Missouri Valley Football Conference adds Murray State Racers
The Missouri Valley Football Conference, home of South Dakota and South Dakota State, is officially a 12-member league, as the Valley announced Monday it had officially extended an invitation to Murray State (Ky.)
The Racers will join the Valley for the 2023 season after playing one final year in the Ohio Valley Conference. Murray State applied for membership in January. The Racers will play their 98th season of college football in 2022. They’ve won eight Ohio Valley titles and been to the FCS playoffs six times, though not since 2002. That makes joining the Valley, long regarded as the premier conference in FCS football, a daunting move for Murray State. The Racers were 6-5 in 2021.
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The Racers are also moving the majority of their non-football programs from the OVC to the Missouri Valley Conference. Though they share a name and similar logo, the Missouri Valley Conference and Missouri Valley Football Conference are separate organizations.
Moving to 12 teams gives the Valley the ability to create divisions and/or alter the league schedule (currently eight games) going forward, but those changes will apparently be considered at a later date.
This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Missouri Valley Football Conference adds Murray State
