The Mercer Bears are the athletic teams of Mercer University in Macon, Georgia. Mercer is an NCAA Division I member competing in the Atlantic Sun Conference for most sports. The lacrosse team competes as an NCAA Division I independent; football will compete in the Pioneer Football League when the program begins in 2013. Mercer joined the Atlantic Sun, formerly called the Trans American Athletic Conference, in 1978 and is the only charter member remaining with the conference. Mercer is the only private university in Georgia with a NCAA Division I athletic program. The university fields eight men's and nine women's teams. read more