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| In its five seasons as a Division III member with football, Finlandia has had seasons with as few as four games which count and has not w0n a single game against a current Division III football program. d3photography.com file photo |
The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference announced Friday, October 2, that the Council of Presidents and Chancellors has approved the addition of Finlandia as an associate football member beginning with the 2021 season.
“We are excited to have Finlandia University join the UMAC as an associate football member next fall,” said UMAC Commissioner Corey Borchardt. “Finlandia and the UMAC successfully engaged in scheduling agreements in the past, and our membership anticipates Finlandia will now be a viable, contributing associate member in our football conference.”
With the addition of Finlandia, the UMAC will maintain its automatic qualifying bid to the NCAA Division III playoffs for football with seven total members sponsoring the sport. Beginning in 2021, UMAC football teams will play a six-game regular season conference schedule beginning in Week 5. Each team will have one bye during the conference portion of the schedule.
The UMAC reached this point when MacMurray closed after the spring of 2020, St. Scholastica was admitted to the MIAC in place of St. Thomas and Iowa Wesleyan announced it was returning to the NAIA.
The Finlandia program has won just five football games in five seasons, three of them coming against Maranatha Baptist, which has since dropped football. The other two wins have come against Trinity Bible. The Lions have lost 21 consecutive contests.
Finlandia announced the addition of football as a varsity sport in 2009, then again in 2014 and finally kicked off its inaugural season in 2015 as an independent NCAA Division III member. The Lions joined the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association as an affiliate member in 2018 and will complete their membership in the MIAA with the conclusion of the 2020-21 academic year.
“This affiliate membership is a great opportunity for Finlandia football and our athletic department,” said Curtis Wittenberg, Finlandia director of athletics. "The UMAC is a great fit for us as their mission and values align with ours. In addition, the fit regionally should help in terms of travel."
Finlandia president Philip Johnson echoed similar sentiments. "Receiving associate membership in the UMAC for the sport of football is a very positive development," he said. "The UMAC is built on a mission and set of values that align with Finlandia's own athletics vision: academic success, diversity, community, and personal growth. On these shared commitments there is much opportunity for an enduring relationship."