The Coastal Athletic Association (CAA), formerly the ECAC South Conference and the Colonial Athletic Association, is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I whose full members are located in East Coast states, from Massachusetts to South Carolina. Most of its members are public universities, and the conference is headquartered in Richmond. The CAA was historically a Southern conference until the addition of four schools in the Northeastern United States (of five that joined from rival conference America East) after the turn of the 21st century, which added geographic balance to the conference.

The CAA was founded in 1979 as the ECAC South Conference, made up of independent schools which played basketball in the Eastern College Athletic Conference's South Region Division I men's basketball tournament. During its first two seasons, its members continued to play basketball as independents during the regular season and take part in the ECAC's South Region tournament for independents, but it began conference play in basketball in the 1981–1982 season. It was renamed the Colonial Athletic Association in 1985 when it added championships in other sports (although a number of members maintain ECAC affiliation in some sports). As of 2006, it organizes championships in 21 men's and women's sports. The addition of Northeastern University in 2005 gave the conference the NCAA minimum of six football programs needed to sponsor football. For the 2007 football season, all of the Atlantic 10 Conference's football programs joined the CAA football conference, as agreed in May 2005. The football league operates under CAA administration as the legally separate entity of CAA Football.

The most recent changes to the conference membership took place in 2022 and 2023. First, Hampton University, Monmouth University, North Carolina A&T State University, and Stony Brook University joined in 2022. Stony Brook, already a member of CAA Football, joined in other sports at that time; Hampton and Monmouth joined both the all-sports CAA and CAA Football; and NC A&T joined the all-sports CAA in 2022 and joined CAA Football in 2023. This was followed by Campbell University joining both sides of the league in 2023. The conference renamed itself the Coastal Athletic Association in 2023.

History

The CAA has expanded in recent years, following the exits of longtime members such as the United States Naval Academy, the University of Richmond, East Carolina University, and American University. In 2001, the six-member conference added four additional universities: Towson University, Drexel University, Hofstra University, and the University of Delaware. Four years later the league expanded again when Georgia State University and Northeastern University joined, further enlarging the conference footprint. Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) left for the Atlantic 10 Conference in July 2012. More changes came in 2013: Old Dominion University left for Conference USA, Georgia State joined the Sun Belt Conference, and the College of Charleston joined the CAA from the Southern Conference.

On the playing field, the CAA has produced 16 national team champions in six different sports (the most recent being the James Madison University Dukes who won the 2018 Division I Women's Lacrosse championship), 33 individual national champions, 11 national coaches of the year, 11 national players of the year and 12 Honda Award winners. In 2006, George Mason became the first CAA team to reach the Final Four. In 2011, the VCU Rams became the second CAA team to reach the Final Four, as well as the first team to win five games en route, due to their participation in the First Four round.

On March 25, 2013, George Mason University left the CAA to join the Atlantic 10 Conference. Shortly after, the CAA ceased sponsorship of wrestling due to the lack of teams.

The 2015–16 basketball season saw the conference RPI reach its highest rating when it finished the season ranked 9th in the nation.

During another phase of realignment that started in 2021, the CAA was affected when longtime member James Madison University announced it would leave the CAA, transition its football program to the Football Bowl Subdivision, and join the Sun Belt Conference (SBC). Initially, JMU was to join the SBC in July 2023. However, the timeline changed when the CAA chose to ban JMU from subsequent championship events, citing a conference bylaw that allows it to impose such a ban on a departing member. Thus, JMU officially joined the Sun Belt in July 2022 instead (at which time it was counted as an FBS member for scheduling purposes after meeting an NCAA minimum requirement of five FBS opponents at home), housing all of its sports in that league, including men's soccer, which would be sponsored by the SBC again, but one season earlier.

Shortly before JMU announced its departure, it was reported that the CAA sought to expand by several schools, allowing it to split into a divisional format for most of its sports in order to reduce travel costs for its members. Among the schools named as possible candidates were Fairfield University, Howard University, Monmouth University, and the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. In January 2022, reports emerged that Hampton University, a historically black institution that had been working toward a CAA move since at least 1995, would likely join the CAA that July. Monmouth was again named as a potential CAA expansion candidate. Also, Stony Brook University, already a member of CAA Football, was named as a candidate for membership in the all-sports CAA. On January 18, local media in Monmouth's home of New Jersey reported that a CAA invitation to that school was imminent.

The CAA later announced on January 25 that Hampton, Monmouth, and Stony Brook would become members of the all-sports CAA that July, with Hampton and Monmouth joining Stony Brook in CAA Football. On February 22, the CAA announced that North Carolina A&T State University would join the all-sports CAA that July and CAA Football in 2023. Still later, Campbell University was announced as a new member of both sides of the league effective in 2023.

On July 20, 2023, the Colonial Athletic Association rebranded as the Coastal Athletic Association, citing the expansion of the conference footprint throughout the east coast for the change in name; however, the current logo was unchanged.

On November 28, 2023, Delaware announced its departure from the CAA and transition to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) joining Conference USA on July 1, 2025.

Commissioners

NameDatesTom Yeager1979–July 1, 2016Joe D'AntonioJuly 1, 2016–present

Member schools

Full members Current full members Institution Location Founded Type Enrollment Endowment Nickname Joined Colors Campbell University Buies Creek, North Carolina 1887 Baptist 5,622 $209.0 FightingCamels 2023 Charleston, South Carolina 1770 Public 10,783 $157.1 Cougars 2013 Drexel University Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 1891 Nonsectarian 22,412 $1,130.0 Dragons 2001 Elon University Elon, North Carolina 1889 Nonsectarian 6,991 $411.5 Phoenix 2014 Hampton University Hampton, Virginia 1868 Nonsectarian 3,516 $280.6 Pirates &Lady Pirates 2022 Hofstra University Hempstead, New York 1935 Nonsectarian 10,871 $955.8 Pride 2001 Monmouth University West Long Branch, New Jersey 1933 Nonsectarian 5,675 $153.0 Hawks 2022 North Carolina A&T State University Greensboro, North Carolina 1891 Public 13,332 $202.0 Aggies 2022 Northeastern University Boston, Massachusetts 1898 Nonsectarian 21,627 $2,100.0 Huskies 2005 Stony Brook University Stony Brook, New York 1957 Public 26,782 $724.4 Seawolves 2022 Towson University Towson, Maryland 1866 Public 22,923 $100.1 Tigers 1979; 2001 Wilmington, North Carolina 1947 Public 17,499 $154.0 Seahawks 1984 Williamsburg, Virginia 1693 Public 8,817 $1,890.0 Tribe 1979

Notes

Future full members Institution Location Founded Type Enrollment Nickname Joining Colors Current primaryconference Fairfield University Fairfield, Connecticut 1942 Catholic 5,273 Stags 2027 Metro

Notes

Former full members Institution Location Founded Type Nickname Joined Left Colors Currentconference American University Washington, D.C. 1893 UnitedMethodist Eagles 1984 2001 Patriot Baltimore, Maryland 1925 Public Super Bees 1979 1981 N/A Washington, D.C. 1887 Catholic Cardinals 1979 1981 Landmark University of Delaware Newark, Delaware 1743 Public Fightin'Blue Hens 2001 2025 Conf. USA (CUSA) East Carolina University Greenville, North Carolina 1907 Public Pirates 1981 2001 American George Mason University Fairfax, Virginia 1957 Public Patriots 1979 2013 Atlantic 10 (A10) Georgia State University Atlanta, Georgia 1913 Public Panthers 2005 2013 Sun Belt (SBC) James Madison University Harrisonburg, Virginia 1908 Public Dukes 1979 2022 Sun Belt (SBC) Annapolis, Maryland 1845 Federal Midshipmen 1979 1991 Patriot Old Dominion University Norfolk, Virginia 1930 Public Monarchs 1979 1982 Sun Belt (SBC) 1991 2013 Richmond, Virginia 1830 Private Spiders 1979 2001 Atlantic 10 (A10) Saint Francis University Loretto, Pennsylvania 1847 Catholic Red Flash 1979 1981 Presidents' (PAC) Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, Virginia 1838 Public Rams 1995 2012 Atlantic 10 (A10)

Notes

Associate members

In all tables below, dates of joining and departure reflect the calendar years these moves took effect. For spring sports, the year of arrival is the calendar year before the first season of competition. For fall sports, the year of departure is the calendar year after the final season of competition.

Current associate members Associate member becoming a full CAA member in 2027.

Institution Location Founded Type Enrollment Nickname Joined Colors CAAsport(s) Primaryconference Albany, New York 1844 Public 17,746 Great Danes 2025 Women's rowing America East (Am East) Bryant University Smithfield, Rhode Island 1863 Nonsectarian 3,751 Bulldogs 2025 Women's rowing America East (AmEast) Storrs, Connecticut 1881 Public 32,257 Huskies 2019 Women's rowing Big East Fairfield University Fairfield, Connecticut 1942 Catholic 5,273 Stags 2014 Men's lacrosse Metro 2026 Field hockey Villanova University Villanova, Pennsylvania 1842 Catholic 11,023 Wildcats 2015 Women's rowing Big East

Notes

Former associate members