Ranking the 10 best basketball schools that don’t play football
By John Scimeca
4. Xavier
Xavier has seen seven players taken in the NBA Draft in the past two decades, including the stalwart pro forward David West. The Musketeers have reached the Sweet 16 an impressive eight times in that 20-year stretch, which includes two appearances in the Elite 8.
Though they’ve never reached the Final Four, the Musketeers are generally recognized as a power program that’s currently doing well in the Big East after a move from the Atlantic 10 Conference. Last year’s squad reached the AP Top 10 rankings and finished with 27 wins and another Sweet 16 appearance.
Xavier had a football team until 1973. The 1950 squad defeated Miami University (a team coached by Woody Hayes and led by Bo Schembechler) in the Salad Bowl and the 1951 team finished the year undefeated.
3. Wichita State
Wichita State has made some memorable runs in the NCAA Tournament in recent years, and the program has since moved from the Missouri Valley to the American Athletic Conference. The 2013 Final Four run was followed by an undefeated regular season and the No. 2 overall rank in the country until a notable upset second-round loss to Kentucky.
Overall, the Shockers have reached two Final Fours and have made it to eight of the past 11 NCAA Tournaments.
The Shockers last fielded a football team in 1986. The team last played in the Missouri Valley Conference and won a total of 14 conference championships.