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A look at Virginia Tech’s athletic conference affiliations throughout the years as the school looks to the future in the ACC.
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Virginia Tech’s Athletic Conference Affiliations
Virginia Tech has been affiliated with several different athletic conferences throughout its history. The school first joined the Southern Conference in 1924, but left in 1964 to become an independent school. virginia tech then joined the Metro Conference in 1991 before finally joining the Big East Conference in 2004.
Virginia Tech’s first conference affiliation
virginia tech first affiliated with the Southern Conference in 1923, just one year after the conference was founded. The school would compete in the conference in all sports until 1964, when it left to join the Atlantic Coast Conference. virginia tech remained in the ACC until 1976, when it briefly left to become an independent school before joining the Metro Conference in 1978.
Virginia Tech’s second conference affiliation
In 1896, Virginia Tech joined the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association, which consisted mostly ofChatanooga, LSU, Tulane, Auburn, georgia tech Sewanee, Vanderbilt, and Ole Miss. The Association was the first athletic conference organized in the South. With Virginia Tech’s membership came VMI’s as well. The two schools would remain members of the conference until 1904 when they withdrew to join the newly formed Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Association.
Virginia Tech’s third conference affiliation
Virginia Tech’s third conference affiliation was with the Southern Conference. They were a member of the conference from 1924 to 1964. In 1964, they became an independent school and remained so until 1978 when they joined the Metro Conference.
Virginia Tech’s Current Athletic Conference Affiliation
Virginia Tech’s current athletic conference affiliation is with the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC). The Hokies became a charter member of the ACC when it was founded in 1953. Virginia Tech has been a member of the ACC ever since.
The Atlantic Coast Conference
In July 1953, VirginiaPolytechnic Institute (VPI) joined the Southern Conference, where it remained for the next 59 years. In those years, Tech’s sports teams won numerous conference championships and made many appearances in postseason bowl games. In 1952, VPI’s football team went undefeated and won a national championship (which was later vacated due to NCAA infractions). In 1964, both the men’s basketball team and the football team went undefeated en route to conference championships. Tech left the Southern Conference in April 2012 to become a charter member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).
As of July 1, 2013, Virginia Tech’s sports teams compete in the ACC in all sports except wrestling; Virginia Tech’s wrestling team competes in the Big 12 Conference.
The Big East Conference
In 1991, Virginia Tech was admitted to the Big East Conference as a charter member. The Big East was formed to compete at the highest level of college football and to provide a platform for schools with comparable academic credentials in the Northeastern united states to compete for national championships. The conference was also intended to give these schools an opportunity to share in the revenue generated by college football’s major bowl games.
Virginia Tech enjoyed success during its time in the Big East. The Hokies appeared in 11 bowl games and won four conference championships while they were members of the Big East. In 2004, Virginia Tech left the Big East to become a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC).
The ACC is widely considered to be one of the best conferences in college football, and it has produced some of the top teams in recent years. The conference includes some of the most prestigious programs in all of college football, such as Clemson, Florida State, and Miami. Virginia Tech has competed against these teams since 2004 and has had mixed results.
The ACC is also considered to be one of the top conferences in college basketball. The conference includes programs like Duke, North Carolina, and Syracuse. Virginia Tech has had success in basketball since joining the ACC, reaching the NCAA Tournament six times (as of 2021).
The ACC-Big Ten Challenge
In 1999, the Big Ten and ACC began a partnership that resulted in the creation of the Big Ten/ACC Challenge. The premise was simple: pitting the best of the two conferences against one another in a series of head-to-head matchups in December, with the two sides alternating hosting duties each year.
In its inaugural season, the Challenge featured 11 games, with each team playing one member of the opposing conference. The first game took place on December 1, when Duke defeated Michigan State 92-63 at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The first decade of the Challenge saw some dominant performances from both conferences, but it was the ACC that largely held sway, winning or sharing the Challenge title eight times in 10 years.
One of those eight wins came courtesy of Virginia Tech, which went 5-0 in Challenge play from 2004 to 2008. The Hokies’ string of perfect seasons was snapped in 2009 with a 84-64 loss to then-No. 9 Purdue at Mackey Arena, but they rebounded to win their next three Challenge games before being dealt another difficult loss, this time falling 79-65 at then-No. 3 Ohio State in 2012.
Virginia Tech’s last ACC-Big Ten Challenge game came against Northwestern in 2015, a game the Hokies won handily 78-52 at Welsh-Ryan Arena. It would be their final win inChallenge play; since then, Virginia Tech is 0-5, with four losses coming by double figures.
