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| School Name: | Sam Houston State University |
| Location: | Huntsville, Texas |
| Arena: | Bernard Johnson Coliseum |
| Capacity: | 6,100 |
| Conference: | Conference USA |
| Head coach: | Jason Hooten |
Sam Houston State University (known as SHSU and Sam, for short), founded in 1879, is a public university located in Huntsville, Texas. It is one of the oldest purpose-built institutions for the instruction of teachers west of the Mississippi River and the first such institution of its type in the State of Texas and the southwestern United States. It is named for one of Texas' founding fathers, Sam Houston, who made his home in the city. The university is part of the Texas State University System and is a comprehensive, doctoral granting university enrolling approximately 16,000 undergraduate and graduate students. The university dropped the word "State" from its athletic branding in 2020.
Sam Houston's colors are orange and white and its nickname is the Bearkats. In 2022, Sam Houston's football team started a transition from NCAA Division I FCS to FBS in advance of the school's 2023 move to Conference USA (CUSA). Before that time, it had been a member of the Western Athletic Conference. Before the CUSA move, SHSU's primary rival had been Stephen F. Austin State University, and tensions between the two schools still run high before major sporting events that pit one against the other.
Sam Houston's Bearkat is represented by the mascot team of Sammy and Samantha Bearkat who entertain and lead crowds in cheers during sporting events. Sammy's two minute routine earned him a national championship of the mascots division at the 2005 United Spirit Association Collegiate National Championship.