Colonial Athletic Association
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 Northeast after the turn of the 21st century, which added balance to the conference.
The CAA was founded in 1979 as the ECAC South basketball league. It was renamed the Colonial Athletic Association in 1985 when it added championships in other 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.
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 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, 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.
Commissioners
| Name | Years | Notes |
| Tom Yeager | 1979–2016 | Retired July 1, 2016 |
| Joe D’Antonio | 2016– | July 1, 2016 |
Member schools
Full members
Current full members
; Notes:‡ – Towson joined the league as a charter member in 1979, left in 1981 to join the ECAC-Metro Conference, and re-joined the CAA in 2001.
Former full members
Associate members
Current associate members
Former associate members
;NotesMembership timeline
DateFormat = yyyy
ImageSize = width:1000 height:auto barincrement:20
Period = from:1979 till:2019
TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal
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Colors = id:barcolor value:rgb
id:line value:black
id:bg value:white
id:Full value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in all sports
id:FullxF value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in all sports except for football
id:AssocF value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that is a member for football only
id:AssocOS value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that is a member in some sports, but not all
id:OtherC1 value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that has moved to another conference
id:OtherC2 value:rgb # Use this color to denote a team that has moved to another conference where OtherC1 has already been used, to distinguish the two
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width:15 textcolor:black shift: anchor:from fontsize:s
bar:1 color:FullxF from:1979 till:1981 text:Baltimore
bar:1 shift: color:OtherC1 from:1981 till:1983 text:ECAC-Metro, then dropped athletics
bar:2 color:FullxF from:1979 till:1981 text:Catholic
bar:2 color:OtherC1 from:1981 till:1982
bar:2 shift: color:OtherC2 from:1982 till:1984 text:ODAC
bar:2 color:OtherC1 from:1984 till:1989
bar:2 color:OtherC2 from:1989 till:2007 text:CAC
bar:2 color:OtherC1 from:2007 till:end text:Landmark
bar:3 color:FullxF from:1979 till:1981 text:St. Francis
bar:3 shift: color:OtherC1 from:1981 till:1988 text:ECAC-Metro
bar:3 color:OtherC2 from:1988 till:end text:NEC
bar:4 color:FullxF from:1979 till:1981 text:Towson
bar:4 shift: color:OtherC1 from:1981 till:1982 text:ECAC-Metro
bar:4 shift: color:OtherC2 from:1982 till:1992 text:ECC
bar:4 color:OtherC1 from:1992 till:1995 text:Big South
bar:4 color:OtherC2 from:1995 till:2001 text:America East
bar:4 color:FullxF from:2001 till:2007 text:
bar:4 color:Full from:2007 till:end
bar:5 color:FullxF from:1979 till:1982 text:Old Dominion
bar:5 shift: color:OtherC1 from:1982 till:1991 text:Sun Belt
bar:5 color:FullxF from:1991 till:2011 text:
bar:5 color:Full from:2011 till:2013
bar:5 color:OtherC1 from:2013 till:end text:C-USA
bar:6 color:FullxF from:1979 till:1991 text:Navy
bar:6 color:OtherC1 from:1991 till:end text:Patriot League
bar:7 color:FullxF from:1979 till:2013 text:George Mason
bar:7 color:OtherC1 from:2013 till:end text:A-10
bar:8 color:FullxF from:1979 till:2007 text:James Madison
bar:8 color:Full from:2007 till:end
bar:9 color:FullxF from:1979 till:2001 text:Richmond
bar:9 color:OtherC1 from:2001 till:2002 text:A10
bar:9 color:AssocOS from:2002 till:2007 text:A–10,
bar:9 color:AssocF from:2007 till:end
bar:10 color:FullxF from:1979 till:2007 text:William & Mary
bar:10 color:Full from:2007 till:end
bar:11 color:FullxF from:1981 till:2001 text:East Carolina
bar:11 color:OtherC1 from:2001 till:2014 text: C-USA
bar:11 color:OtherC2 from:2014 till:end text: AAC
bar:12 color:FullxF from:1984 till:2001 text:American
bar:12 color:OtherC1 from:2001 till:end text:Patriot League
bar:13 color:FullxF from:1984 till:end text:UNC Wilmington
bar:14 color:FullxF from:1995 till:2012 text:VCU
bar:14 color:OtherC1 from:2012 till:end text:A10
bar:15 color:AssocOS from:2001 till:2013 text:Boston University
bar:16 color:FullxF from:2001 till:2007 text:Delaware
bar:16 color:Full from:2007 till:end
bar:17 color:FullxF from:2001 till:end text:Drexel
bar:18 color:FullxF from:2001 till:2009 text:Hofstra
bar:18 color:Full from:2007 till:2010
bar:18 color:FullxF from:2010 till:end
bar:19 color:AssocOS from:2001 till:2002 text:Boston College
bar:20 color:AssocOS from:2001 till:2002 text:Loyola
bar:21 color:AssocOS from:2001 till:2010 text:Sacred Heart
bar:22 color:AssocOS from:2001 till:2013 text:Binghamton
bar:23 color:AssocOS from:2001 till:2007 text:Villanova
bar:23 shift: color:AssocF from:2007 till:end
bar:24 color:AssocOS from:2002 till:2013 text:Rider
bar:25 color:AssocOS from:2002 till:2013 text:Xavier
bar:26 color:AssocOS from:2002 till:end text:Dayton
bar:27 color:FullxF from:2005 till:2012 text:Georgia State
bar:27 color:Full from:2012 till:2013
bar:27 color:OtherC1 from:2013 till:end text:Sun Belt
bar:28 color:FullxF from:2005 till:2007 text:Northeastern
bar:28 color:Full from:2007 till:2010
bar:28 color:FullxF from:2010 till:end
bar:29 color:AssocOS from:2006 till:2009 text:Robert Morris
bar:30 color:AssocF from:2007 till:end text:Maine
bar:31 color:AssocF from:2007 till:2012 text:Massachusetts
bar:31 color:AssocOS from:2012 till:end
bar:32 color:AssocF from:2007 till:end text:New Hampshire
bar:33 color:AssocF from:2007 till:end text:Rhode Island
bar:34 color:AssocOS from:2009 till:2017 text:Buffalo
bar:35 color:AssocOS from:2010 till:2014 text:Penn State
bar:36 color:AssocOS from:2011 till:2013 text:Saint Joseph's
bar:37 color:AssocOS from:2011 till:end text:Eastern Michigan
bar:38 color:AssocF from:2013 till:end text:Albany
bar:39 color:AssocF from:2013 till:end text:Stony Brook
bar:40 color:FullxF from:2013 till:end text:Charleston
bar:41 color:Full from:2014 till:end text:Elon
bar:42 color:AssocOS from:2014 till:end text:Fairfield
bar:N color:powderblue from:1979 till:1985 text:ECAC South
bar:N color:blue from:1985 till:2007 text:CAA
bar:N color:powderblue from:2007 till:end text:CAA
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Sports
The CAA sponsors championship competitions in ten men's and twelve women's NCAA sanctioned sports. Eleven schools are associate members in three sports.| Sport | Men's | Women's |
| Baseball | ||
| Basketball | ||
| Cross Country | ||
| Field Hockey | ||
| Football | ||
| Golf | ||
| Lacrosse | ||
| Rowing | ||
| Soccer | ||
| Softball | ||
| Swimming & Diving | ||
| Tennis | ||
| Track and Field | ||
| Volleyball |
Men's sponsored sports by school
Men's varsity sports not sponsored by the CAA which are played by CAA schools:| School | Ice hockey | Sailing | Squash | Track & field |
| Charleston | — | Independent | — | — |
| Delaware | ESCHL | — | — | — |
| Drexel | ESCHL | — | Independent | — |
| Northeastern | Hockey East | — | — | ECAC |
| William & Mary | — | — | — | ECAC |
;Notes
Women's sponsored sports by school
Women's varsity sports not sponsored by the CAA which are played by CAA schools:| School | Beach volleyball | Equestrian | Gymnastics | Ice hockey | Sailing | Squash | Track & field |
| Charleston | CCSA | Independent | — | — | Independent | — | ECAC |
| Delaware | — | — | — | ACHA | — | — | ECAC |
| Drexel | — | — | — | — | — | Independent | — |
| Elon | — | — | — | — | — | — | ECAC |
| James Madison | — | — | — | — | — | — | ECAC |
| UNC Wilmington | CCSA | — | — | — | — | — | ECAC |
| Northeastern | — | — | — | Hockey East | — | Independent | — |
| Towson | — | — | EAGL | — | — | — | ECAC |
| William & Mary | — | — | ECAC | — | — | — | ECAC |
;Notes
In addition to the above, Charleston counts its female cheerleaders and all-female dance team as varsity teams. Neither cheerleading nor dance team competitions are sponsored by the NCAA.
Current champions
RS = regular-season champion; T = tournament champion| Season | Sport | Men's champion | Women's champion |
| Fall 2019 | Cross Country | William & Mary | Elon |
| Fall 2019 | Field Hockey | – | Delaware |
| Fall 2019 | Football | James Madison | – |
| Fall 2019 | Soccer | UNCW James Madison | Hofstra |
| Fall 2019 | Volleyball | – | Towson |
| Winter 2019–20 | Basketball | Hofstra Northeastern | James Madison Towson |
| Winter 2019–20 | Swimming & Diving | William & Mary | James Madison |
| Spring 2020 | Baseball | Elon UNCW | – |
| Spring 2020 | Golf | UNCW | UNCW |
| Spring 2020 | Lacrosse | Towson & UMass Towson | James Madison |
| Spring 2020 | Rowing | – | Northeastern |
| Spring 2020 | Softball | – | James Madison |
| Spring 2020 | Tennis | Elon | James Madison |
| Spring 2020 | Track & Field | Northeastern | Delaware |
Men's basketball
| * | Denotes a tie for regular season conference title |
| † | Denotes game went into overtime |
Regular season champions
Note: The conference was known as the ECAC South from 1979 to 1985.| Season | Regular Season Champion | Conference Record |
| 1980 | Old Dominion | |
| 1981 | James Madison | |
| 1982 | James Madison | |
| 1983 | William & Mary | |
| 1984 | Richmond | |
| 1985 | Navy | 11–3 |
| 1986 | Navy | 13–1 |
| 1987 | Navy | 13–1 |
| 1988 | Richmond | 11–3 |
| 1989 | Richmond | 13–1 |
| 1990 | James Madison | 11–3 |
| 1991 | James Madison | 12–2 |
| 1992 | Richmond | 12–2 |
| 1993 | James Madison | 11–3 |
| 1994 | Old Dominion | 10–4 |
| 1995 | Old Dominion | 12–2 |
| 1996 | VCU | 14–2 |
| 1997 | Old Dominion | 10–6 |
| 1998* | William & Mary UNC Wilmington | 13–3 |
| 1999 | George Mason | 13–3 |
| 2000* | George Mason James Madison | 12–4 |
| 2001 | Richmond | 12–4 |
| 2002 | UNC Wilmington | 14–4 |
| 2003 | UNC Wilmington | 15–3 |
| 2004 | VCU | 14–4 |
| 2005 | Old Dominion | 15–3 |
| 2006* | George Mason UNC Wilmington | 15–3 |
| 2007 | VCU | 16–2 |
| 2008 | VCU | 15–3 |
| 2009 | VCU | 14–4 |
| 2010 | Old Dominion | 15–3 |
| 2011 | George Mason | 16–2 |
| 2012 | Drexel | 16–2 |
| 2013 | Northeastern | 14–4 |
| 2014 | Delaware | 14–2 |
| 2015* | William & Mary UNC Wilmington Northeastern James Madison | 12–6 |
| 2016* | Hofstra UNC Wilmington | 14–4 |
| 2017 | UNC Wilmington | 15–3 |
| 2018* | CollegeofCharleston Northeastern | 14–4 |
| 2019 | Hofstra | 15–3 |
| 2020 | Hofstra | 14-4 |
History of the Tournament Final
| Year | CAA Champions | Score | Runner-Up | Tournament MVP | Venue |
| 1980 | Old Dominion | 62–51† | Navy | , Old Dominion | Hampton Coliseum |
| 1981 | James Madison | 69–60 | Richmond | , James Madison | Hampton Coliseum |
| 1982 | Old Dominion | 58–57 | James Madison | , Old Dominion | Norfolk Scope |
| 1983 | James Madison | 41–38 | William & Mary | , James Madison | Robins Center |
| 1984 | Richmond | 74–55 | Navy | , Richmond | Convocation Center |
| 1985 | Navy | 85–76 | Richmond | , Navy | William & Mary Hall |
| 1986 | Navy | 72–61 | George Mason | , Navy | Patriot Center |
| 1987 | Navy | 53–50 | James Madison | , Navy | Hampton Coliseum |
| 1988 | Richmond | 73–70 | George Mason | , Richmond | Hampton Coliseum |
| 1989 | George Mason | 78–72† | UNC Wilmington | , George Mason | Hampton Coliseum |
| 1990 | Richmond | 77–72 | James Madison | , Richmond | Richmond Coliseum |
| 1991 | Richmond | 81–78 | George Mason | , Richmond | Richmond Coliseum |
| 1992 | Old Dominion | 78–73 | James Madison | , Old Dominion | Richmond Coliseum |
| 1993 | East Carolina | 54–49 | James Madison | , East Carolina | Richmond Coliseum |
| 1994 | James Madison | 77–76 | Old Dominion | , Old Dominion | Richmond Coliseum |
| 1995 | Old Dominion | 80–75 | James Madison | , Old Dominion | Richmond Coliseum |
| 1996 | VCU | 46–43 | UNC Wilmington | , VCU | Richmond Coliseum |
| 1997 | Old Dominion | 62–58 | James Madison | , Old Dominion | Richmond Coliseum |
| 1998 | Richmond | 79–64 | UNC Wilmington | , Richmond | Richmond Coliseum |
| 1999 | George Mason | 63–58 | Old Dominion | , George Mason | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2000 | UNC Wilmington | 57–47 | Richmond | , UNC Wilmington | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2001 | George Mason | 35–33 | UNC Wilmington | , George Mason | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2002 | UNC Wilmington | 66–51 | VCU | , UNC Wilmington | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2003 | UNC Wilmington | 70–62 | Drexel | , UNC Wilmington | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2004 | VCU | 55–54 | George Mason | , VCU | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2005 | Old Dominion | 73–66† | VCU | , Old Dominion | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2006 | UNC Wilmington | 78–67 | Hofstra | , UNC Wilmington | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2007 | VCU | 65–59 | George Mason | , VCU | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2008 | George Mason | 68–59 | William & Mary | , George Mason | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2009 | VCU | 71–50 | George Mason | , VCU | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2010 | Old Dominion | 60–53 | William & Mary | , Old Dominion | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2011 | Old Dominion | 70–65 | VCU | , Old Dominion | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2012 | VCU | 59–56 | Drexel | , VCU | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2013 | James Madison | 70–57 | Northeastern | , James Madison | Richmond Coliseum |
| 2014 | Delaware | 75–74 | William & Mary | , Delaware | Baltimore Arena |
| 2015 | Northeastern | 72–61 | William & Mary | , Northeastern | Royal Farms Arena |
| 2016 | UNC Wilmington | 80–73† | Hofstra | , UNC Wilmington | Royal Farms Arena |
| 2017 | UNC Wilmington | 78–69 | Charleston | , UNC Wilmington | North Charleston Coliseum |
| 2018 | Charleston | 83–76† | Northeastern | , Charleston | North Charleston Coliseum |
| 2019 | Northeastern | 82–74 | Hofstra | , Northeastern | North Charleston Coliseum |
| 2020 | Hofstra | 70–61 | Northeastern | , Hofstra | Entertainment and Sports Arena |
Men's CAA Tournament championships and finalists
| School | Championships | Finals Appearances | Years |
| Old Dominion‡ | 8 | 10 | 1980, 1982, 1992, 1995, 1997, 2005, 2010, 2011 |
| UNC Wilmington | 6 | 10 | 2000, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2016, 2017 |
| Richmond‡ | 5 | 8 | 1984, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1998 |
| VCU‡ | 5 | 8 | 1996, 2004, 2007, 2009, 2012 |
| James Madison | 4 | 11 | 1981, 1983, 1994, 2013 |
| George Mason‡ | 4 | 10 | 1989, 1999, 2001, 2008 |
| Navy‡ | 3 | 5 | 1985, 1986, 1987 |
| Northeastern | 2 | 5 | 2015, 2019 |
| Hofstra | 1 | 4 | 2020 |
| Charleston | 1 | 2 | 2018 |
| Delaware | 1 | 1 | 2014 |
| East Carolina‡ | 1 | 1 | 1993 |
| William & Mary | 0 | 5 | — |
| Drexel | 0 | 2 | — |
| Elon | 0 | 0 | — |
| Towson | 0 | 0 | — |
‡Former member of the CAA
Broadcasters
Women's basketball
Regular season champions
| * | Denotes a tie for regular season conference title |
| † | Denotes game went into overtime |
History of the Tournament Finals
Women's CAA Tournament Championships and finalists
| School | Championships | Finals Appearances | Years |
| Old Dominion‡ | 17 | 18 | 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 |
| James Madison | 9 | 17 | 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2015, 2016 |
| Delaware | 2 | 6 | 2012, 2013 |
| East Carolina‡ | 2 | 6 | 1984, 1985 |
| Richmond‡ | 2 | 4 | 1990, 1991 |
| Elon | 2 | 2 | 2017, 2018 |
| Drexel | 1 | 6 | 2009 |
| Towson | 1 | 1 | 2019 |
| American‡ | 0 | 2 | — |
| George Mason‡ | 0 | 3 | — |
| UNC Wilmington | 0 | 2 | — |
| William & Mary | 0 | 1 | — |
| VCU‡ | 0 | 1 | — |
| Northeastern | 0 | 0 | — |
‡Former member of the CAA
Football
The CAA Football Conference 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. For this reason, there are no true "football associate members" as every member of CAA Football is a full-member of the football-only conference. 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, as previously noted, 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 on a football-only basis, spelling the end of A10 football, at least under that conference's banner. 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 the CAA football conference. After the departure of Northeastern in 1945, the remaining members joined New England's other land-grant colleges, Massachusetts State College 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 A10 in 1997. As mentioned above, the A10 football conference effectively became the CAA Football Conference in 2007.
The CAA Football Conference does not claim the legacy of the A10 Football Conference or the Yankee Conference. However, every school that was in the Yankee Conference at the time of the A10 merger and still fields an FCS-level football team is in the CAA football conference. As further proof of the continuity between conferences, the CAA inherited the A10's automatic bid to the FCS playoffs, which in turn was inherited from the Yankee.
On May 31, 2006, Old Dominion University announced that it would start a football team to begin play in 2009. ODU joined the CAA football conference in 2011. On April 17, 2008, Georgia State University announced that it would start a football team to begin play in 2010 and join the CAA football conference in 2012. The team is playing in the 70,000 seat Georgia Dome, but is restricting ticket sales to just over 28,000 for virtually all its games. However, GSU played only the 2012 season in the CAA, and was not eligible for the conference title, as it began an FBS transition in advance of its 2013 move to the Sun Belt Conference.
Since the CAA began play as a football conference in 2007, a member team has played in the FCS Championship game seven times, with Delaware making it in 2007 and 2010, Richmond in winning in 2008, Villanova winning in 2009, Towson appearing in 2013, and James Madison winning in 2016 and appearing in 2017. In 2007, the CAA set records with 15 national player of the week honorees and by sending five teams to the national championship playoffs. The very next season, in 2008, they broke that record with 19 national player of the week honorees and tied their own record by again sending five teams to the national championship playoffs for the second straight year. At the end of the 2008 season, the CAA had six Top 25 teams with four placing in the Top Ten. Players from the CAA received 78 All-America honors.
In the opening weekend of the 2009 season, CAA teams defeated three Division I FBS teams. William & Mary and Richmond took down teams from the ACC, respectively Virginia and Duke, while Villanova defeated Temple from the MAC. The following weekend saw New Hampshire defeat another MAC team, Ball State. All four of the CAA teams to defeat FBS teams qualified for the 2009 FCS playoffs and won their first-round games; Villanova and William & Mary reached the semifinals, and Villanova won the FCS championship.
Northeastern—the school whose 2005 move to the CAA enabled the creation of the CAA football conference—dropped football after the 2009 season. President Joseph E. Aoun and the board of trustees endorsed the move after an extensive, two-year review of the athletic program by its director, Peter Roby. The decision to eliminate football followed six straight losing seasons and sparse game attendance at a school whose ice rink often sells out for hockey.
On December 3, 2009, Hofstra announced that the university would no longer be sponsoring football. The decision follows a two-year review of sports spending at Hofstra. School officials stated there are no plans to cut any other sports at the Long Island school. Hofstra cited costs and low student interest—only 500 students would attend home games despite free tickets—as reasons to drop the program. Due to the reduction of the conference, the CAA did not use the division format for the 2010 season. Even though Old Dominion began conference play in 2011 and Georgia State did the same in 2012, the divisional format is not likely to return in the immediate future, as the CAA lost football members in both 2012 and 2013. UMass departed for FBS and the Mid-American Conference in 2012 followed by Georgia State's departure for the Sun Belt and Old Dominion for Conference USA.
The 2010 season started with the biggest non-conference win of the CAA's short history, when James Madison defeated nationally ranked Virginia Tech of the ACC. JMU won 21-16 on September 11, at Virginia Tech's Lane Stadium.
Current members
The CAA football conference has the following members:- Albany
- Delaware
- Elon
- James Madison
- Maine
- New Hampshire
- Richmond
- Rhode Island
- Stony Brook
- Towson
- Villanova
- William & Mary
Former members
- Northeastern: 2007–2009, dropped football
- Georgia State: 2012, moved to the FBS-level Sun Belt Conference
- Hofstra: 2007–2009, dropped football
- UMass: 2007–2011, moved to the FBS-level Mid-American Conference for football only, now an FBS Independent
- Old Dominion: 2011–2012, competed as an FCS independent in 2013 before joining Conference USA, an FBS conference, for the sport in 2014
Additionally, former members of its ancestor conferences include:
- Boston U.: 1971–1997, dropped football
- Northeastern: 1938–1945
- Holy Cross: 1971, became independent, now in Patriot League
- UConn: 1938–1999, moved up to Division I-A and joined the Big East Conference for football in 2004. When the original Big East split in 2013, UConn remained with most of the FBS Big East schools in the reorganized American Athletic Conference. In July 2020, UConn joined the current non-football Big East Conference, with football becoming an FBS independent.
- Vermont: 1938–1973, dropped football
Membership timeline
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bar:1 color:Full from:2007 till:end text:Maine
bar:2 color:Full from:2007 till:end text:New Hampshire
bar:3 color:Full from:2007 till:2009 text:Northeastern
bar:3 color:OtherC1 from:2009 till:end text:Dropped Football
bar:4 color:Full from:2007 till:end text:Rhode Island
bar:5 color:Full from:2007 till:2011 text:UMass
bar:5 color:OtherC1 from:2011 till:end text: Mid-American
bar:6 color:Full from:2007 till:end text:Delaware
bar:7 color:Full from:2007 till:end text:Richmond
bar:8 color:Full from:2007 till:end text:Villanova
bar:9 color:Full from:2007 till:end text:James Madison
bar:10 color:Full from:2007 till:end text:William & Mary
bar:11 color:Full from:2007 till:2009 text:Hofstra
bar:11 color:OtherC1 from:2009 till:end text:Dropped Football
bar:12 color:Full from:2007 till:end text:Towson
bar:13 shift: color:Full from:2011 till:2012 text:Old Dominion
bar:13 shift: color:OtherC1 from:2012 till:2013 text:FCS Independent
bar:13 shift: color:OtherC2 from:2013 till:end text:C-USA
bar:14 shift: color:Full from:2012 till:2013 text:Georgia State
bar:14 color:OtherC1 from:2013 till:end text:Sun Belt
bar:15 color:OtherC1 from:2007 till:2013 text: Northeast Conference
bar:15 color:Full from:2013 till:end text:Albany
bar:16 color:OtherC1 from:2007 till:2008 text: FCS Ind.
bar:16 color:OtherC2 from:2008 till:2013 text:Big South Conference
bar:16 color:Full from:2013 till:end text:Stony Brook
bar:17 color:OtherC1 from:2007 till:2014 text: Southern Conference
bar:17 color:Full from:2014 till:end text:Elon
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pos: tabs:
text:^"CAA Football Membership History"
- > If the chart uses more than one bar color, add a legend by selecting the appropriate fields from the following six options Leave a blank line after the end of the timeline, then add a line with the selected values from the list, separated by a space. <#
Conference champions
| Year | Team | Conference Record | Overall Record | Head Coach |
| 2007* | Massachusetts 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 | 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 | |
| 2017 | James Madison | 8–0 | 11–0 | |
| 2018 | Maine | 7–1 | 10–4 | |
| 2019 | James Madison | 7–0 | 10-1 |
All-time conference championships
Co-championships are designated by italics.BOLD denotes the team won the National Championship
‡Former member of CAA Football
NCAA FCS National Championships by School
†Delaware was an NCAA FCS Independent in the 1982 season.^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
Men's soccer
Regular season champions
Note: The conference was known as the ECAC South from 1983 to 1985.List of CAA regular season champions.
| Season | Regular Season Champion | Conference Record |
| 1983 | George Mason | 4–1–0 |
| 1984 | American | 5–0–2 |
| 1985 | American | 6–1–0 |
| 1986 | George Mason | 5–0–2 |
| 1987 | William & Mary | 6–1–0 |
| 1988 | Navy | 5–1–1 |
| 1989 | George Mason | 6–0–1 |
| 1990 | George Mason | 6–1–0 |
| 1991 | James Madison | 6–1–0 |
| 1992 | William & Mary | 5–0–2 |
| 1993 | James Madison | 7–0–0 |
| 1994 | James Madison | 6–0–1 |
| 1995 | William & Mary | 6–2–0 |
| 1996 | William & Mary | 8–0–0 |
| 1997 | American | 6–0–2 |
| 1998 | VCU | 7–0–1 |
| 1999 | Old Dominion | 7–1–0 |
| 2000 | James Madison | 7–1–0 |
| 2001 | Old Dominion | 3–0–2 |
| 2002 | VCU | 7–1–1 |
| 2003 | VCU | 8–1–0 |
| 2004 | VCU | 7–1–1 |
| 2005 | Old Dominion | 9–1–1 |
| 2006 | Towson | 10–0–1 |
| 2007 | Drexel | 8–2–1 |
| 2008 | UNC Wilmington | 7–4–0 |
| 2009 | UNC Wilmington | 8–0–3 |
| 2010 | William & Mary | 8–1–2 |
| 2011 | James Madison | 8–3–0 |
| 2012 | Drexel | 8–1–1 |
| 2013 | Drexel | 4–1–2 |
| 2014 | Delaware, Hofstra & UNCW | 5–2–1 |
| 2015 | Elon & Hofstra | 6–2–0 |
| 2016 | Hofstra | 7–1–0 |
| 2017 | James Madison | 5–1–2 |
| 2018 | James Madison | 6–2 |
| 2019 | UNC Wilmington | 7–0–1 |