Atlantic 10 Conference facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Atlantic 10 Conference

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	22 men's: 10 women's: 12
Division	Division I
Subdivision	non-football
No. of teams	14
Headquarters	Washington, D.C., U.S.
Region	Eastern United States Midwestern United States
Locations

The Atlantic 10 Conference (often called A-10) is a group of colleges and universities that compete in sports. These schools are part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) top level, called Division I. Most A-10 schools are located in the eastern and midwestern parts of the United States. This includes states like Illinois, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, and Washington, D.C.

Even though it's called the "Atlantic 10," there are actually 14 full-time member schools. Some other schools also join for specific sports like women's field hockey and men's lacrosse. The person in charge of the conference since 2008 is Bernadette McGlade. In the fall of 2023, the A-10 moved its main office to Washington, D.C.

History of the A-10

How the Conference Started

The Atlantic 10 Conference began in 1975. It was first called the Eastern Collegiate Basketball League (ECBL). When games started in 1976, basketball was the only sport. After its first year, the league added more sports and changed its name to the Eastern Athletic Association. People often called it the Eastern 8 because it had eight member schools. These first schools included Villanova, Duquesne, Penn State, West Virginia, George Washington, Massachusetts, Pittsburgh, and Rutgers.

Over time, some schools left, and new ones joined. Villanova and Pittsburgh left in the early 1980s. St. Bonaventure, Rhode Island, Saint Joseph's, and Temple joined. With 10 members, the conference officially became the Atlantic 10 in 1982.

Changes and Growth

The conference grew to have as many as 16 members. From 1997 to 2006, the A-10 also had its own football conference. During this time, more than 20 schools played in A-10 sports. The football conference later became part of the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA). In 2012, Butler and VCU joined the A-10.

More changes happened in 2013. Temple, Butler, Xavier, and Charlotte left the A-10. George Mason and Davidson joined the conference. The A-10 headquarters moved to Washington, D.C., in the fall of 2023. Before that, it was in Newport News, Virginia, and even earlier in Philadelphia.

The A-10 has deals with major TV networks like ESPN, CBS Sports Network, and NBC Sports. This means many of their games are shown on TV or online. In November 2021, Loyola University Chicago joined the A-10, starting in July 2022. In May 2022, men's lacrosse became an official A-10 sport. High Point and Hobart also joined as special members for men's lacrosse.

In December 2023, the conference announced a new five-year TV deal. This deal started with the 2024-2025 season. In February 2024, it was announced that UMass would leave the A-10 in 2025 to join the Mid-American Conference (MAC).

Member Schools

Current Full Members

Here are the schools that are full members of the Atlantic 10 Conference:

Associate Members

These schools are members for specific sports, not all sports.

Former Full Members

These schools used to be full members of the A-10:

Former Associate Members

These schools were associate members for specific sports:

Former Football-Only Members

The A-10 used to have a football conference. These schools were part of it:

Atlantic 10 Rivalries

Many schools in the Atlantic 10 have strong rivalries. For example, Saint Joseph's and La Salle have a long history of competing. URI and UMass also have a rivalry that goes back many years. St. Bonaventure and Duquesne have been rivals even before they joined the A-10. The competition between Richmond and VCU is called the Capital City Classic. Saint Louis and Dayton play each year for the Arch-Baron Cup in basketball. George Washington and George Mason also have a rivalry called the Revolutionary Rivalry.

Sports in the A-10

The Atlantic 10 Conference offers championships in many sports for both men and women. In the 2021–22 school year, there were 10 men's sports and 13 women's sports. Men's lacrosse became the 10th men's sport in 2022–23, and women's golf became the 13th women's sport in 2024–25.

Men's Sports by School

Women's Sports by School

Current Tournament Champions

The Atlantic 10 Conference holds championship competitions for many sports. Here are the recent champions:

Football in the A-10 (1997–2006)

How Football Started

The A-10 started sponsoring football in 1997. This happened when it took over the Yankee Conference, which was a football-only conference. This change was due to new NCAA rules. Some of the teams that joined the A-10 for football included Delaware, James Madison, UMass, and Richmond.

Boston University stopped playing football after the first A-10 football season. UConn later moved to a higher level of football (Division I FBS). The other schools stayed in the A-10 football conference until 2006.

Football Champions

Here are the A-10 football champions during its time:

Why Football Ended in the A-10

In 2005, Northeastern University, which played football in the A-10, moved its other sports to the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA). This started a series of events that led to the A-10 football conference ending. The CAA decided to start its own football conference in 2007. Many A-10 football teams joined the new CAA football conference. Because of this, the A-10 football conference decided to close down. All its members became founding members of the new CAA football conference.

Some A-10 schools also played football at the highest level (Division I-A/FBS) while they were members of the A-10 for other sports. These included Penn State, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, West Virginia, and Villanova. Later, other schools like Temple, UMass, and Charlotte also moved to play FBS football.

See also

In Spanish: Atlantic 10 Conference para niños