Cardinals unveil six-game Southland spring schedule

Incarnate Word is slated to play a six-game, conference-only football schedule beginning Feb. 20 and running through April 10, the Southland Conference announced Tuesday.

The move to spring football follows the conference’s decision Aug. 12 to postpone fall sports competition in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

While four of the league’s schools chose to play exclusively nonconference schedules through the fall, UIW is among the remaining seven Southland teams that will compete for a league title and a berth in the FCS playoffs in the spring.

UIW faces Sam Houston State, Southeastern Louisiana and

Northwestern State at home and travels for matchups against Lamar, McNeese and Nicholls.

“While the spring playing opportunity will be different in many ways, we are looking forward to providing this competitive and championship opportunity,” Southland commissioner Tom Burnett said in a statement. “The prospect of competing for an FCS national championship with multiple teams in the postseason is an annual goal for the league.” The NCAA approved a maximum of eight games in a 13-week period that begins Jan. 23, leaving UIW the option to add up to two nonconference games. A program spokesperson said Tuesday that UIW will not pursue the possibility, playing only the scheduled Southland contests.

The Southland’s regular-season champion earns a spot in the adjusted FCS playoffs. The field has been reduced from 24 to 16 teams, with 11 automatic qualifiers joined by five at-large bids. The first three rounds will be played on campus sites beginning April 24, building to a championship game at Frisco’s Toyota Stadium the weekend of May 15-16.