Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association - History

History

The conference was established on March 24, 1888. Being the oldest conference in America, the conference has made some drastic changes involving the types of sports that the conference competes in. The number of sports with competition is 18 (9 men and 9 women sports). These sports include cross country, football, golf, basketball, tennis, swimming, baseball, volleyball, softball track and field and soccer. Some past sports that are no longer in competition include bicycle racing, Indian club juggling, wrestling, archery, and field hockey.

The “Father of the MIAA,” was James Heckman of Hillsdale. Heckman promoted the idea of a permanent league after several schools had sponsored successful track and field days from 1884 to 1887. The first delegates met in Jackson on March 17, 1888 to organize the MIAA. A week after the meeting delegates from Albion, Hillsdale, Michigan State and Olivet drew up the MIAA’s first constitution.

The schools that were to be a part of the MIAA in 1888 had diverse enrollment numbers. The largest enrollment belonged to Eastern with 714. Albion was listed as 451, Hillsdale 450, Michigan State 314, Olivet 277, Adrian 150, Hope 148, Kalamazoo 143 and Alma with 95 students (www.miaa.org accessed 10/15/08). Some of the enrollment figures included many students taking work on a high school level. This meant that athletic teams of those years included both high school and college students. A five or six year career of athletic participation was not unusual at that time (www.miaa.org accessed 10/15/08).

On May 31, June 1–2, 1888 the first MIAA track and field meet was held at East Lansing, not even three months after the original meeting. The events that were held included the 100- yard dash, 200-yard dash, 880- yard run, high jump, long jump, shot put, hammer throw and mile relay. Some other events that would not normally be at a track and field meet today, were lawn tennis, wrestling, Indian club swing, horizontal and parallel bar performing, bicycle racing, sparring, and tug-of-war. The teams that competed in this event were Hillsdale, Albion, Michigan State, and Olivet. Hillsdale was the first MIAA track champion.

The following year in 1889, the second annual MIAA Field Day was done. At this Field Day Albion and Olivet participated in an exhibition “football match.” It was not until 1891 when the first official intercollegiate football game in the MIAA was played with Albion defeating Hillsdale 36-4. Football was not recognized until 1894 as an official league sport (www.miaa.org accessed 10/15/08).

The following sports came into effect as follows: Baseball, the 440-yard dash, mile run, high hurdles and pole vault in 1889. Football was recognized as an official league sport in 1894. The two mile run and discus in 1912 and the javelin replaced the hammer throw in 1913. Basketball became a league sport in 1911. Cross country was introduced in 1922 while golf was in 1934. Wrestling was introduced in 1969, but then was dropped in 1981. Soccer in 1970 and swimming in 1971 (www.miaa.org accessed 10/15/08).

Contrary to what many would think that sports for women only started in 1978-79 there is evidence that it started much earlier than that. The first Albion college tennis tournament held six years after the league was formed was actually a co-ed event (www.miaa.org accessed 10/15/08). In 1936, Albion invited all of the MIAA schools to a play day and convention which was the first attempt to organize a women’s athletic program for the MIAA. 100 women from all of the colleges in the MIAA participated in events such as archery, tennis, volleyball, basketball, badminton, softball, and swimming (www.miaa.org accessed 10/15/08). In 1941 the Athletic Federation of Michigan College Women (AFMCW) was established. It later became known as the Women’s Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (WMIAA) in 1946.

In 1977 league presidents voted to allow post-season participation by member schools if they were so invited by the NCAA Division III Football Committee (Harburn 4). This ended a seventeen year ban on post-season competition. Albion’s 1977 team was the first team chosen to participate. Many teams during the ban did not have the chance to show off their skills as some teams were even ranked in the Top Ten nationally, because of the NCAA rule prohibiting more than two teams from the same region being selected (Harburn 4). Hillsdale College left the conference in 1960 because they accepted a bid to a postseason football bowl game and were subsequently suspended two years by the conference.

In 1978-79, the league combined into a single structure the administration of the men’s and women’s athletic programs of the member schools. This meant that women sports would be included.