General Southern Conference

Chattanooga Men, Samford Women Lead All-Sports Races

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Chattanooga’s men’s programs and Samford’s women’s programs have assumed the leads in the races for the Southern Conference’s all-sport trophies after the winter sport seasons. The Commissioner’s and Germann cups are awarded annually to the Southern Conference schools fielding the league’s best all-around men’s and women’s sports programs, respectively.

A new scoring system is in place for the 2014-15 season, modeled after the one used in determining the Learfield Sports Directors’ Cup. Scoring is now done on a percentage basis, with only the top seven sports for each school counting toward its season total. The SoCon sponsors 11 men’s sports and nine women’s sports. The new scoring format was approved by the SoCon’s directors of athletics at the league’s annual fall meetings.

Each sport is worth 10 points, with each spot in the standings given equal measure relative to how many schools sponsor that particular sport. For sports that determine a regular-season champion, the two-point bonus for winning the league tournament will remain in place. Each school’s total for the year will be divided by 70, the maximum number of points possible when counting seven sports, to find its percentage.

In the race for the Commissioner’s Cup, Chattanooga used a strong winter to vault from third in the standings to the top. The Mocs won the wrestling regular-season and tournament titles and finished second in the men’s basketball standings. Chattanooga, which also claimed the football title in the fall, has amassed 40.75 total points for a .582 percentage.

Wofford, which won the men’s basketball regular-season and tournament titles, remains second in the standings. The Terriers have 31.08 points for a .444 percentage.

Western Carolina capitalized on its men’s indoor track and field title and a fourth-place finish in men’s basketball to move up three spots to third with a .430 percentage, while VMI (.415), on the strength of a third-place showing at indoor track, jumped from eighth to fourth.

Fall leader Furman fell to fifth in the standings but is right on VMI’s heels with a .412 percentage. Samford is sixth with a .384 percentage, followed by Mercer in seventh at .327. The Citadel rose two spots to No. 8 at .307, while ETSU (.262) and UNCG (.201) round out the standings.

In the race for the Germann Cup, Samford moved up a spot from the fall standings on the strength of a runner-up finish in women’s indoor track and field and a fourth-place finish in women’s basketball. The Bulldogs have accumulated 42.92 points, good for a .613 percentage heading into the spring sports.

Defending Germann Cup champion Furman, the fall leader, slipped to second in the standings with 40.17 points and a .574 percentage. ETSU remained in third with 38.31 points and a .547 percentage as the top three are neck-and-neck.

Chattanooga (.449) jumped from seventh to fourth after winning the women’s basketball regular-season and tournament titles, making the Mocs the biggest movers on the women’s side.

Western Carolina won the women’s indoor track and field title to move up a spot to fifth in the standings at .410, while Mercer is sixth at .377. UNCG is seventh at .317, followed by Wofford (.172), The Citadel (.144) and VMI (.126).

The Commissioner’s Cup was inaugurated in 1970 and the Germann Cup was first awarded in 1987. The latter is named for former SoCon Commissioner Ken Germann, who served as commissioner of the Southern Conference from 1974-86 and spearheaded the effort to introduce women’s athletics to the league.

A new Commissioner’s Cup champion will be crowned for the first time since 2005-06 this season, as Appalachian State won nine straight and the last of its 34 cups before departing the league at the end of the 2013-14 academic year. Six schools have won the award in its 45 previous years of existence, including current members ETSU (1982-83), Furman (1990-91) and Chattanooga (2004-05).

Five schools have won the Germann Cup in its 28-year history. Furman owns a league-best 13, including 12 straight from 1992-2004. Former SoCon member Appalachian State won the first six and 10 total, while former member College of Charleston won three titles and Chattanooga and Samford have won one each. There has not been a back-to-back champion since Appalachian State claimed consecutive titles from 2005-06 to 2006-07.

 
Commissioner’s Cup (through winter sports)
(Men’s athletics)
1. Chattanooga    .582
2. Wofford    .444
3. Western Carolina    .430
4. VMI    .415
5. Furman    .412
6. Samford    .384
7. Mercer    .327
8. The Citadel    .307
9. ETSU    .262
10. UNCG    .201

Germann Cup (through winter sports)
(Women’s athletics)
1. Samford    .613
2. Furman    .574
3. ETSU    .547
4. Chattanooga    .449
5. Western Carolina    .410
6. Mercer    .377
7. UNCG    .317
8. Wofford    .172
9. The Citadel    .144
10. VMI    .126

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