In recent months, the Southern Conference has come under fire for what has been perceived to be some antiquated ways of viewing the current college landscape.
It’s a league that holds onto its tradition unlike any other, perhaps to its own detriment. In some ways, that’s not a bad thing as its 10 primary members (those that play football or basketball) have been able to create yearly rivalries within the league. The dates are the only thing that change: football-playing members will play each of the other eight teams within the league — four home, four away — while the 10 men’s basketball teams and the eight women’s teams are guaranteed to play twice, once at home and once on the road.
But as college athletics change in real time — with name, image and likeness and the transfer portal now extremely prevalent — the SoCon has remained steadfast in its approach. It’s the only conference that doesn’t allow intraconference transfers, with the proud distinction of being the only conference in the country with those rules.
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga rising sophomore basketball player Honor Huff, who started his career at Virginia Military Institute and transferred to UTC to play for head coach Dan Earl when he took the head job in April of 2022, was the only transfer in the country ineligible to compete last season.