By Mark Pszonak
Conference realignment has been a trendy topic in recent years. However, some programs have decided to make bigger jumps. In 2025, Delaware and Missouri State are moving from the FCS to the FBS, New Haven is making the jump from DII to FCS and Ferrum College is transitioning from DIII to DII. Recently, another school announced its intentions to make a very interesting move.
https://twitter.com/LackawannaEDU/status/1938253448736346560
While schools making moves have become somewhat standard, this move by Lackawanna College is unique. They become the third JUCO to ever make the move to DII and the second to ever do it with a football program.
From the official school site, the transition is explained:
The move to NCAA Division II will allow Lackawanna to grow its two-year athletics program into a four-year program, giving future student-athletes greater opportunities to complete their bachelor’s degrees while competing at an elite level. Lackawanna College will be the third institution nationally to transition from the NJCAA directly to NCAA Division II and the second to do so with a football program. Dixie State (Now Utah Tech) went from the junior college ranks to NCAA DII back in 2006. They are now Division I and set to join the Big Sky Conference.
If you’re not familiar with Lackawanna College, it was founded in 1894 and is located in Scranton, Pennsylvania. The JUCO program helped develop several NFL players, including offensive lineman Bryant McKinnie, safety Jaquan Brisker, safety Ji’Ayir Brown, offensive lineman Mark Glowinski and linebacker Kyzir White. Current head coach Mark Duda has been leading the Falcons for 30 years, with 26 of those seasons concluding with a winning record.
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Lackawanna will become the 18th member of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC), joining programs like Slippery Rock, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Shippensburg, Lock Haven, West Chester and Edinboro.
No start date has yet been announced for Lackawanna’s admission, but expect that information to be released soon.
