 | |
| Formerly | Eastern Collegiate Basketball League (1976–77) Eastern Athletic Association (1977–82) Eastern 8 (unofficial, 1976–82) |
|---|---|
| Association | NCAA |
| Founded | 1976; 49 years ago (1976) |
| Commissioner | Bernadette McGlade |
| Sports fielded |
|
| Division | Division I |
| Subdivision | non-football |
| No. of teams | 14 |
| Headquarters | Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Region | Eastern United States Midwestern United States |
| Broadcasters | ESPN NBC Sports |
| Official website | atlantic10.com |
| Locations | |
 | |
TheAtlantic 10 Conference (A-10) is a collegiateathletic conference whose schools compete in theNational Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA)Division I. The A-10's member schools are located mostly on theEast Coast andMidwest of the United States:Illinois,Missouri,New York,North Carolina,Ohio,Pennsylvania,Rhode Island,Virginia, andWashington, D.C.
Although some of its members are state-funded, half of its membership is made up of private,Catholic institutions. Despite the name, there are 14 full-time members in the conference; three affiliate members participate in women'sfield hockey and men'slacrosse.
The conference's commissioner since 2008 is Bernadette McGlade. In fall 2023 the A-10 moved its headquarters fromNewport News, Virginia, to Washington, D.C.
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The Atlantic 10 Conference was founded in 1975 as theEastern Collegiate Basketball League (ECBL) and began conference play in 1976. At that time, basketball was its only sport. After its first season, it added sports other than basketball and changed its name to theEastern Athletic Association. However, despite its official names, it was popularly known as theEastern 8, as it then had eight members (Villanova, Duquesne, Penn State, West Virginia, George Washington, Massachusetts, Pittsburgh, and Rutgers).
After changes in membership that saw charter membersVillanova andPittsburgh leave (in 1980 and 1982, respectively) and new membersSt. Bonaventure (1979),Rhode Island (1980),Saint Joseph's (1982), andTemple (1982) enter, establishing the league with 10 members, the conference adopted the current Atlantic 10 name in 1982.
Further membership changes saw the league expand to its maximum of 16 members. From 1997 through 2006, the league also operateda football conference; during that period, more than 20 schools were participating in A-10 competition in at least one sport. This ended when the A-10 football programs all departed to joina new football conference sponsored by the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA; now known as theCoastal Athletic Association). In 2012, Butler joined the conference after leaving theHorizon League and VCU joined after leaving the CAA.
Conference realignment in 2013 saw the departure of Temple to theAmerican Athletic Conference, Butler and Xavier to thereconfiguredBig East, and Charlotte toConference USA. George Mason joined from the CAA, and Davidson from theSouthern Conference announced it would join in 2014.
The league headquarters is located inWashington, DC. In the Fall of 2023 they relocated the HQ fromNewport News, Virginia where it had been located since fall 2009.[1] Prior to that, the headquarters was inPhiladelphia, within a few miles of member schools Saint Joseph's and La Salle.
The conference currently has media deals withESPN,CBS Sports Network,NBC Sports, and digital broadcasts with ESPN+.
On November 16, 2021,Loyola University Chicago announced that its athletic program - theLoyola Ramblers - would leave theMissouri Valley Conference and join the A-10 effective July 1, 2022.[2] On May 23, 2022, the addition of men's lacrosse was announced for the 2023 season. The four full members that sponsor the sport (Richmond, St. Bonaventure, Saint Joseph's, UMass) were joined by new affiliate membersHigh Point andHobart.[3]
On December 14, 2023, the conference announced a five-year media deal with its current affiliates, ESPN, CBS, and NBC. The deal would expand basketball coverage and revenue for the schools. The first year of the new contract is the 2024-2025 season and runs through the 2028-29 season.[4]
In late February 2024, it was announced that the 2024-25 season for UMass sports will be the last season as members of the Atlantic 10. The Minutemen will rejoin theMid-American Conference (MAC) as a full member beginning in 2025.[5][6]
The following is a list of the full members of the conference and the year they joined:
The "joined" column indicates the calendar year in which each school became an A-10 associate, which for spring sports such as lacrosse is the year before the first season of competition.
| Institution | Location | Founded | Joined | Type | Enrollment | Nickname | Primary conference | A-10 sport |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Delaware | Newark, Delaware | 1743 | 2025 | Public[a] | 23,774[8] | Blue Hens | CUSA | Men's lacrosse |
| High Point University | High Point, North Carolina | 1924 | 2022 | Private (Methodist) | 4,545 | Panthers | Big South | Men's lacrosse |
| Hobart College | Geneva, New York | 1822 | 2022 | Private – Nonsectarian | 2,105 | Statesmen | Liberty[b] | Men's lacrosse |
| Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania | Lock Haven, Pennsylvania | 1870 | 2010 | Public (PASSHE) | 3,425 | Bald Eagles | PSAC[c] | Field hockey |
| University of Massachusetts Amherst | Amherst, Massachusetts | 1863 | 2025[d] | Public (University of Massachusetts) | 30,593 | Minutemen | MAC | Men's lacrosse |
None of these institutions played football in the A-10 during their tenure as full members.
| Institution | Location | Founded | Type | Enrollment | Joined | Left | Nickname | Primary conference | A-10 sport |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saint Francis University | Loretto, Pennsylvania | 1847 | Private - Catholic (Franciscan) | 2,449 | 2013–14 | 2019–20 | Red Flash | NEC (D-IIIPAC in 2026) | Field hockey |
| West Chester University | West Chester, Pennsylvania | 1880 | Public (PASSHE) | 13,271 (full-time) 2,576 (part-time) | 1996–97 | 2010–11 | Golden Rams | PSAC[a] | field hockey |
After expansion in theColonial Athletic Association brought that conference to 6 football-playing schools, it was agreed that the CAA would take over management of the Atlantic 10's football conference starting in the 2007–08 school year as the legally separate entity ofCAA Football. All the schools on this list (except Boston U. and Connecticut) were in the A-10 football conference when it became CAA Football, but Hofstra and Northeastern discontinued their football programs after the 2009–10 school year. Membership dates include time in theYankee Conference (which was an all-sports conference from the 1947–48 to 1975–76 seasons, and a football-only conference after that) which merged into the A-10 in the 1997–98 school year.
| Institution | Location | Founded | Type | Enrollment | Joined | Left | Nickname | Primary conference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston University | Boston, Massachusetts | 1839 | Private | 29,978 | 1973–74 | 1997–98[a] | Terriers | Independent (1975–76 to 1978–79) America East (1979–80 to 2012–13) Patriot League (since 2013–14) |
| University of Connecticut | Storrs, Connecticut | 1881 | Public | 25,583 | 1947–48 | 1999–2000[b] | Huskies | Independent (1975–76 to 1978–79) Big East (1979–80 to 2012–13) American (2013–14 to 2019–20) Big East (since 2020–21) |
| University of Delaware | Newark, Delaware | 1743 | Public | 19,391 | 1986–87 | 2006–07 | Fightin' Blue Hens | East Coast (1986–87 to 1990–91) America East (1991–92 to 2000–01) CAA (2001–02 to 2024–25) CUSA (since 2025–26) |
| Hofstra University | Hempstead, New York | 1935 | Private | 12,400 | 2001–02 | 2006–07[c] | Pride | CAA (since 2001–02) |
| James Madison University | Harrisonburg, Virginia | 1908 | Public | 19,927 | 1993–94 | 2006–07 | Dukes | CAA (1979–80 to 2021–22) SBC (since 2022–23) |
| University of Maine | Orono, Maine | 1865 | Public | 10,901 | 1947–48 | 2006–07 | Black Bears | Independent (1975–76 to 1978–79) America East (since 1979–80) |
| University of New Hampshire | Durham, New Hampshire | 1866 | Public | 11,942 | 1947–48 | 2006–07 | Wildcats | Independent (1975–76 to 1978–79) America East (since 1979–80) |
| Northeastern University | Boston, Massachusetts | 1898 | Private | 12,913 | 1993–94 | 2006–07[d] | Huskies | America East (1979–80 to 2004–05) CAA (since 2005–06) |
| Towson University | Towson, Maryland | 1866 | Public | 21,950 | 2004–05 | 2006–07 | Tigers | CAA (1979–80 to 1980–81; since 2001–02) |
| Villanova University[e] | Villanova, Pennsylvania | 1842 | Private | 10,482 | 1988–89 | 2006–07 | Wildcats | Big East (1980–81 to 2012–13) Big East (since 2013–14) |
| The College of William & Mary | Williamsburg, Virginia | 1693 | Public | 8,258 | 1993–94 | 2006–07 | Tribe | CAA (since 1979–80) |
Full membersFull members (non-football)Associate members (football only)Assoc. member (list sports)
Notes
* - Virginia Tech did not participate in wrestling.
There are a number of intense rivalries within the Atlantic 10,[under discussion] with rivalries that carry over from theBig 5 which includes Saint Joseph's, La Salle, and Temple (now in theAmerican Athletic Conference). URI and UMass also have a long-standing rivalry. St. Bonaventure and Duquesne also maintain a rivalry that predates their affiliation with the conference. UMass and Temple also had a basketball rivalry whileJohn Chaney was coaching Temple but it has died down a bit since, and even more so now that Temple has left the conference. The long-standing crosstown rivalry between Richmond and VCU, now known as theCapital City Classic, became a conference rivalry with VCU's arrival in the A10. Rivals St. Louis and Dayton play each year in basketball for the Arch-Baron Cup. George Washington and George Mason compete annually in the Revolutionary Rivalry across all sports.
In the 2021–22 academic year, the Atlantic 10 Conference sponsors championship competition in ten men's and thirteen women's NCAA sanctioned sports, with lacrosse becoming the 10th sponsored men's sport in 2022–23 and women's golf becoming the 13th sponsored women's sport in 2024–25.[9] In addition to the 15 full members,Lock Haven andSaint Francis is an affiliate member in field hockey.High Point andHobart became men's lacrosse affiliates in July 2022.Delaware will join as a men's lacrosse affiliate on July 1, 2025 and UMass will compete as a men's lacrosse affiliate when the majority of its sports join the Mid-American Conference on July 1, 2025.
| Sport | Men's | Women's |
|---|---|---|
| Baseball | 12 | – |
| Basketball | 15 | 15 |
| Cross Country | 15 | 15 |
| Field hockey | – | 8 |
| Golf | 11 | 6 |
| Lacrosse | 7 | 10 |
| Rowing | – | 9 |
| Soccer | 14 | 15 |
| Softball | – | 10 |
| Swimming &Diving | 8 | 11 |
| Tennis | 10 | 13 |
| Track and Field (Indoor) | 10 | 14 |
| Track and Field (Outdoor) | 13 | 15 |
| Volleyball | – | 10 |
| School | Baseball | Basketball | Cross Country | Golf | Lacrosse | Soccer | Swimming & Diving | Tennis | Track & Field (Indoor) | Track & Field (Outdoor) | Total A-10 Sports |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Davidson | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 9 |
| Dayton | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | 6 |
| Duquesne | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | 5 |
| Fordham | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 9 |
| George Mason | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 9 |
| George Washington | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | 7 |
| La Salle | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | 8 |
| Loyola Chicago | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | 6 |
| Rhode Island | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | 7 |
| Richmond | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | No | 6 |
| St. Bonaventure | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes[a] | 9 |
| Saint Joseph's | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | 9 |
| Saint Louis | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 8 |
| VCU | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | 8 |
| Associate Members | |||||||||||
| Delaware | Yes | 1 | |||||||||
| High Point | Yes | 1 | |||||||||
| Hobart | Yes | 1 | |||||||||
| Massachusetts | Yes | 1 | |||||||||
| Totals | 12 | 14 | 14 | 11 | 3+4 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 9 | 11.5[a] | 105+4 |
| School | Football | Ice hockey | Rowing[a] | Sailing[b] | Squash[c] | Volleyball | Water polo | Wrestling |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Davidson | Pioneer | No | No | No | No | No | No | SoCon |
| Dayton | Pioneer | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| Duquesne | Northeast | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| Fordham | Patriot | No | No | IRA | MAISA | No | CWPA N | No |
| George Mason | No | No | No | No | No | EIVA | No | MAC |
| George Washington | No | No | No | No | No | No | CWPA SE | No |
| La Salle | No | No | IRA | No | No | No | No | No |
| Loyola Chicago | No | No | No | No | No | MIVA | No | No |
| Rhode Island | CAA Football | No | No | NEISA | No | No | No | No |
| Richmond | Patriot | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| St. Bonaventure | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| Saint Joseph's | No | No | IRA | No | No | No | No | No |
| School | Basketball | Cross Country | Field Hockey | Golf | Lacrosse | Rowing | Soccer | Softball | Swimming & Diving | Tennis | Track & Field (Indoor) | Track & Field (Outdoor) | Volleyball | Total A-10 Sports |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Davidson | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 10 |
| Dayton | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 10 |
| Duquesne | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 11 |
| Fordham | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 10 |
| George Mason | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 11 |
| George Washington | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 11 |
| La Salle | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | 10 |
| Loyola Chicago | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | 7 |
| Rhode Island | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 11 |
| Richmond | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | 10 |
| St. Bonaventure | Yes | Yes | No | No[a] | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes[b] | No | 8 |
| Saint Joseph's | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | 11 |
| Saint Louis | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 10 |
| VCU | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 9 |
| Associate Members | ||||||||||||||
| Lock Haven | Yes | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Totals | 14 | 14 | 6+1 | 6 | 10 | 8 | 14 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 13.5[b] | 10 | 139+1 |
| School | Acrobatics & tumbling[a] | Bowling | Gymnastics | Rugby[a] | Sailing[b] | Squash[c] | Triathlon[a] | Water polo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Duquesne | Independent | Northeast | No | No | No | No | Independent | No |
| Fordham | No | No | No | No | MAISA | No | No | No |
| George Washington | No | No | EAGL | No | MAISA | CSA | No | No |
| La Salle | [d] | No | No | [d] | No | No | [d] | MAAC |
The Atlantic 10 Conference sponsors championship competition in 10 men's and 12 women's NCAA sanctioned sport.[12]
Regular-season champions are indicated with "(RS)" and tournament champions with "(T)".
| Season | Sport | Men's champion | Women's champion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall 2023 | Cross Country | Loyola | Loyola |
| Field Hockey | Saint Joseph's (RS & T) | ||
| Soccer | VCU (RS) Dayton (T) | Saint Louis (RS & T) | |
| Volleyball | Dayton (RS & T) | ||
| Winter 2023–24 | Basketball | Loyola &Richmond (RS) Duquesne (T) | Richmond (RS & T) |
| Swimming & Diving | George Washington | George Washington | |
| Track & field (Indoor) | Rhode Island | VCU | |
| Spring 2024 | Golf | VCU | |
| Tennis | VCU | UMass | |
| Lacrosse | Saint Joseph's (RS & T) | UMass (RS) Richmond (T) | |
| Baseball | Saint Louis (RS) VCU (T) | ||
| Softball | Dayton (RS & T) | ||
| Rowing | George Washington (2023) | ||
| Track & field (Outdoor) | Rhode Island | VCU |
The A-10 began sponsoringfootball in 1997 when it absorbed theYankee Conference, a Division I-AA (now known as Division I FCS) football-only conference. The move was triggered by a change in NCAA rules that reduced the influence of single-sport conferences over NCAA legislation. The following teams were in the Yankee Conference at the time of its demise:
Boston University dropped football after the first season of A-10 football. After the 1999 season, UConn started a transition from Division I-AA to Division I-A football (now Division I FBS) that was completed in2002. In2004, UConn, already a member of theBig East for other sports, became a football member of that conference. The other schools all remained in the A-10 football conference until the management change after the 2006 season.
| Season | Regular Season Champion |
|---|---|
| 1997 | Villanova |
| 1998 | Richmond |
| 1999 | James Madison, Massachusetts |
| 2000 | Delaware, Richmond |
| 2001 | Hofstra, Maine, Villanova, William & Mary |
| 2002 | Maine, Northeastern |
| 2003 | Delaware, Massachusetts |
| 2004 | Delaware, James Madison, William & Mary |
| 2005 | New Hampshire, Richmond |
| 2006 | Massachusetts |
The 2005 move ofNortheastern University, a football-only member of the A-10, to theColonial Athletic Association for basketball and Olympic sports began a chain of events that would lead to the demise of the A-10 football conference, at least under the A-10 banner.
At that time, the CAA did not sponsor football, but five of its members in the 2004–05 academic year (Delaware, Hofstra, James Madison, Towson, and William & Mary) were football members of the A-10. The addition of Northeastern gave the CAA six schools with football programs, which under NCAA rules allows a conference to sponsor football. Northeastern agreed to join any future CAA football conference, which meant that the A-10 football conference would drop to six members once CAA football began operation.
With six football members in place, the CAA decided to start a football conference in 2007. The league then invited Richmond, a member of the CAA from 1983 to 2001, to rejoin for football only, because of UR's long-standing in-state rivalries with William & Mary and James Madison. UR accepted the invitation, taking the A-10 football conference below the NCAA minimum of six. Shortly after this, the A-10 football conference opted to disband, with all of its members becoming charter members of the CAA football conference. This league continues to operate under the administration of the multi-sports CAA, now known as theCoastal Athletic Association, as the legally separate entity of CAA Football (in full, theCoastal Athletic Association Football Conference).
A-10 charter members Penn State, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, West Virginia, and Villanova played I-A football as independents while members of the A-10 in other sports. Villanova became a member of theBig East in 1980 with Pittsburgh following in 1982. Temple joined the A-10 that year. Penn State joined theBig Ten in 1991 (effectively in 1993), and three A-10 members joined the Big East as football-only members: Rutgers, West Virginia, and Temple (only Rutgers and West Virginia would later join the Big East as full members in 1995).
Virginia Tech joined the A-10 in 1995 as a result of the merger that createdConference USA. They would then join the Big East as full members in 2000, following the football program which was already a member of the league. Temple remained a football-only member of the Big East until 2004; they would join theMAC for football in 2007 until 2012, and re-joined the Big East in football for the 2012 season. Temple planned to move the rest of its sports into the Big East in 2013, but theconference realigned into the football-sponsoringAmerican Athletic Conference and a newnon-football Big East. Temple joined The American.Massachusetts joined them in FBS football with membership in the MAC beginning in the 2012 season and as an FBS independent beginning in 2016. Charlotte, which started a football program in 2013, left for Conference USA and eventually joined The American in 2023.
| A-10 schools in DI-A/FBS | |
|---|---|
| Schools currently in the A-10 | Schools formerly in the A-10 |
| Massachusetts | Penn State |
| Pittsburgh | |
| Rutgers | |
| Temple | |
| Virginia Tech | |
| West Virginia | |
| Charlotte | |
| Full members | | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Associate members | |||||
| Sports |
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