EIU Quick Facts & Additional Information Link
Eastern Illinois University is located in Charleston, Illinois, in the East Central portion of the state. The University is easily accessible from two major interstates, I-57 and I-70. EIU is also located only a short drive from three major metropolitan areas - Chicago (3 hours), Indianapolis (2 hours) and St. Louis (2 hours).
Panther intercollegiate athletics have been around almost as long as the University has been in existence. While it may not have been a priority when the campus admitted its first student body in the fall of 1899, football quickly became one of the first extra curricular activities on campus. Three weeks into that opening semester the athletic association was formed, and 45 days after the first doors opened EIU played its initial intercollegiate game.
Since those early days, EIU athletics has expanded to now include 21 intercollegiate sports playing as the NCAA Division I level (FCS for football). EIU is a member of the Ohio Valley Conference for 17 sports with men's soccer, men's and women's swimming competing as associated members of The Summit League (formerly Mid-Continent Conference) and women's rugby playing as an NCAA Division I independent.
