The deal was finalized at the Chat 'n' Chew restaurant in Turbeville, South Carolina, a town halfway between Conway and Columbia.

A year later, the USC system's board of trustees lent its support to independent status for Coastal.

Ronald R. Ingle, the last chancellor of Coastal Carolina College, became the newly minted university's first president.

Throughout the 2010s, the university experienced a building boom achieved as a result of a local 1-cent sales tax for education-related construction (the present Brittain Hall was originally dubbed "Penny Hall" in honor of the penny tax that helped fund its construction).

In 2016, the Chanticleers baseball team won the College World Series, the first national title for the university.

On July 1, 2016, the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers athletic programs officially joined the Sun Belt Conference.

In October 2020, Coastal Carolina University announced the appointment of Michael T. Benson as its third president and ninth leader.

The University’s newest college began operating on July 1, 2022, and is supported by a University-record $10 million donation from Conway Medical Center.

The press is a student-driven publishing lab that offers students professional-level hands-on experience in authoring, designing and producing innovative stories.

[19] The Gupta College of Science offers 13 areas of study ranging from applied statistics to psychology as well as 18 minors and one certificate program.

The Burroughs & Chapin Center for Marine and Wetland Studies is the research and community outreach arm of the college.

Opened in 1977, the Kimbel Library provides research collections and resources to support students, faculty, and the surrounding community.

[23] In 2021, it was announced that the Kimbel Library would undergo a $10 million renovation that will include an interior redesign and reconfiguration, upgrades to the HVAC system, and a multi-function instruction area.

The library is named in memory of longtime Conway residents John and Barbara (Richardson) Thompson, who gave a $4.425 million estate gift to the University.

Coastal Carolina University is home to the Chanticleer Company of the U.S. Army ROTC program.

The recreation center features a large workout area with cardio machines, weight training, and a full indoor track.

It is also home to several group exercise studios, a rock climbing wall, as well as ping pong tables.

Over the years, they have passed legislation to create the HTC Center, Rowdy Rooster, and have made replacement CINO cards free to students.

[33] From 1983 through the 2015–16 school year, Coastal Carolina's athletic programs competed in NCAA Division I as a member of the Big South Conference, while the football team, which began play in 2003, competed in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).

[34] The football team plays at the 20,000-seat Brooks Stadium, which is notable for its teal artificial turf.

The NCAA requires FBS programs to maintain an average attendance of at least 15,000 over a rolling two-year cycle.

The university's teams are affectionately known as the Chants (pronounced "shonts") and the mascot itself is named Chauncey.

The university also has a live rooster (Chanticleer) that appears at events periodically, such as home football games.

The championship was won mere hours before Coastal officially joined the Sun Belt.