Coastal Athletic Association Football Conference

The Coastal Athletic Association Football Conference, formerly the Colonial Athletic Association Football Conference, branded as CAA Football, is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I whose full members are located in East Coast states, from Maine to North Carolina. Most of its members are public universities, and the conference is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. The conference is run by the same administration as the multisport conference Coastal Athletic Association (CAA; formerly the Colonial Athletic Association) but is legally a different entity.^[1]

For the related multi-sport conference, see Coastal Athletic Association.

Coastal Athletic Association Football Conference

Formerly	Colonial Athletic Association Football Conference
Conference	NCAA
Founded	2007
Sports fielded	1 men's: 1 (football)
Division	Division I
Subdivision	FCS
No. of teams	16 (14 in 2025)
Headquarters	Richmond, Virginia
Region	East Coast
Official website	caasports.com
Locations

History

CAA Football was formed in 2005, although it did not begin play until 2007, as a separate conference independent of the CAA, but administered by the CAA front office. In the 2004–05 academic year, the CAA had five member schools that sponsored football, all of them as football-only members of the Atlantic 10 Conference. In 2005, Northeastern accepted the CAA's offer of membership, giving the CAA the six football-playing members it needed under NCAA rules to organize a football conference. At that time, the CAA announced it would launch its new football conference in 2007. Next, the CAA invited the University of Richmond to become a football-only member effective in 2007. Once UR accepted the offer, this left the A10 football conference with only five members, less than the six required under NCAA rules. As a result, the remaining A10 football programs all decided to join the CAA for football only, ending A10 football. Since the CAA football conference had the same members as the A10 the previous year, it can be said that the CAA football conference is the A10 football conference under new management.

The CAA football conference's earliest roots are in the New England Conference, founded in 1938 by four state-supported universities in that region plus Northeastern; three of the public schools are currently in CAA Football. However, neither the multi-sports CAA nor CAA Football includes the New England Conference in CAA Football history.^[2] After the departure of Northeastern in 1945, the remaining members joined New England's other land-grant colleges, Massachusetts State College (now the University of Massachusetts Amherst) and the University of Vermont, to form the Yankee Conference under a new charter in 1946, with competition starting in 1947. That conference eventually dropped all sports other than football in 1975. Starting in the 1980s, it expanded to include many schools outside its original New England base. After the NCAA voted to limit the influence of single-sport conferences, the Yankee merged with the A-10 in 1997.

See also: 2010–2013 Colonial Athletic Association realignment

CAA Football went through many changes during the early 2010s with the loss of Georgia State, Massachusetts, and Old Dominion and the addition of Albany, Elon, and Stony Brook. Stability was maintained for a decade before the departure of James Madison in 2021 leading to the addition of Campbell, Hampton, Monmouth, North Carolina A&T, and Bryant from 2022 to 2024.

Coastal Athletic Association Football Conference

200km
125miles

Villanova

Campbell

Richmond

Rhode Island

New Hampshire

Maine

Albany

North Carolina A&T

Stony Brook

Hampton

Monmouth

William & Mary

Towson

Elon

Bryant

Delaware

  

Location of CAA members:
CAA Football member
Departing member

Timeline

• May 4, 2005 – CAA Football was formed with inaugural members Delaware, Hofstra, James Madison, Maine, New Hampshire, Northeastern, Rhode Island, Richmond, Towson, Massachusetts (UMass), Villanova, and William & Mary.^[3]

• May 31, 2006 – Old Dominion, at the time a member of the all-sports CAA, announced plans to add football for the 2009 season and join CAA Football in 2011.^{[4] [5]}

• June 11, 2009 – Georgia State, at the time a member of the all-sports CAA, announced the addition of Football in 2011, and joining the CAA football conference in 2012.^[6]

• November 9, 2009 – Northeastern announced plans to drop football after the 2009 season.^[7]

• December 3, 2009 – Hofstra also announced that the university would no longer be sponsoring football.^[8]

• June 1, 2010 – Due to the reduction of the conference, CAA Football did not use the division format for the 2010 season.

• April 20, 2011 – UMass announced that it would transition to FBS beginning fall 2011, and would become a football-only member of the Mid-American Conference (MAC).^[9][10]

• April 7, 2012 – Georgia State began an FBS transition in advance of its 2013 move to the Sun Belt Conference.^[11]

• May 17, 2012 – Old Dominion announced its plans to join Conference USA and transition to FBS status for the 2013 season.^[12]

• August 7, 2012 – Albany and Stony Brook both accepted offers of membership in CAA Football for the 2013 season.^[13]

• May 23, 2013 – Elon announced that the school would become a member of CAA Football and the all-sports CAA for the 2014 season.^[14]

• November 6, 2021 – James Madison announced its departure for the Sun Belt Conference and upgrade to FBS. Originally, JMU was slated to play the 2022 season as an FCS Independent before joining the Sun Belt in 2023, but JMU ended up joining a year earlier.^[15][16][17]

• January 25, 2022 – Hampton and Monmouth accept invitations to join CAA Football and the all-sports CAA for the 2022 season. Stony Brook, which joined CAA Football in 2013, also becomes a member of the all-sports conference.^[18]

• February 22, 2022 – North Carolina A&T accepts an invitation to join CAA Football for the 2023 season, a year after joining the all-sports CAA.^[19]

• August 3, 2022 – Campbell also accepts an invitation to join both sides of the CAA for the 2023 season.^[20]

• July 20, 2023 – CAA Football changed its full name to the Coastal Athletic Association Football Conference.^[21]

• August 10, 2023 – Bryant accepts an invitation to join CAA Football for the 2024 season.^[22]

• November 28, 2023 – Delaware announced its plans to join Conference USA and transition to FBS status for the 2025 season.^[23]

• May 14, 2024 – Richmond announced its departure from the CAA to join the Patriot League as an associate member for football for the 2025 season.^[24]

Member institutions

Current members

Institution	Location	Founded	Joined	Type	Enrollment	Nickname	Colors|	Primary Conference
State University of New York at Albany	Albany, New York	1844	2013	Public	17,944	Great Danes		AmEast
Bryant University	Smithfield, Rhode Island	1863	2024	Private	3,751	Bulldogs
Campbell University	Buies Creek, North Carolina	1887	2023	Private	5,622	Fighting Camels		CAA
University of Delaware	Newark, Delaware	1743	2007	Public[a]	23,281	Fightin' Blue Hens		CAA
Elon University	Elon, North Carolina	1889	2014	Private	6,991	Phoenix		CAA
Hampton University	Hampton, Virginia	1868	2022	Private (HBCU)	3,516	Pirates
University of Maine	Orono, Maine	1865	2007	Public	11,404	Black Bears		AmEast
Monmouth University	West Long Branch, New Jersey	1933	2022	Private	5,675	Hawks		CAA
University of New Hampshire	Durham, New Hampshire	1866	2007	Public	15,305	Wildcats		AmEast
North Carolina A&T State University	Greensboro, North Carolina	1891	2023	Public (HBCU)	13,332	Aggies		CAA
Towson University	Towson, Maryland	1866	2007	Public	22,923	Tigers
University of Rhode Island	Kingston, Rhode Island	1892			16,883	Rams		A-10
University of Richmond	Richmond, Virginia	1830	2007	Private	4,002	Spiders		A-10
Stony Brook University	Stony Brook, New York	1957	2013	Public	26,782	Seawolves		CAA
Villanova University	Villanova, Pennsylvania	1842	2007	Private	11,023	Wildcats		Big East
College of William & Mary	Williamsburg, Virginia	1693		Public	8,817	Tribe		CAA

Notes

1. Delaware is officially chartered as a "privately-governed, state-assisted" institution. This status is broadly similar to that of New York State's statutory colleges, most of which are housed at Cornell University, or institutions in Pennsylvania's Commonwealth System of Higher Education.

Former members

Institution	Location	Founded	Joined	Left	Type	Enrollment	Nickname	Colors|	Subsequent Football Conference	Current Football Conference
Hofstra University	Hempstead, New York	1935	2007	2009	Private	10,871	Pride		none (dropped football)
Georgia State University	Atlanta, Georgia	1913	2012	2013	Public	32,082	Panthers		Sun Belt (FBS)
James Madison University	Harrisonburg, Virginia	1908	2007	2022		21,227	Dukes
University of Massachusetts	Amherst, Massachusetts	1863		2012		28,635	Minutemen		MAC (FBS)	FBS Independent (MAC in 2025)
Northeastern University	Boston, Massachusetts	1898		2009	Private	21,627	Huskies		none (dropped football)
Old Dominion University	Norfolk, Virginia	1930	2011	2013	Public	24,932	Monarchs		CUSA (FBS)	Sun Belt (FBS)

Membership timeline

Current members  Former members  Other Conference  Other Conference 

Conference champions

*	Denotes a tie for regular season conference title
†	Denotes team failed to qualify for FCS Playoffs
Bold type	Denotes national champion in the same season

Year	Team(s)	Conference record	Overall record(s)	Head coach(es)
2007*	UMass Richmond	7–1	10–3 11–3	Don Brown Dave Clawson
2008	James Madison	8–0	12–2	Mickey Matthews
2009*	Richmond Villanova	7–1	11–2 14–1	Mike London Andy Talley
2010*	Delaware William & Mary	6–2	12–3 8–4	K. C. Keeler Jimmye Laycock
2011	Towson	7–1	9–3	Rob Ambrose
2012*	New Hampshire Richmond† Villanova Towson†	6–2[25]	8–3 8–3 8–3 7–4	Sean McDonnell Danny Rocco Andy Talley Rob Ambrose
2013	Maine	7–1	10–3	Jack Cosgrove
2014	New Hampshire	8–0	10–1	Sean McDonnell
2015*	James Madison Richmond William & Mary	6–2	9–2 8–3 8–3	Everett Withers Danny Rocco Jimmye Laycock
2016	James Madison	8–0	14–1	Mike Houston
2017	James Madison	8–0	14–1	Mike Houston
2018	Maine	7–1	10–4	Joe Harasymiak
2019	James Madison	8–0	14–2	Curt Cignetti
2020	Delaware	4–0	5−0	Danny Rocco
2021*	James Madison Villanova	7–1	10–1 9–2	Curt Cignetti Mark Ferrante
2022*	New Hampshire William & Mary	7–1	9–4 11–2	Ricky Santos Mike London
2023*	UAlbany Richmond Villanova	7–1	9–2 8–3 9–2	Greg Gattuso Russ Huesman Mark Ferrante

All-time conference championships

School	Championships	Outright championships	Years
James Madison ‡	6	4	2008, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2021
Richmond	5	0	2007, 2009, 2012, 2015, 2023
Villanova	4	0	2009, 2012, 2021, 2023
New Hampshire	3	1	2012, 2014, 2022
William & Mary	3	0	2010, 2015, 2022
Maine	2	2	2013, 2018
Delaware	2	1	2010, 2020a[26]
Towson	2	1	2011, 2012
UAlbany	1	0	2023
Massachusetts	1	0	2007

Co-championships are designated by italics.

BOLD denotes the team won the National Championship

^‡Former member of CAA Football

• ^a The CAA's 2020–21 NCAA Division I FCS football season was played in Spring 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Several teams opted out, and some games were canceled. The Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens completed the season with a 5-0 overall record, 4–0 in conference, and won the North Division title; the James Madison Dukes completed the season with a 5-0 overall record, 3–0 in conference, and won the South Division title. A vote of the CAA athletic directors, not including Delaware or James Madison, was held to determine a champion. The Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens were declared the 2020 CAA football champions as a result of this vote and were awarded the automatic qualifier for the FCS playoffs.^[26]

NCAA FCS National Championships

School	Championships	Finals appearances	Won	Lost
James Madison	2	4	2004*, 2016	2017, 2019
Delaware	1	4	2003*	1982†, 2007, 2010
Villanova	1	1	2009
UMass	1	3	1998*	1978, 2006^
Richmond	1	1	2008
Towson	0	1		2013

†Delaware was an NCAA I-AA independent in the 1982 season.

*Won as a member of the Atlantic 10 Conference.

^UMass became a football-only member in the MAC in 2013, and an independent football member of FBS beginning with the 2016 season.

All-time NFL Draft selections

Year	Round	Selection	Player	Position	College	NFL team
2008	1	18	Joe Flacco	Quarterback	Delaware	Baltimore Ravens
	4	125	Arman Shields	Wide receiver	Richmond	Oakland Raiders
	5	149	Tim Hightower	Running back	Richmond	Arizona Cardinals
	6	207	Matt Sherry	Tight end	Villanova	Cincinnati Bengals
2009	3	73	Derek Cox	Cornerback	William & Mary	Jacksonville Jaguars
	4	125	Lawrence Sidbury	Defensive end	Richmond	Atlanta Falcons
2010	2	61	Vladimir Ducasse	Offensive tackle	UMass	New York Jets
	6	178	Arthur Moats	Defensive end	James Madison	Buffalo Bills
		184	Adrian Tracy	Linebacker	William & Mary	New York Giants
		203	Scotty McGee	Kick returner	James Madison	Jacksonville Jaguars
	7	234	Sean Lissemore	Defensive tackle	William & Mary	Dallas Cowboys
2011	2	49	Ben Ijalana	Offensive tackle	Villanova	Indianapolis Colts
	7	206	Justin Rogers	Cornerback	Richmond	Buffalo Bills
2012	4	98	Gino Gradkowski	Guard	Delaware	Baltimore Ravens
		133	Jerron McMillian	Safety	Maine	Green Bay Packers
2013	4	114	B. W. Webb	Cornerback	William & Mary	Dallas Cowboys
		116	Earl Watford	Guard	James Madison	Arizona Cardinals
	5	152	Cooper Taylor	Safety	Richmond	New York Giants
	7	241	Jared Smith	Defensive tackle	New Hampshire	Seattle Seahawks
2014	3	94	Terrance West	Running back	Towson	Cleveland Browns
	6	184	Kendall James	Cornerback	Maine	Minnesota Vikings
2015	5	171	Nick Boyle	Tight End	Delaware	Baltimore Ravens
	7	245	Tre McBride	Wide receiver	William & Mary	Tennessee Titans
2016	6	185	DeAndre Houston-Carson	Cornerback	William & Mary	Chicago Bears
	7	239	Trevor Bates	Linebacker	Maine	Indianapolis Colts
2017	2	59	Tanoh Kpassagnon	Defensive end	Villanova	Kansas City Chiefs
	7	236	Brad Seaton	Offensive tackle	Villanova	Tennessee Titans
2018	4	108	Kyle Lauletta	Quarterback	Richmond	New York Giants
	5	145	Bilal Nichols	Defensive tackle	Delaware	Chicago Bears
	6	192	Jamil Demby	Offensive tackle	Maine	Los Angeles Rams
2019	2	60	Nasir Adderley	Safety	Delaware	Los Angeles Chargers
	6	193	Oli Udoh	Offensive tackle	Elon	Minnesota Vikings
	7	227	Jimmy Moreland	Cornerback	James Madison	Washington Redskins
2020	5	171	Isaiah Coulter	Wide receiver	Rhode Island	Houston Texans
	7	231	Ben DiNucci	Quarterback	James Madison	Dallas Cowboys
2022	6	185	Christian Benford	Cornerback	Villanova	Buffalo Bills
2023	5	152	Colby Sorsdal	Offensive tackle	William & Mary	Detroit Lions
2024	6	208	Dylan Laube	Running back	New Hampshire	Las Vegas Raiders

Conference facilities

Departing members in pink. Future members in gray.

School	Football stadium	Capacity
Albany	Bob Ford Field at Tom & Mary Casey Stadium	8,500
Bryant	Beirne Stadium	5,500
Campbell	Barker–Lane Stadium	5,500
Delaware	Delaware Stadium	18,500
Elon	Rhodes Stadium	11,250
Hampton	Armstrong Stadium	10,000
Maine	Harold Alfond Sports Stadium	8,419
Monmouth	Kessler Field	4,600
New Hampshire	Wildcat Stadium	11,015
North Carolina A&T	Truist Stadium	21,500
Rhode Island	Meade Stadium	6,580
Richmond	E. Claiborne Robins Stadium	8,700
Stony Brook	Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium	12,300
Towson	Johnny Unitas Stadium	11,198
Villanova	Villanova Stadium	12,500
William & Mary	Walter J. Zable Stadium	12,259

References

1. "CAA Changes Official Conference Name To Coastal Athletic Association" (Press release). Coastal Athletic Association. July 20, 2023. Retrieved July 20, 2023. The name change will carry over to the league's football conference, which will be officially recognized as the Coastal Athletic Association Football Conference but continue to be referred to as the CAA Football Conference.
2. "The CAA & CAA Football". Coastal Athletic Association. Retrieved July 25, 2023. The conference [CAA Football] celebrated 75 years in 2022, with its roots tracing back to the Yankee Conference (1947-1996) and the Atlantic 10 Football Conference (1997-2006) before CAA Football begin (sic) in 2007.
3. "CAA TO BEGIN SPONSORING DIVISION I-AA FOOTBALL IN 2007". Colonial Athletic Association. May 4, 2005. Archived from the original on April 11, 2023. Retrieved May 13, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
4. "Football to be added to ODU sports programs in 2009". Old Dominion Athletics. May 31, 2006. Archived from the original on February 12, 2009. Retrieved August 20, 2011.
5. Ducibella, Jim (January 24, 2007). "ODU football closing in on necessary endowment". The Virginian-Pilot. Retrieved April 21, 2008.
6. "Frequently Asked Questions About Georgia State Football". GeorgiaStateSports.com. April 16, 2008. Archived from the original on September 30, 2011. Retrieved August 20, 2011.
7. Ryan, Andrew (November 23, 2009). "Northeastern calls an end to football". The Boston Globe. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
8. "Hofstra makes 'painful but clear' choice to drop football". CBSSports.com. December 3, 2009. Retrieved July 4, 2013.
9. Carey, Jack (April 20, 2011). "UMass football to join FBS, Mid-American Conference". USA Today. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
10. "UMass Announces Elevation to FBS Football and Invitation to MAC" (Press release). UMass Athletics. April 20, 2011. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
11. McMurphy, Brett (April 7, 2012). "Sun Belt adding Georgia State". College Football Insider (CBSSports.com). Retrieved April 9, 2012.
12. "Old Dominion to join Conference USA in 2013". Fox News. Sports Network. May 17, 2012. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
13. "Albany and Stony Brook Accept CAA Football Membership Offers" (Press release). Colonial Athletic Association. August 7, 2012. Retrieved August 18, 2012.
14. "Elon University Accepts Invitation To Join The CAA In 2014-15" (Press release). Colonial Athletic Association. May 23, 2013. Retrieved May 23, 2013.
15. "James Madison's move to Sun Belt would trigger messy divorce from CAA". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2022-01-22.
16. Eck, T. J. (November 5, 2021). "Update: JMU accepts invite to join the Sun Belt Conference". WHSV-TV. Archived from the original on 2021-11-05. Retrieved January 22, 2022.
17. Vannini, Charlie. "James Madison will join Sun Belt in all sports starting in fall 2022: Sources". The Athletic. Retrieved February 1, 2022.
18. "CAA Welcomes Hampton University, Monmouth University and Stony Brook University as New Members" (Press release). Colonial Athletic Association. January 25, 2022. Retrieved January 25, 2022.
19. "CAA Welcomes North Carolina A&T as Newest Member of the Conference" (Press release). Colonial Athletic Association. February 22, 2022. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
20. "Campbell University Accepts Invitation To Join The CAA In 2023" (Press release). Colonial Athletic Association. August 3, 2022. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
21. "CAA Changes Official Conference Name To Coastal Athletic Association" (Press release). Coastal Athletic Association. July 20, 2023. Retrieved July 20, 2023.
22. "CAA Football Welcomes Bryant University As Its Newest Member In 2024" (Press release). CAA Football. August 10, 2023. Retrieved August 10, 2023.
23. "Delaware Accepts Invitation to Join Conference USA as Full Member". University of Delaware Athletics. Retrieved 2023-11-28.
24. "Richmond Football to Move to Patriot League Following 2024 Season" (Press release). Richmond Spiders Athletics. May 14, 2024. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
25. Old Dominion had the league's best regular-season record at 7–1 in the CAA and 10–1 overall, but was ineligible for the conference title. Under CAA bylaws of the time, a school that announced its future departure immediately became ineligible for CAA tournaments or championships in team sports.
26. Washburn, Rob (April 17, 2021). "Delaware Selected As CAA Football Champion And Automatic Bid Recipient To NCAA FCS Playoffs". Colonial Athletic Association.

External links

• Official website