In a surprising move, North American University announced Monday that it had discontinued its football program. The Stallions program began under athletic director and head coach Kenneth Apande during the pandemic in 2020 and completed its fourth season of competition in 2024.

“This was a difficult decision, backed by the Board of Trustees, that aims to direct investment to the things that make North American University exceptional,” Apande said in a statement. “Our goal is to still compete in the eight NAIA and USCAA sports that will remain an integral part of the NAU experience.”

The Stallions posted an 8-32 overall record and a 2-14 mark in the Sooner Athletic Conference. However, NAU has had difficulty becoming recognized as a full-time member of the NAIA. Although the university obtained national accreditation, it has not secured the regional accreditation necessary to achieve full-time status.

NAU’s football program was met with skepticism during the 2021 season when ESPN broadcast their game against Lamar without the university’s logo on the screen, which led one outlet to accuse the university of being owned by an alleged terrorist and was blacklisted by the NCAA.

In reality, the NCAA did not count the results of contests against NAU towards its member institutions' official records because the Stallions were unable to become associate members of the NAIA.