FCS conference belt
The MEAC Belt
A companion lineage restricted to MEAC: the belt passes to whoever beats the holder, exactly like the real belt, but only games between two MEAC members COUNT — and only for the seasons both sides were actually in MEAC at the time. Caught it by beating Morgan State on November 16, 2024. Defended it 8 more times since.
Next MEAC gameSouth Carolina State at Howard · November 5, 2026 · ESPNU — Howard takes it with a win.
52Reigns
159Belt Games
11Programs
Longest Reign
South Carolina State — 2 yrs, 339 days
November 24, 2019 – October 29, 2022
Most Defenses, One Reign
Hampton — 14
starting October 23, 2004
Most Reigns, All-Time
South Carolina State — 9 separate reigns
11 MEAC programs have held it
| # | Team | Reign | Length | Def. | Won it | Lost it |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Florida A&M | September 6, 2003 – October 11, 2003 | 35 days | 1 | Established it (first game on record) | lost to Howard |
| 2 | Howard | October 11, 2003 – October 18, 2003 | 7 days | 0 | beat Florida A&M 16–14 | lost to Morgan State |
| 3 | Morgan State | October 18, 2003 – September 25, 2004 | 343 days | 2 | beat Howard 33–12 | lost to Hampton |
| 4 | Hampton | September 25, 2004 – October 2, 2004 | 7 days | 0 | beat Morgan State 49–37 | lost to Delaware State |
| 5 | Delaware State | October 2, 2004 – October 9, 2004 | 7 days | 0 | beat Hampton 28–23 | lost to Bethune-Cookman |
| 6 | Bethune-Cookman | October 9, 2004 – October 16, 2004 | 7 days | 0 | beat Delaware State 45–16 | lost to South Carolina State |
| 7 | South Carolina State | October 16, 2004 – October 23, 2004 | 7 days | 0 | beat Bethune-Cookman 28–14 | lost to Hampton |
| 8 | Hampton | October 23, 2004 – October 21, 2006 | 1 yr, 363 days | 14 | beat South Carolina State 52–36 | lost to South Carolina State |
| 9 | South Carolina State | October 21, 2006 – October 28, 2006 | 7 days | 0 | beat Hampton 13–6 | lost to Delaware State |
| 10 | Delaware State | October 28, 2006 – November 18, 2006 | 21 days | 1 | beat South Carolina State 10–9 | lost to Howard |
| 11 | Howard | November 18, 2006 – September 8, 2007 | 294 days | 0 | beat Delaware State 20–17 | lost to Hampton |
| 12 | Hampton | September 8, 2007 – September 29, 2007 | 21 days | 2 | beat Howard 31–24 | lost to Delaware State |
| 13 | Delaware State | September 29, 2007 – October 4, 2008 | 1 yr, 5 days | 8 | beat Hampton 24–17 | lost to Hampton |
| 14 | Hampton | October 4, 2008 – October 25, 2008 | 21 days | 1 | beat Delaware State 17–14 | lost to South Carolina State |
| 15 | South Carolina State | October 25, 2008 – October 16, 2010 | 1 yr, 356 days | 14 | beat Hampton 35–13 | lost to Bethune-Cookman |
| 16 | Bethune-Cookman | October 16, 2010 – November 20, 2010 | 35 days | 4 | beat South Carolina State 14–0 | lost to Florida A&M |
| 17 | Florida A&M | November 20, 2010 – September 8, 2011 | 292 days | 0 | beat Bethune-Cookman 38–27 | lost to Hampton |
| 18 | Hampton | September 8, 2011 – September 22, 2011 | 14 days | 0 | beat Florida A&M 23–17 | lost to Bethune-Cookman |
| 19 | Bethune-Cookman | September 22, 2011 – October 8, 2011 | 16 days | 0 | beat Hampton 35–31 | lost to North Carolina A&T |
| 20 | North Carolina A&T | October 8, 2011 – October 22, 2011 | 14 days | 1 | beat Bethune-Cookman 22–3 | lost to Howard |
| 21 | Howard | October 22, 2011 – October 29, 2011 | 7 days | 0 | beat North Carolina A&T 35–28 | lost to South Carolina State |
| 22 | South Carolina State | October 29, 2011 – September 8, 2012 | 315 days | 2 | beat Howard 31–0 | lost to Bethune-Cookman |
| 23 | Bethune-Cookman | September 8, 2012 – November 9, 2013 | 1 yr, 62 days | 11 | beat South Carolina State 27–14 | lost to Norfolk State |
| 24 | Norfolk State | November 9, 2013 – November 16, 2013 | 7 days | 0 | beat Bethune-Cookman 27–24 | lost to North Carolina Central |
| 25 | North Carolina Central | November 16, 2013 – November 23, 2013 | 7 days | 0 | beat Norfolk State 24–13 | lost to North Carolina A&T |
| 26 | North Carolina A&T | November 23, 2013 – October 4, 2014 | 315 days | 1 | beat North Carolina Central 28–0 | lost to South Carolina State |
| 27 | South Carolina State | October 4, 2014 – October 11, 2014 | 7 days | 0 | beat North Carolina A&T 13–0 | lost to North Carolina Central |
| 28 | North Carolina Central | October 11, 2014 – October 18, 2014 | 7 days | 0 | beat South Carolina State 48–35 | lost to Morgan State |
| 29 | Morgan State | October 18, 2014 – November 8, 2014 | 21 days | 1 | beat North Carolina Central 21–20 | lost to North Carolina A&T |
| 30 | North Carolina A&T | November 8, 2014 – November 22, 2014 | 14 days | 1 | beat Morgan State 45–0 | lost to North Carolina Central |
| 31 | North Carolina Central | November 22, 2014 – October 3, 2015 | 315 days | 0 | beat North Carolina A&T 21–14 | lost to Bethune-Cookman |
| 32 | Bethune-Cookman | October 3, 2015 – October 17, 2015 | 14 days | 1 | beat North Carolina Central 28–26 | lost to North Carolina A&T |
| 33 | North Carolina A&T | October 17, 2015 – November 21, 2015 | 35 days | 4 | beat Bethune-Cookman 24–14 | lost to North Carolina Central |
| 34 | North Carolina Central | November 21, 2015 – October 21, 2017 | 1 yr, 334 days | 11 | beat North Carolina A&T 21–16 | lost to Norfolk State |
| 35 | Norfolk State | October 21, 2017 – October 28, 2017 | 7 days | 0 | beat North Carolina Central 28–21 | lost to Savannah State |
| 36 | Savannah State | October 28, 2017 – November 11, 2017 | 14 days | 1 | beat Norfolk State 27–9 | lost to North Carolina A&T |
| 37 | North Carolina A&T | November 11, 2017 – September 22, 2018 | 315 days | 1 | beat Savannah State 36–17 | lost to Morgan State |
| 38 | Morgan State | September 22, 2018 – October 6, 2018 | 14 days | 0 | beat North Carolina A&T 16–13 | lost to South Carolina State |
| 39 | South Carolina State | October 6, 2018 – October 13, 2018 | 7 days | 0 | beat Morgan State 21–18 | lost to Bethune-Cookman |
| 40 | Bethune-Cookman | October 13, 2018 – October 20, 2018 | 7 days | 0 | beat South Carolina State 28–26 | lost to North Carolina A&T |
| 41 | North Carolina A&T | October 20, 2018 – October 20, 2019 | 1 yr | 5 | beat Bethune-Cookman 35–10 | lost to Florida A&M |
| 42 | Florida A&M | October 20, 2019 – November 23, 2019 | 34 days | 3 | beat North Carolina A&T 34–31 | lost to Bethune-Cookman |
| 43 | Bethune-Cookman | November 23, 2019 – November 23, 2019 | 0 days | 0 | beat Florida A&M 31–27 | vacated — left MEAC before the 2021 season |
| 44 | South Carolina State | November 24, 2019 – October 29, 2022 | 2 yrs, 339 days | 6 | reverted after Bethune-Cookman left MEAC | lost to Morgan State |
| 45 | Morgan State | October 29, 2022 – November 19, 2022 | 21 days | 1 | beat South Carolina State 41–14 | lost to Howard |
| 46 | Howard | November 19, 2022 – November 4, 2023 | 350 days | 2 | beat Morgan State 35–6 | lost to South Carolina State |
| 47 | South Carolina State | November 4, 2023 – November 11, 2023 | 7 days | 0 | beat Howard 27–24 | lost to Morgan State |
| 48 | Morgan State | November 11, 2023 – November 18, 2023 | 7 days | 0 | beat South Carolina State 20–17 | lost to Howard |
| 49 | Howard | November 18, 2023 – October 26, 2024 | 343 days | 0 | beat Morgan State 14–7 | lost to Norfolk State |
| 50 | Norfolk State | October 26, 2024 – November 2, 2024 | 7 days | 0 | beat Howard 21–20 | lost to Morgan State |
| 51 | Morgan State | November 2, 2024 – November 16, 2024 | 14 days | 1 | beat Norfolk State 38–37 | lost to South Carolina State |
| 52 | South Carolina State | November 16, 2024 – Present | 1 yr, 349 days | 8 | beat Morgan State 54–7 | — present — |
No reigns match “.”
Membership is judged season by season from every game a team played, so realignment moves a team’s games with it. A holder that stays in MEAC keeps the belt through any stretch without a game against another member; a holder that leaves vacates the belt on its last game as a member, and it reverts to the most recent earlier holder that is a member of the season it left for. If no one is left to inherit it, the belt retires with its last holder. Days count the offseason; switch to games to measure a reign by belt games only.