by Jay Waagmeester, Florida Phoenix
March 11, 2026
Florida Polytechnic University will add sports this summer, making it the last public university in the state to add athletics.
Florida Poly, the newest state university, will launch men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s cross-country, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, and softball.
The Lakeland institution is seeking entrance to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics and the Sun Conference. The university plans to compete as soon as August. Poly has already scheduled men’s and women’s soccer bouts in late August against New College of Florida in Sarasota.
“Florida Poly is already one of the nation’s top-ranked STEM universities, and this new program builds on that momentum,” Bryan Brooks, vice president for student affairs, enrollment management, and strategic communications, said in a news release. “There are a lot of high school students who are passionate about STEM and very involved in athletics. We want to give them a place to do both.”
Florida Polytechnic is dedicated to engineering and applied science programs. It was established in 2012.
The university estimates more than 150 new students will join the student population because of sports.
Its mascot is the Phoenix.
Interest from existing and prospective students drove the move, according to the university.
“For a student to be successful, they have to be committed and excel in the classroom while having an experience outside the classroom that helps them grow into the well-rounded, successful, impactful leaders we know they can be upon graduation,” Brooks said. “That’s where athletics comes in.”
College athletics has transformed in recent years, with student athletes eligible to profit off their name, image, and likeness.
New College of Florida is the most recent school to add sports, doing so in 2023.
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