Tampa Spartans

The Tampa Spartans are the athletic teams that represent the University of Tampa, located in Tampa, Florida, in NCAA Division II intercollegiate sports. The Spartans compete as members of the Sunshine State Conference for all sports besides beach volleyball and track and field, which compete as independents. Tampa has been a member of the conference since 1981.

Tampa Spartans
Logo
UniversityUniversity of Tampa
ConferenceSunshine State (primary)
NCAADivision II
Athletic directorLarry Marfise
LocationTampa, Florida
Varsity teams22 (8 men's, 12 women's, 2 co-ed)
Basketball arenaBob Martinez Athletics Center
Baseball stadiumUniversity of Tampa Baseball Field
Softball stadiumVince Naimoli Family Softball Field
Soccer stadiumPepin Stadium
Aquatics centerUT Aquatic Center
Lacrosse stadiumNaimoli Athletic Family and Intramural Complex
Tennis venueNaimoli and Young Family Complex
NicknameSpartans
ColorsBlack, red, and gold[1]
     
Websitetampaspartans.com/landing/index
Team NCAA championships
19
Individual and relay NCAA champions
35

National championships

Spartan varsity teams have won 19 NCAA Division II National Titles as of December 2022, which is seventh-most among current Division II teams.[2] The titles won are as follows: eight in baseball (1992, 1993, 1998, 2006, 2007, 2013, 2015 and 2019), three in men's soccer (1981, 1994 and 2001), two in golf (1987 and 1988), four in women's volleyball (2006, 2014, 2018, and 2021), one in women's soccer (2007), and one in men's lacrosse (2022).[2] They also won a beach volleyball title in the AVCA in 2019 and 2021, for a total of 21 national titles. UT athletes have won 35 individual and relay NCAA championships.[2]

Team championships
Association Division Sport Year Opponent/Runner-Up Score
NCAA Division II Baseball[3] 1992 Mansfield 11–8
1993 Cal Poly San Luis Obispo 7–5
1998 Kennesaw State 6–1
2006 Chico State 3–2
2007 Columbus State 7–2
2013 Minnesota State–Mankato 8–2
2015 Catawba 3–1
2019 Colorado Mesa 3–1
Men's soccer[4] 1981 Cal State Los Angeles 1–0 (OT)
1994 Oakland 3–2 (2OT)
2001 Cal State Dominguez Hills 2–1
Men's golf[5] 1987 Columbus 1,175–1,180
1988 Florida Southern 1,189–1,203
Men's lacrosse 2022 Mercy 11–7
Women's soccer[6] 2007 Franklin Pierce 3–1
Women's volleyball 2007 North Alabama 3–1
2014 Southwest Minnesota State 3–0
2018 Western Washington 3–2
2021 Washburn 3–0
AVCA Small College Division Beach volleyball[7] 2019 Texas A&M–Kingsville 3–0
2021 Spring Hill 3–0

Varsity teams

Tampa sponsors 20 varsity teams, 8 for men and 12 for women:

Rivalries

St. Petersburg College

UT's first athletic rival was St. Petersburg College.[8] UT even adopted the Spartan as its mascot in the 1930s because SPC were known as the Trojans at the time (though they have since changed to the Titans). As SPC is a junior college, the schools rarely (if ever) meet nowadays.

Florida Southern

The Spartans main rival is the nearby Sunshine State Conference foe Florida Southern College Moccasins.[9] The rivalry is known best for its baseball games, with both teams regularly among the best in NCAA Division II. The Spartans and Mocs have a combined 17 baseball national championships, with Tampa winning 8 and FSC winning 9. No other team in Division II has more than 3 baseball titles.

Rowdies Cup
Main article: Rowdies Cup

Each August, the Spartans men's soccer team faces their crosstown rivals, the Division I University of South Florida Bulls, in an NCAA preseason match which celebrates the Tampa Bay Area's rich soccer history. In addition to holding the Rowdies Cup trophy for the next 12 months, the winning side also gets to hoist the actual 1975 Soccer Bowl trophy that was won by the original Tampa Bay Rowdies and is housed at USF's Corbett Soccer Stadium. As of the 2022 edition, USF holds a 25–11–3 edge in the all-time series.[10] The match was previously contested as the Mayor's Cup and dates back to 1972.[11][12][13][14][15]

Football
Main article: Tampa Spartans football

UT fielded a men's football team from 1933 to 1974. The "Tampa U" Spartans first played at Plant Field near the school's campus from 1933 to 1936, then played across the street at Phillips Field for three decades, then became Tampa Stadium's first home team when they moved to the brand-new venue in 1967. The move to Tampa Stadium coincided with the program's greatest success. The Spartans beat the cross-state rival Miami Hurricanes in 1970, moved up to NCAA Division I in 1971, and defeated the Hurricanes again in 1972. Several UT players from this era went on to play in the NFL, and the Spartans won the 1972 Tangerine Bowl.[16]

However, rising expenses resulted in the football program operating at a loss and required the school to subsidize it with several hundred thousand dollars per year. When the NFL awarded Tampa an expansion team (the future Tampa Bay Buccaneers) in 1974, the university's financial committee predicted that local support for Spartan football would decrease and recommended that the program be folded before the 1975 season.[17] On February 12, 1975, the University of Tampa's board of directors voted to drop the sport immediately.[18]

Other sports

In addition to varsity sports, UT fields competitive junior varsity baseball and men's lacrosse teams that play a full schedule against area colleges and visiting northern schools and it also fields a crew team that competes in crew events around the nation.

Hall of fame

The University of Tampa Athletic Hall of Fame includes former MLB players Lou Piniella and Tino Martinez, former NFL players Freddie Solomon of the San Francisco 49ers, and John Matuszak of the Oakland Raiders.

References
  1. University of Tampa Brand Guidelines (PDF). Retrieved April 1, 2017.
  2. "Championships summary through Jan. 1, 2022" (PDF). National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2014-03-20. Retrieved 2015-02-25.
  3. "Division II Baseball Championship Results" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. Retrieved January 16, 2016.
  4. "Division II Men's Soccer Championship Results" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  5. "NCAA Division II Men's Golf Championship Results" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. Retrieved January 14, 2016.
  6. "Division II Women's Soccer Championship Results" (PDF). NCAA. NCAA.org. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
  7. "2019 BEACH VOLLEYBALL". AVCA.
  8. "University of Tampa Introduces New, Updated Athletic Logos". www.ut.edu. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  9. Beasock, Ray. "Hanson helps Florida Southern fend off Tampa". The Ledger. Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  10. "Rudderham Scores Hat Trick, Bulls Retain Rowdies Cup". gousfbulls.com. Retrieved September 17, 2018.
  11. Bulls Looking to Bring Rowdies Cup Back to USF - GoUSFBulls.com—Official Athletics Web Site of the University of South Florida
  12. "Spartans Take Rowdies Cup With 1-0 Victory Over USF". Tampa Spartans. Archived from the original on March 20, 2015. Retrieved November 24, 2014.
  13. "Bulls Down Spartans to Claim Rowdies Cup". gousfbulls.com. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
  14. "Bulls Retain Rowdies Cup". gousfbulls.com. Archived from the original on August 28, 2017. Retrieved August 27, 2017.
  15. "2019 Tampa Spartans Men's Soccer Schedule".
  16. UT Journal – Winter 2007 – ut.edu. (PDF) . Retrieved on 2012-05-08.
  17. Gurney, Jack (Feb 13, 1975). "Financial Woes May End Tampa Football". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. pp. D1. Retrieved 2013-06-05.
  18. "University of Tampa Votes Down Football". The Albany Herald. AP. Feb 28, 1975. Retrieved 2013-06-05.
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