Tampa Tops 2025-26 SSC Men’s Mayors’ Cup Standings

Tampa Tops 2025-26 SSC Men’s Mayors’ Cup Standings

Bookmark and Share

Tampa wins its first Mayors’ Cup since 1993.

A.J. Vazquez, Communications Contractor

Founded in 1975, Sunshine State Conference member institutions have won a total of 138 NCAA national championships across 15 sports and boast an NCAA Division II leading 89% Academic Success Rate. In 2025-26, the SSC marks its 50th anniversary, reflecting on a proud history of athletic and academic excellence.

ORLANDO, Fla. –  The University of Tampa claims its sixth Sunshine State Conference Mayors’ Cup all-sports trophy. This marks the Spartans’ first Mayors’ Cup title since the 1992-93 academic year. 

For nearly 40 years, the SSC’s all-sports trophy has symbolized excellence and sportsmanship. Founded in the 1986-87 academic year, the award is named in honor of the mayors from member school communities who first sponsored the trophy, a tradition that remains in place today.

Starting this academic year, Mayors’ Cup standings are determined by an institution’s average points earned per sponsored sport, replacing the previous system that ranked institutions based on total points earned. 

Scoring is based on regular-season finish in sports with conference standings, while championship finish is used for cross country, golf, outdoor track, and swimming. An institution’s average is calculated by dividing its total points by the number of sports it sponsors, with the highest average points per sport earning the Mayors’ Cup.

In sports where all 11 member institutions compete, points are awarded on an 11-to-1 scale, with 11 points for first place and one point for 11th. In sports with fewer participating teams, first-place points are adjusted to reflect the number of competing institutions. Ties in SSC regular-season standings are broken using head-to-head results to determine point allocation. If a tie remains unresolved, the points are split between the tied institutions.

Through the first seven years of the Mayors’ Cup, Tampa won at least a share of the award five times. The Spartans had not won another until now. They scored 56 points across eight sponsored sports to earn an average of 7.0 points per sport, fueled by four first-place finishes throughout the year

They opened the year averaging 5.0 points per sport after the fall season, with a third-place finish in cross country and a ninth-place finish in soccer. In the winter, the Spartans picked up their first championship in swimming and added a fifth-place finish in basketball to bring their point total to 24 and average to 7.0 points per sport. 

Things picked up in the spring, when Tampa won three SSC titles in baseball, lacrosse and outdoor track, accounting for 29 points. The Spartans earned 32 points in the spring alone, accounting for more than half of their total point production. A strong finish to the year brought their total to 56 points with a conference-best average of 7.0 points per sport. 

Florida Southern College finished second with an average of 6.889 points per sport, while Nova Southeastern University followed closely in third with an average of 6.786 points.

2025-26 SSC Mayors’ Cup Standings:

  1. Tampa (7.000)

  2. Florida Southern (6.889)

  3. Nova Southeastern (6.786)

  4. Rollins (5.857)

  5. Lynn (5.444)

  6. Florida Tech (5.000)

  7. Barry (4.938)

  8. Palm Beach Atlantic (4.875)

  9. Embry-Riddle (4.750)

  10. Saint Leo (4.375)

  11. Eckerd (3.000) 

SSC Mayors' Cup History | 2025-26 Points Breakdown (PDF)