Saint Francis University’s Historic Move: Leaving Division I Athletics Behind

A Landmark Decision Reshaping College Sports

Saint Francis University in Pennsylvania has made a groundbreaking and unprecedented decision that is sending shockwaves through the world of college athletics. The university announced it will be voluntarily leaving Division I sports to move down to Division III, becoming the first institution in modern college sports history to make such a dramatic downward transition. This monumental shift represents far more than just a change in competitive classification—it is a powerful statement about the current state of college athletics and the mounting pressures that smaller institutions face in today’s rapidly evolving sports landscape. The decision, while surprising to many observers, reflects the growing concerns that universities across the country are grappling with as they try to navigate the complex challenges created by Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deals, the increasingly chaotic transfer portal, and the widening financial gap between major powerhouse programs and smaller schools. ABC News correspondent Ike Ejiochi has been following this developing story, highlighting how Saint Francis’s choice could potentially signal the beginning of a larger trend among similarly positioned institutions that are finding it increasingly difficult to compete at the highest level of collegiate athletics while maintaining their educational mission and financial stability.

The Perfect Storm: NIL, Transfer Portal, and Financial Pressures

The landscape of college sports has undergone a seismic transformation in recent years, creating what many administrators describe as a perfect storm of challenges for smaller Division I programs. At the heart of these challenges lies the introduction of NIL compensation, which allows college athletes to profit from their name, image, and likeness for the first time in NCAA history. While this change has been celebrated as a long-overdue recognition of student-athletes’ rights and value, it has also created an uneven playing field that heavily favors wealthier programs with access to deep-pocketed donors and boosters who can offer lucrative NIL deals to attract and retain top talent. For schools like Saint Francis University, competing in this new financial arms race has proven nearly impossible. The transfer portal has compounded these difficulties by making it easier than ever for athletes to switch schools, often chasing better NIL opportunities or exposure at higher-profile programs. This combination has created a talent drain from smaller Division I schools, making it extraordinarily difficult for them to build competitive programs or maintain any sense of roster stability from year to year. Beyond these headline-grabbing issues, Saint Francis and similar institutions face mounting operational costs associated with Division I athletics, including travel expenses for far-flung conference games, scholarship commitments, facility upgrades necessary to meet Division I standards, and the administrative infrastructure required to support these programs—all while trying to maintain academic excellence and manage limited budgets.

Understanding Saint Francis University’s Unique Position

Saint Francis University is a small, private Catholic institution located in Loretto, Pennsylvania, with an enrollment of approximately 2,500 students. The school has been competing at the Division I level in the Northeast Conference, fielding teams in various sports including basketball, football at the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level, and other athletic programs. Despite their Division I status, Saint Francis has operated with significantly fewer resources than many of their competitors, making success increasingly elusive in the modern era of college sports. The university’s leadership has been transparent about the fact that maintaining Division I athletics has become unsustainable given the current trajectory of college sports. University officials have emphasized that this decision was not made lightly or hastily, but rather after extensive evaluation of their athletic programs, consultation with various stakeholders, and careful consideration of the institution’s long-term mission and sustainability. The administration has made it clear that while they value athletics and the opportunities sports provide for students, the current Division I model no longer aligns with their institutional values or practical capabilities. By moving to Division III, Saint Francis will join a division where athletic scholarships are not permitted, which fundamentally changes the competitive and financial dynamics. Division III emphasizes the student-athlete experience, academic achievement, and the integration of athletics within the broader educational mission—values that university leadership believes better reflect their institutional identity and priorities moving forward.

The Broader Implications for College Athletics

Saint Francis University’s decision carries implications that extend far beyond the Pennsylvania mountains where the school is located. Athletic directors, university presidents, and conference commissioners across the country are watching this situation closely, as it may represent the first crack in what could become a larger restructuring of college athletics. Many smaller Division I programs are facing similar pressures and having similar conversations behind closed doors about whether remaining at the highest level of competition is financially viable or strategically wise. The traditional prestige associated with Division I status may no longer outweigh the practical challenges and financial burdens it creates, especially for institutions that have never realistically competed for national championships or secured lucrative media rights deals. Some observers believe Saint Francis’s move could give other struggling programs “permission” to make similar transitions without the stigma of being the first to do so. There is growing recognition within college athletics that the current system is unsustainable for many institutions, with resources and attention increasingly concentrated among a small number of power conference schools that operate with completely different financial realities. The NCAA itself is undergoing significant restructuring, with discussions about creating new subdivisions within Division I that would formally recognize the differences between the largest, wealthiest programs and everyone else. Saint Francis’s decision to bypass this uncertain reorganization process and make a clean break to Division III may ultimately prove to be a prescient and strategic move that positions them ahead of broader changes to come in the college sports landscape.

What Division III Offers and What Changes for Saint Francis

The transition to Division III represents a fundamental shift in how Saint Francis University will approach athletics, but it also offers several advantages that made the decision attractive to university leadership. Division III is the largest NCAA division by number of schools and emphasizes the overall educational experience, with athletics positioned as one component of a well-rounded college experience rather than the central focus of the institution. Schools in Division III do not offer athletic scholarships, which eliminates the financial burden of funding scholarships across multiple sports and removes the pressure to compete in the recruiting wars that define Division I athletics. Without scholarships, student-athletes typically choose schools based on academic fit, campus culture, and the overall college experience rather than purely athletic considerations, which often leads to better retention rates and more engaged student-athletes who are committed to the institution beyond just sports. For Saint Francis, this means they can redirect resources currently devoted to athletic scholarships toward academic scholarships, facility improvements, or other institutional priorities. The competitive travel will likely be more regional, reducing travel costs and time missed from classes. The transfer portal, while it exists at all NCAA levels, functions differently in Division III where the absence of athletic scholarships reduces some of the incentives for frequent transfers. Student-athletes at Division III schools often report high satisfaction with their college experience, citing the balance between athletics, academics, and social life that the division’s philosophy promotes. Saint Francis will need to navigate a transition period as they move conferences, adjust their operational model, wind down scholarship commitments to current athletes or honor them through graduation, and rebrand their athletic programs—but the long-term outlook appears to align better with their institutional mission and capabilities.

Looking Ahead: A Potential Watershed Moment in College Sports

Saint Francis University’s bold decision to leave Division I athletics may well be remembered as a watershed moment in the history of college sports—a point where the tensions between big-time athletics and educational mission became too great for some institutions to ignore any longer. As college sports continue to evolve, with power conference schools operating increasingly like professional leagues complete with massive media deals, expansive NIL programs, and quasi-employee relationships with athletes, the gap between the haves and have-nots will only widen. For schools like Saint Francis, the question becomes not whether they can occasionally pull off an upset against a major program, but whether their continued participation in this system serves the best interests of their students, their institution, and their mission. The decision to move to Division III is ultimately an affirmation that athletics should serve education, not the other way around. It represents a choice to prioritize sustainability over prestige, student experience over external perception, and institutional integrity over keeping up with an arms race they could never win. Whether other schools follow Saint Francis’s lead remains to be seen, but the conversation has undeniably begun. University administrators across the country are watching this transition closely, evaluating their own positions, and asking difficult questions about the future of their athletic programs. The college sports landscape is clearly at an inflection point, with the traditional model under strain and new paradigms emerging. Saint Francis University has chosen to be proactive rather than reactive, to control their own destiny rather than be swept along by forces beyond their control. History will judge whether this decision was visionary or premature, but it has undoubtedly opened up a new chapter in the ongoing evolution of college athletics—one where success is defined not just by wins and losses, but by alignment with institutional values and long-term sustainability.