The Austin Peay Governors are the intercollegiate athletic teams of
Austin Peay State University (APSU or Peay), located in
Clarksville, Tennessee, United States. The Governors athletic program is a member of the
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
Division I Atlantic Sun Conference
The Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN) is a collegiate athletic conference operating mostly in the Southeastern United States. The league participates at the NCAA Division I level, and began sponsoring football at the Division I FCS level in 2022. ...
(ASUN) for all sports except
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
, in which it competes in the
United Athletic Conference (UAC). The latter conference started play in the 2023 season as a football-only merger between two conferences in the second tier of Division I football, the
Football Championship Subdivision
The NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, is the second-highest level of college football in the United States, after the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision, Football Bowl Subdivision (F ...
(FCS)—the ASUN and the
Western Athletic Conference
The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) is an NCAA Division I conference. The WAC covers a broad expanse of the Western United States with member institutions located in Arizona, California, Texas, Utah and Washington (state), Washington.
Due to ...
. Before the 2022–23 school year, the Governors were members of another FCS league, the
Ohio Valley Conference
The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. It participates in Division I of the NCAA; the conference's football programs compete in partnership with ...
(OVC).
The Austin Peay mascot is The Governor, and the school colors are red and white. While the women's teams were formerly known as the Lady Govs, the school emphasizes that all teams are now Governors.
Conference affiliations
NCAA
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Ohio Valley Conference
The Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. It participates in Division I of the NCAA; the conference's football programs compete in partnership with ...
(1962–2022)
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Atlantic Sun Conference
The Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN) is a collegiate athletic conference operating mostly in the Southeastern United States. The league participates at the NCAA Division I level, and began sponsoring football at the Division I FCS level in 2022. ...
(2022–present)
Varsity teams
Athletics began at Austin Peay almost as soon as the school opened for classes in 1929 as Austin Peay Normal School; men's and women's basketball teams were organized that first year. Football was added in the fall of 1930 and baseball in the spring of 1931, with other men's sports added and dropped over the years. Women's basketball was discontinued in 1938, but returned in 1973, along with volleyball, tennis, and golf when women's sports gained widespread inclusion.
A member of the
Atlantic Sun Conference
The Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN) is a collegiate athletic conference operating mostly in the Southeastern United States. The league participates at the NCAA Division I level, and began sponsoring football at the Division I FCS level in 2022. ...
(ASUN) since July 1, 2022, Austin Peay State University sponsors teams in six men's and ten women's
NCAA
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...
sanctioned sports.
Shortly after the 2022 football season, the ASUN and
Western Athletic Conference
The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) is an NCAA Division I conference. The WAC covers a broad expanse of the Western United States with member institutions located in Arizona, California, Texas, Utah and Washington (state), Washington.
Due to ...
(WAC), which had been partners in a football-only alliance in the 2021 and 2022 seasons, announced a full merger of their football leagues, creating what eventually became the UAC. Peay is one of nine inaugural members of the new conference, which started play in the 2023 season.
Women's lacrosse will become the 11th varsity women's sport and 17th overall in the 2026 season (2025–26 school year). The new team will play in the ASUN alongside most other Peay sports.
Facilities
* Basketball:
F&M Bank Arena
* Baseball:
Raymond C. Hand Park
* Cross country: ''(Does not have home competition facility)''
* Football:
Fortera Stadium
* Golf: Swan Lake Golf Course, Clarksville Country Club & The Links at Novadell
* Soccer: Morgan Brothers Soccer Field (also home to lacrosse from 2025 to 2026)
* Softball: Cheryl Holt Field
* Tennis: Governors Indoor Tennis Center & Outdoor Tennis Courts
* Track and field (indoor): ''(Does not have home competition facility)''
* Track and field (outdoor):
Fortera Stadium
* Volleyball:
Winfield Dunn Center
References
External links
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