The first athletic team at Carleton, dating back to 1887, the Knights continue to enjoy success in the present day. Head coach Aaron Rushing is Carleton’s all time leader in wins with 177 victories.

The men's basketball team has qualified for the MIAC Playoffs 13 times in the last 18 seasons. Kevin Grow '18 earned All-America recognition and Kent Hanson '20 has taken home multiple All-MIAC awards.

The men’s cross country team won its second straight and fifth overall MIAC crown in 2018. Overall, the program has 25 conference titles and one national title (1980). The Knights have advanced to the NCAA Championships 24 times, including a 14th place showing in 2018.

The Knights have 57 winning seasons and 465 victories in the history of the program. The Knights had five players recognized as All-MIAC performers during the 2018 season.

Men's Golf has one of the longest and most storied histories of any athletic program at Carleton. Men's Golf sports the Knights’ first individual national champion in Wally Ulrich '47, who captured the 1943 national title playing against mostly Division I competition. The team won 12 Midwest Conference titles before moving to the MIAC in 1983.

The Knights have advanced to the postseason every year since 2007. The 2018 NCAA Championships run ended with a 2-1 loss at No. 3 Chicago.

Since 1995 the Knights have produced 156 all-conference performances, 41 individual conference titles, 17 All-Americans, 16 Honorable Mention All-Americans and have placed in fourth or better in the MIAC Championships 18 times, highlighted by third-place finishes in 2008, 2013, 2014, and 2015.

The Knights set a team record having eight members of the squad earning All-MIAC honors during the 2018 season, including Leo Vithoontien '21 who captured All-America status. Head Coach Stephan Zweifel, is a five-time MIAC Men’s Tennis Coach of the Year (2002, 2003, 2004, 2008, and 2017), and has guided the Knights to two of the three NCAA Championship appearances in school history (2004 and 2010).

Since 2004, the Knights have seen 13 All-America performances and a total of 127 All-MIAC performances. The Knights produced 47 MIAC event titles over that same span. Most recently, Matthew Wilkinson '21 won the 5000-meter run and Lucas Mueller '21 won both the mile and 3000-meter runs at the 2019 MIAC Indoor Championships. The Knights also took home the conference title in the distance medley relay.