Editing Patriot League (section)

==History==
[[File:PatriotLeagueLocations.png|left|thumb|250px|Locations of current Patriot League full member institutions.]]
The origins of the Patriot League began after the eight Ivy League schools expanded their football schedules to ten games starting in 1980. Needing opponents with a similar competitive level on a regular basis for each team's three nonconference games, the league contacted two university presidents, the [[The Reverend|Reverend]] [[John E. Brooks]], [[Society of Jesus|S.J.]], of [[College of the Holy Cross|Holy Cross]], and [[Peter Likins]] of Lehigh, about forming a new conference that also prohibited [[athletic scholarship]]s.<ref name="lastamateurs">{{cite book|last=Feinstein|first=John|author-link=John Feinstein|title=[[The Last Amateurs]]|location=Boston|publisher=Little, Brown and Company|year=2000|isbn=0-316-27842-4}}</ref> The result was the '''Colonial League''', a football-only circuit that began competition in 1986.<ref name=PLwho/><ref name=history>{{cite web|url=http://www.patriotleague.org/school-bio/patr-school-bio-history.html|title=Patriot League History|publisher=Patriot League|access-date=July 3, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727165720/http://www.patriotleague.org/school-bio/patr-school-bio-history.html|archive-date=July 27, 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> Its six charter members were Holy Cross, Lehigh, [[Bucknell University|Bucknell]], [[Colgate University|Colgate]], Lafayette, and [[Davidson College|Davidson]]. Davidson dropped out after the 1988 season for reasons related to geography, lack of competitiveness, and a reluctance to relinquish its basketball scholarships in case the conference expanded into other sports.<ref name="lastamateurs"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/patr/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/2011-12/misc_non_event/2011PLFootballMediaGuide.pdf|title=Patriot League 2011 Football Media Guide.|access-date=2012-06-29|archive-date=2013-07-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130703221612/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/patr/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/2011-12/misc_non_event/2011PLFootballMediaGuide.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[File:CFU USNA 1971.jpg|thumb|180px|[[Carl F. Ullrich]]]]
In 1990, the league changed its name to the Patriot League at the suggestion of [[Carl F. Ullrich]],<ref name="lastamateurs"/> who would go on to become the conference's first full-time administrator. At the start of the 1990-91 academic year, the league became an all-sport conference, with 22 sports (11 for men and 11 for women), and now had seven full members, including [[Fordham University|Fordham]] and the [[United States Military Academy|United States Military Academy (Army)]] as new members. In 1991, the league gained an eighth full member, the [[United States Naval Academy|United States Naval Academy (Navy)]].<ref name=history/>

In 1993, the league hired Constance (Connie) H. Hurlbut as executive director. She was the first woman and youngest person to be the leader of an NCAA Division I conference.<ref name=history/>

In 1995, Fordham resigned its full membership (leaving the league with seven full members) but continued as an associate member in football. In 1996, [[Fairfield Stags#Field Hockey|Fairfield]] and [[Ursinus College#Athletics|Ursinus]] joined as associate members in [[field hockey]].<ref name=history/> (Fairfield left after the 2003 fall season and is now an associate member of the [[Northeast Conference]]. Ursinus left after the 2001 fall season and is now a full member of the [[NCAA Division III|Division III]] [[Centennial Conference]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.centennial.org/fhockey/index.html|title=2009 Field Hockey|publisher=Centennial Conference|access-date=March 2, 2010|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101007194337/http://www.centennial.org/fhockey/index.html|archive-date=October 7, 2010}}</ref>) In 1997, [[Towson Tigers football|Towson]] joined as an associate member in football. (Towson left after the 2003 fall season to join the [[Atlantic 10 Conference]], whose football conference would be absorbed by the [[Colonial Athletic Association]] in 2007.) In 1999, [[Hobart and William Smith Colleges#Athletics|Hobart]] joined as an associate member in men's lacrosse and [[Villanova Wildcats|Villanova]] joined as an associate member in women's lacrosse. (Hobart left after the 2004 spring season, to join the [[ECAC Lacrosse League]], while Villanova left after the 2006 spring season.) In 2001, [[American University]] joined as the eighth full member and [[Georgetown Hoyas football|Georgetown University]] joined as an associate member in football.<ref name=history/> Two schools announced in summer 2012 that they would join the league for the 2013–14 academic year, with [[Boston University]] making its announcement on June 15,<ref>{{cite press release|url=http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/patr/genrel/auto_pdf/2011-12/misc_non_event/PatriotLeagueBostonUrelease.pdf|title=Boston University accepts invitation to join Patriot League starting in 2013–14|publisher=Patriot League|date=June 15, 2012|access-date=July 3, 2013|archive-date=July 4, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130704002150/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/patr/genrel/auto_pdf/2011-12/misc_non_event/PatriotLeagueBostonUrelease.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> and [[Loyola University Maryland]] doing so on August 29.<ref>{{cite press release|url=http://www.patriotleague.org/genrel/082912aaa.html|title=Loyola University Maryland accepts invitation to join Patriot League starting with 2013–14 season|publisher=Patriot League|date=August 29, 2012|access-date=August 30, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120830114515/http://www.patriotleague.org/genrel/082912aaa.html|archive-date=August 30, 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In May 2024, the [[University of Richmond]], who at the time was already an associate member of the league for women's golf, announced that they would also move their football program to the Patriot League for the 2025 season, becoming the Patriot League's first new football-playing member in over 20 years.<ref>{{cite press release|url=https://richmondspiders.com/news/2024/5/14/richmond-football-to-move-to-patriot-league-following-2024-season.aspx |title=Richmond Football to Move to Patriot League Following 2024 Season|publisher=Richmond Spiders Athletics |date=May 14, 2024 |access-date=May 14, 2024}}</ref>

On April 25th, 2025, the [[College of William & Mary]] announced that it would be joining the Patriot League as a football-only associate member, starting in the 2026 Season.<ref name=":0" /> The move similarly follows that of fellow in-state football rival University of Richmond, and brings the historic "[[Capital Cup]]" rivalry series between both schools into the Patriot league conference schedule. 

===Athletic scholarships===
While Patriot League colleges have always offered need-based financial aid, league members have only been allowed to give athletic scholarships in recent years. Basketball scholarships were first allowed beginning with freshmen entering the league in the fall of 1998.

In 2001, when the league admitted American, which gave scholarships in all its sports (AU does not play football), the league began allowing all schools to do so in sports other than football. Lafayette, the last holdout with no athletic scholarships, began granting full rides in basketball and other sports with freshmen entering the school in the fall of 2006.  Most Patriot League schools do not give athletic scholarships in a number of sports, and Bucknell only granted them in basketball prior to the addition of football scholarships in 2013.

In the spring of 2009, Fordham University announced that it would start offering football scholarships in the fall of 2010. This action made Fordham ineligible for the league championship in that sport, but it also prompted a league-wide discussion on football scholarships. On February 13, 2012, the Patriot League announced its members could begin offering football scholarships starting with the 2013–14 academic year. Since then, each school has been allowed no more than the equivalent of 15 scholarships to incoming football players. Presidents from six of the seven football schools indicated they would award scholarships in the fall of 2012. [[Georgetown University]] did not commit to offering scholarships.<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 13, 2012 |title=Comments from Patriot League Presidents on Football Financial Aid Announcement |url=http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/patr/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/2011-12/misc_non_event/PLpresidentCommentsFootballFA.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304110111/http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/patr/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/2011-12/misc_non_event/PLpresidentCommentsFootballFA.pdf |archive-date=Mar 4, 2016 |website=Patriot League}}</ref> Since the transition to scholarship football was completed for the 2016–17 academic year, each football member has been allowed up to 60 scholarship equivalents per season,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://webfarm.bloomberg.com/news/2012-02-13/patriot-league-to-offer-football-scholarships-for-first-time-starting-2013.html|work=Bloomberg|first=Eben|last=Novy-Williams|title=Patriot League to Offer Football Scholarships Starting in 2013 |date=February 13, 2012 |url-access=subscription |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171001213802/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2012-02-13/patriot-league-to-offer-football-scholarships-for-first-time-starting-2013 |archive-date= Oct 1, 2017 }}</ref> a total only slightly lower than the NCAA limit of 63 scholarship equivalents for FCS programs. Currently, Patriot League schools are permitted to offer up to the NCAA maximum of 63 scholarships for its football programs.