The Salukis are the football team of Southern Illinois University Carbondale. They compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) of the NCAA and play in the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC).
📜 Southern Illinois Salukis Football History
Southern Illinois first fielded an official football team in 1913, defeating a nearby high school in their inaugural game. For the first 11 years of the program, the Salukis competed as an independent team.
In 1925, Southern Illinois joined the Interstate Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, where they played until 1961. This was followed by another independent spell, which lasted until 1976.
The Salukis joined the Missouri Valley Conference in 1977, before moving to the football-only MVFC (previously known as the Gateway Football Conference) in 1985.
