History of the Salukis
The Southern Illinois Salukis are the varsity athletic teams representing Southern Illinois University Carbondale. The nickname comes from the Saluki, the Royal Dog of Egypt and the Persian greyhound, which ties into the fact that southern Illinois has had the nickname "Little Egypt" for just under 200 years.
The Salukis play their home basketball games at Banterra Center and football games at Saluki Stadium.
Southern Illinois University was a member of the Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Conference from 1913 to 1962. The school is currently a member of the Missouri Valley Conference in most sports. The football team is a member of the Division I Football Championship Subdivision Missouri Valley Football Conference.
College Sports Established
1869
Location
Carbondale, Illinois
College Name
Southern Illinois University
Collegiate History
1973 - Present / NCAA Division 1
1922 - 1973 / University Division of the NCAA
Conference History
1975 - Present / Missouri Valley Conference
1962 - 1975 / Independent
1914 - 1962 / Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Conference
Nickname
Salukis - SIU's sports mascot is the Saluki. A Saluki is one of the oldest dog breeds, dating back over 6000 years and is an Egyptian hunting dog. They are sight hounds and can run in excess of 42 mph. The greyhound, afghan, borzoi and whippet are derived from Saluki. SIU's teams originally competed under the team name "Maroons" from 1913 to 1951. Then the Saluki was chosen as SIU's mascot on March 19, 1951, in part because the southern Illinois region is colloquially known as Little Egypt.
NCAA Championships
Baseball 0
Men's Basketball 0
Women's Basketball 0
Football 0
Soccer 0
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