Wildcats|Wildcats]]
| 2021<ref>{{cite web|url=https://crescentcitysports.com/louisiana-college-accepted-into-naia-rrac-and-sac/ |title=Louisiana College accepted into NAIA, joins RRAC and SAC |work=Crescent City Sports |date=October 5, 2020 |access-date=November 1, 2020}}</ref>
| football
| [[Red River Athletic Conference|Red River (RRAC)]]
|-
| '''[[Missouri Baptist University]]'''
| [[Creve Coeur, Missouri]]
| 1828
| Southern Baptist
| 5,231
| [[Missouri Baptist Spartans|Spartans]]
| 2019
| women's wrestling
| [[American Midwest Conference|American Midwest]]
|-
| '''[[Ottawa University#Arizona Spirit|Ottawa University–Arizona]]'''
| [[Surprise, Arizona]]
| 2017
| [[American Baptist Churches USA|American Baptist]]
| 750
| [[Ottawa Spirit|Spirit]]
| 2018
| football
| [[Great Southwest Athletic Conference|Great Southwest (GSAC)]]
|-
| '''[[Texas College]]'''
| [[Tyler, Texas]]
| 1894
| [[Christian Methodist Episcopal Church|C.M.E. Church]]<br />{{small|([[Historically black colleges and universities|HBCU]])}}
| 972
| [[Texas College Steers|Steers]]
| 2018
| football
| [[Red River Athletic Conference|Red River (RRAC)]]
|}

;Notes:
{{notelist|group=assoc}}

===Former members===
The Sooner had ten former full members, all but two were [[Private university|private]] schools:

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"
! Institution
! Location
! Founded
! Affiliation
! Enrollment
! Nickname
! Joined{{efn|group=former|Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.}}
! Left{{efn|group=former|Represents the calendar year when spring sports competition ends.}}
! Current<br />conference
|-
| '''[[Bacone College]]'''
| [[Muskogee, Oklahoma]]
| 1880
| [[Tribal colleges and universities|Tribal college]]{{efn|group=former|Formerly affiliated with the [[American Baptist Churches USA]] (ABCUSA) until 2018.}}
| 900
| [[Bacone Warriors|Warriors]]
| 2015
| 2019
| Closed in 2024
|-
| '''[[Lubbock Christian University]]'''
| [[Lubbock, Texas]]
| 1957
| [[Churches of Christ|Churches<br />of Christ]]
| 2,100
| [[Lubbock Christian Chaparrals|Chaparrals]]
| 1994
| 2013
| [[Lone Star Conference|Lone Star (LSC)]]{{efn|group=former|name=D2|Currently an [[NCAA Division II]] athletic conference.}}
|-
| '''[[Northwestern Oklahoma State University]]'''
| [[Alva, Oklahoma]]
| 1897
| Public
| 1,857
| [[Northwestern Oklahoma State Rangers|Rangers]]
| 2001
| 2012
| nowrap | [[Great American Conference|Great American (GAC)]]{{efn|group=former|name=D2}}
|-
| '''[[Northwood University|Northwood University–Texas]]'''
| [[Cedar Hill, Texas]]
| 1966
| Nonsectarian
| N/A
| [[Northwood Knights|Knights]]
| 2013
| 2014
| Closed in 2014
|-
| '''[[Oklahoma Baptist University]]'''
| [[Shawnee, Oklahoma]]
| 1910
| [[Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma|Baptist]]
| 2,097
| [[Oklahoma Baptist Bison|Bison]]
| 1978
| 2015
| [[Great American Conference|Great American (GAC)]]{{efn|group=former|name=D2}}
|-
| '''[[Oklahoma Christian University]]'''
| [[Oklahoma City, Oklahoma]]
| 1950
| Churches<br />of Christ
| 2,479
| [[Oklahoma Christian Eagles and Lady Eagles|Eagles]] &<br />[[Oklahoma Christian Eagles and Lady Eagles|Lady Eagles]]
| 1978
| 2012
| [[Lone Star Conference|Lone Star (LSC)]]{{efn|group=former|name=D2}}
|-
| '''[[Phillips University]]'''
| [[Enid, Oklahoma]]
| 1906
| [[Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)|Disciples<br />of Christ]]
| N/A
| [[Phillips Haymakers|Haymakers]]
| 1978
| 1998
| Closed in 1998
|-
| '''[[Rogers State University]]'''
| [[Claremore, Oklahoma]]
| 1909
| Public
| 4,300
| [[Rogers State Hillcats|Hillcats]]
| 2007
| 2013
| [[Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association|Mid-America (MIAA)]]{{efn|group=former|name=D2}}
|-
| '''[[St. Gregory's University]]'''
| [[Shawnee, Oklahoma]]
| 1875
| [[Catholic Church|Catholic]]<br />{{small|([[Benedictines]])}}
| N/A
| [[St. Gregory's Cavaliers|Cavaliers]]
| 1998
| 2018{{efn|group=former|Closed at the end of the fall 2017 semester (2017–18 school year).}}
| Closed in 2017
|-
| '''[[Southern Nazarene University]]'''
| [[Bethany, Oklahoma]]
| 1899
| [[Church of the Nazarene|Nazarene]]
| 2,110
| [[Southern Nazarene Crimson Storm|Crimson<br />Storm]]
| 1978
| 2012
| [[Great American Conference|Great American (GAC)]]{{efn|group=former|name=D2}}
|}

;Notes:
{{notelist|group=former}}

===Former associate members===
The Sooner had 11 former associate members, all were [[Private university|private]] schools:

{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align: center;"
! Institution
! Location
! Founded
! Affiliation
! Enrollment
! Nickname
! Joined{{efn|group=fass|Represents the calendar year when fall sports competition begins.}}
! Left{{efn|group=fass|Represents the calendar year when spring sports competition ends.}}
! Sooner<br />sport
! Current<br />conference
|-
| '''[[Arizona Christian University]]'''
| [[Glendale, Arizona]]
| 1960
| [[Nondenominational Christianity|Nondenominational]]
| 820
| [[Arizona Christian Firestorm|Firestorm]]
| 2018
| 2023
| football
| [[Great Southwest Athletic Conference|Great Southwest (GSAC)]]
|-
| '''[[Arkansas Baptist College]]'''{{efn|group=fass|Arkansas Baptist remains in the Sooner as an associate member for football.}}
| [[Little Rock, Arkansas]]
| 1884
| [[Baptists|Baptist]]
| 525
| [[Arkansas Baptist Buffaloes|Buffaloes]]
| 2021
| 2022
| men's wrestling
| [[NAIA independent schools|Continental]]
|-
| '''[[Cleary University]]'''
| [[Howell, Michigan]]
| 1883
| [[Nonsectarian]]
| 600
| [[Cleary University Cougars|Cougars]]
| 2019
| 2020
| men's wrestling
| [[Wolverine–Hoosier Athletic Conference|Wolverine–Hoosier (WHAC)]]
|-
| {{sort|Houston–Victoria|'''[[University of Houston–Victoria]]'''}}
| [[Victoria, Texas]]
| 1973
| Public<br />{{small|([[University of Houston System|UH System]])}}
| 4,407
| [[Houston–Victoria Jaguars|Jaguars]]
| 2016
| 2019
| women's golf
| [[Red River Athletic Conference|Red River (RRAC)]]
|-
| '''[[Indiana Institute of Technology]]'''
| [[Fort Wayne, Indiana]]
| 1930
| Nonsectarian
| 7,000
| [[Indiana Tech Warriors|Warriors]]
| 2017
| 2020
| men's wrestling
| [[Wolverine–Hoosier Athletic Conference|Wolverine–Hoosier (WHAC)]]
|-
| '''[[Lourdes University]]'''
| [[Sylvania, Ohio]]
| 1958
| [[Catholic Church|Catholic]]
| 1,500
| [[Lourdes Gray Wolves|Gray Wolves]]
| 2017
| 2020
| men's wrestling
| [[Wolverine–Hoosier Athletic Conference|Wolverine–Hoosier (WHAC)]]
|-
| '''[[Lyon College]]'''
| [[Batesville, Arkansas]]
| 1872
| [[Presbyterian Church (USA)|Presbyterian]]<br />{{small|([[PCUSA]])}}
| 700
| [[Lyon Scots|Scots]]
| 2018{{sup|fb.}},<br />2019{{sup|w.wr.}}
| 2023{{sup|fb.}},<br />2023{{sup|w.wr.}}
| football,<br />women's wrestling
| [[St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference|St. Louis (SLIAC)]]{{efn|group=former|name=D3|Currently an [[NCAA Division III]] athletic conference.}}
|-
| {{sort|North American University|'''[[North American University]]'''}}
| [[Stafford, Texas]]
| 2007
| [[Private university|Private]]
| 821
| [[North American Stallions|Stallions]]
| 2023{{efn|group=assoc|Did not count as an affiliate in conference play until the 2024 fall season.}}
| 2025{{efn|group=assoc|Discontinued its football program on February 10, 2025.}}
| football
| [[Red River Athletic Conference|Red River (RRAC)]]
|-
| '''[[Rochester Christian University]]'''{{efn|group=assoc|Formerly known as Rochester University until 2024 and Rochester College until 2019.}}
| [[Rochester Hills, Michigan]]
| 1959
| [[Churches of Christ]]
| 1,100
| [[Rochester Warriors|Warriors]]
| 2018
| 2020
| men's wrestling
| [[Wolverine–Hoosier Athletic Conference|Wolverine–Hoosier (WHAC)]]
|-
| {{sort|Saint Thomas|'''[[University of St. Thomas (Texas)|University of St. Thomas]]'''}}
| [[Houston|Houston, Texas]]
| 1947
| Catholic
| 1,626
| [[St. Thomas Celts|Celts]]
| 2016
| 2019
| women's golf
| [[Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference|Southern (SCAC)]]{{efn|group=fass|name=D3|Currently an [[NCAA Division III]] athletic conference.}}
|-
| {{sort|Southwest NM|'''[[University of the Southwest]]'''}}
| [[Hobbs, New Mexico]]
| 1956
| Nondenominational
| 550
| [[Southwest Mustangs|Mustangs]]
| 2016
| 2019
| women's golf
| [[Red River Athletic Conference|Red River (RRAC)]]
|-
| '''[[Waldorf University]]'''
| [[Forest City, Iowa]]
| 1903
| [[For-profit higher education in the United States|For-profit]]{{efn|group=fass|Formerly affiliated with the [[Evangelical Lutheran Church in America]] (ELCA) until 2010.}}
| 720
| [[Waldorf Warriors|Warriors]]
| 2019
| 2020
| women's wrestling
| [[Great Plains Athletic Conference|Great Plains (GPAC)]]
|}

;Notes:
{{notelist|group=fass}}

===Membership timeline===
<timeline>

DateFormat = yyyy

ImageSize  = width:900 height:auto barincrement:20

Period     = from:1978 till:2028

TimeAxis   = orientation:horizontal

PlotArea   = right:5 left:5 bottom:50 top:5

Colors     =
          id:line value:black
          id:bg value:white
          id:Full value:rgb(0.7,0.9,0.8) # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in all sports
          id:FullxF value:rgb(0.9,0.8,0.7) # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in all sports except for football
          id:AssocF value:rgb(0.9,0.7,0.8) # Use this color to denote a team that is a member for football only
          id:AssocOS value:rgb(0.8,0.9,0.7) # Use this color to denote a team that is a member for another sport only
          id:OtherC1 value:rgb(0.996,0.996,0.699) # Use this color to denote a team that has moved in another conference
          id:OtherC2 value:rgb(0.988,0.703,0.383) # Use this color to denote a team that has moved in another conference when the other color has already been used

PlotData   =
 width:15 textcolor:black shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s

 bar:1 color:FullxF from:1978 till:2015 text:[[Oklahoma Baptist University|Oklahoma Baptist]] (1978–2015)
 bar:1 color:OtherC1 from:2015 till:end text:[[Great American Conference|Great American]]

 bar:2 color:FullxF from:1978 till:2012 text:[[Oklahoma Christian University|Oklahoma Christian]] (1978–2012)
 bar:2 color:OtherC1 from:2012 till:2019 text:[[Heartland Conference|Heartland]]
 bar:2 color:OtherC2 from:2019 till:end text:[[Lone Star Conference|Lone Star]]

 bar:3 color:FullxF from:1978 till:1998 text:[[Philips University|Phillips]] (1978–1998)

 bar:4 color:FullxF from:1978 till:2012 text:[[Southern Nazarene University|Southern Nazarene]] (1978–2012)
 bar:4 color:OtherC1 from:2012 till:end text:[[Great American Conference|Great American]]

 bar:5 color:FullxF from:1978 till:1994 text:[[University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma|USAO]] (1978–1994)
 bar:5 color:OtherC1 from:1994 till:1997 text:[[Oklahoma Intercollegiate Conference|OIC]]
 bar:5 shift:(-30) color:OtherC2 from:1997 till:1998 text:[[NAIA independent schools|NAIA Ind.]]
 bar:5 color:OtherC1 from:1998 till:2000 text:[[Red River Athletic Conference|RRAC]]
 bar:5 color:FullxF from:2000 till:end text:(2000–present)

 bar:6 color:FullxF from:1980 till:1983 text:[[John Brown University|John Brown]] (1980–1983)
 bar:6 shift:(80) color:OtherC1 from:1983 till:1993 text:[[NAIA independent schools|NAIA Ind.]]
 bar:6 color:OtherC2 from:1993 till:1995 text:[[Arkansas Intercollegiate Conference|AIC]]
 bar:6 color:FullxF from:1995 till:end text:(1995–present)

 bar:7 color:FullxF from:1986 till:end text:[[Oklahoma City University|Oklahoma City]] (1986–present)

 bar:8 color:FullxF from:1994 till:2013 text:[[Lubbock Christian University|Lubbock Christian]] (1994–2013)
 bar:8 color:OtherC1 from:2013 till:2019 text:[[Heartland Conference|Heartland]]
 bar:8 color:OtherC2 from:2019 till:end text:[[Lone Star Conference|Lone Star]]

 bar:9 color:FullxF from:1994 till:2018 text:[[Wayland Baptist University|Wayland Baptist]] (1994–present)
 bar:9 color:Full from:2018 till:end

 bar:10 color:FullxF from:1998 till:2017 text:[[St. Gregory's University|St. Gregory's]] (1998–2018)
 bar:10 color:AssocOS from:2017 till:2018 text:

 bar:11 color:FullxF from:2001 till:2012 text:[[Northwestern Oklahoma State University|Northwestern Oklahoma State]] (2001–2012)
 bar:11 shift:(30) color:OtherC1 from:2012 till:end text:[[Great American Conference|Great American]]

 bar:12 color:FullxF from:2007 till:end text:[[Mid-America Christian University|Mid-America Christian]] (2007–present)

 bar:13 color:FullxF from:2007 till:2013 text:[[Rogers State University|Rogers State]] (2007–2013)
 bar:13 shift:(30) color:OtherC1 from:2013 till:2019 text:[[Heartland Conference|Heartland]]
 bar:13 color:OtherC2 from:2019 till:end text:[[Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association|Mid-America]]

 bar:14 color:FullxF from:2013 till:2014 text:[[Northwood University%23Texas Knights|Northwood (Tex.)]] (2013–2014)

 bar:15 color:FullxF from:2013 till:2018 text:[[Nelson University|Nelson]] (2013–present)
 bar:15 color:Full from:2018 till:end text:

 bar:16 color:FullxF from:2013 till:end text:[[Southwestern Christian University|Southwestern Christian]] (2013–present)

 bar:17 color:FullxF from:2013 till:2018 text:[[Texas Wesleyan University|Texas Wesleyan]] (2013–present)
 bar:17 color:Full from:2018 till:end

 bar:18 color:FullxF from:2015 till:2019 text:[[Bacone College|Bacone]] (2015–2019)
 bar:18 shift:(40) color:OtherC1 from:2019 till:2024 text:[[NAIA independent schools|NAIA Ind.]]

 bar:19 color:AssocOS from:2016 till:2019 text:[[University of Houston–Victoria|Houston–Victoria]] (2016–2019)

 bar:20 color:AssocOS from:2016 till:2019 text:[[University of St. Thomas (Texas)|St. Thomas (Tex.)]] (2016–2019)

 bar:21 color:AssocOS from:2016 till:2019 text:[[University of the Southwest|Southwest (N.Mex.)]] (2016–2019)

 bar:22 color:FullxF from:2017 till:end text:[[Central Christian College of Kansas|Central Christian]] (2017–present)

 bar:23 color:FullxF from:2017 till:2018 text:[[Oklahoma Panhandle State University|Oklahoma Panhandle State]] (2017–present)
 bar:23 color:Full from:2018 till:end

 bar:24 color:AssocOS from:2017 till:2020 text:[[Indiana Institute of Technology|Indiana Tech]] (2017–2020)

 bar:25 color:AssocOS from:2017 till:2020 text:[[Lourdes University|Lourdes]] (2017–2020)

 bar:26 color:Full from:2018 till:end text:[[Langston University|Langston]] (2018–present)

 bar:27 color:AssocF from:2018 till:2023 text:[[Arizona Christian University|Arizona Christian]] (2018–2023)

 bar:28 color:AssocF from:2018 till:2023 text:[[Lyon College|Lyon]] (2018–2023)

 bar:29 color:AssocF from:2018 till:end text:[[Ottawa University%23Arizona Campus|Ottawa (Ariz.)]] (2018–present)

 bar:30 color:AssocF from:2018 till:end text:[[Texas College]] (2018–present)

 bar:31 color:AssocOS from:2018 till:2020 text:[[Rochester Christian University|Rochester]] (2018–2020)

 bar:32 color:AssocOS from:2019 till:2020 text:[[Cleary University|Cleary]] (2019–2020)

 bar:33 color:AssocOS from:2019 till:end text:[[Missouri Baptist University|Missouri Baptist]] (2019–present)

 bar:34 color:AssocOS from:2019 till:2020 text:[[Waldorf University|Waldorf]] (2019–2020)

 bar:35 shift:(-20) color:AssocOS from:2020 till:2021 text:[[University of North Texas of Dallas|North Texas–Dallas]] (2020–present)
 bar:35 color:FullxF from:2021 till:end text:

 bar:36 shift:(-40) color:AssocF from:2021 till:end text:[[Louisiana Christian University|Louisiana Christian]] (2021–present)

 bar:37 shift:(-40) color:AssocOS from:2021 till:2022 text:[[Arkansas Baptist College|Arkansas Baptist]] (2021–present)
 bar:37 color:AssocF from:2023 till:end

 bar:38 shift:(-40) color:AssocOS from:2022 till:end text:[[Jarvis Christian University|Jarvis Christian]] (2022–present)

 bar:39 shift:(-50) color:AssocF from:2023 till:2025 text:[[North American University|North American]] (2023–2025)

 bar:40 shift:(-60) color:FullxF from:2024 till:end text:[[College of the Ozarks|Ozarks (Mo.)]] (2024–present)

ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:2 start:1980

TextData   =
 fontsize:M
 textcolor:black
 pos:(0,25) tabs:(400-center)
 text:^"Sooner Athletic Conference membership history"

#> If the chart uses more than one bar color, add a legend by selecting the appropriate fields from the following three options (use only the colors that are used in the graphic.) Leave a blank line after the end of the timeline, then add a line with the selected values from the list, separated by a space
{{bg|#A0E0C0|&nbsp;Full member (all sports)&nbsp;}}
{{bg|#E0C0A0|&nbsp;Full member (non-football)&nbsp;}}
{{bg|#E0A0A0|&nbsp;Associate member (football-only)&nbsp;}}
{{bg|#C0C0A0|&nbsp;Associate member (sport)&nbsp;}}
<#
</timeline>

{{Font color||{{RGB|178|229|204}}|&nbsp;Full member (all sports)&nbsp;}}
{{Font color||{{RGB|229|204|178}}|&nbsp;Full member (non-football)&nbsp;}}
{{Font color||{{RGB|229|178|204}}|&nbsp;Associate member (football-only)&nbsp;}}
{{Font color||{{RGB|204|229|178}}|&nbsp;Associate member (sport)&nbsp;}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{ccat}}
* {{oweb}}

{{Sooner Athletic Conference navbox}}
{{NAIA conference navbox}}

[[Category:Sooner Athletic Conference| ]]