Starzee
Long Island University announced today that it is combining the sports programs on its campuses in Brooklyn and Brookville, and that all teams will now play in NCAA Division I.
Previously, the teams on LIU’s Brooklyn campus were Division I, but the Post campus in Brookville fielded Division II teams. Effective with the fall 2019 season, the university will field unified teams in football, baseball, cross-country, equestrian, field hockey, golf, lacrosse, rowing, rugby, soccer, tennis and wrestling, according to spokesperson Gordon Tepper, who noted some home games will be played in Brooklyn while others will take place on Long Island.
The combined teams will wear blue and gold – taking blue from the Brooklyn teams’ uniform colors of blue, white and black, and gold from the Post uniforms, which are currently green and gold.
“We will honor the traditions of both campuses by taking blue from one and gold from the other, much like the New York Mets did in 1962 when they took orange from the New York Giants and blue from the Brooklyn Dodgers [after those teams moved to California],” Tepper said.
With the unification of the programs, student-athletes can now take classes at one campus and play a sport at the other. “The university will provide transportation to accommodate them,” Tepper said.
Despite the change, the university will honor all current scholarships to student-athletes, according to a statement.
The university’s sports programs have combined for 23 national championships, 215 conference titles and 362 All-American titles over the years.
gordontepper.com 