RICHMOND, Va. — The Colonial Athletic Association announced today that North Carolina A&T has accepted an invitation to join the conference as a full member on July 1, 2022.

The Aggies will also join as a member of CAA Football starting on July 1, 2023.
North Carolina A&T is the fourth school to join the CAA in the last couple months. Delaware is a member of the league.

“We are pleased to welcome North Carolina A&T as the newest member of the CAA,” CAA Commissioner Joe D’Antonio said. “The Aggies fit perfectly into the framework of the Conference’s vision that calls for our membership to work together to advance nationally competitive athletic programs – coupled with outstanding academic programs – that empower student‐athletes as whole persons to strive at the highest level in every aspect of their lives.

“The CAA is excited to add a second HBCU to its membership, and going forward the conference will continue to be focused on making decisions that ensures its membership a competitive and sustainable model.”

The addition of North Carolina A&T increases the CAA’s membership to 13. Besides Delaware, the league’s membership will include College of Charleston, Drexel, Elon, Hampton, Hofstra, Monmouth, North Carolina Wilmington, Northeastern, Stony Brook, Towson and William & Mary.

CAA Football’s membership will expand to 14 in 2023 with the addition of North Carolina A&T. They join Albany, Elon, Hampton, Maine, Monmouth, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Richmond, Stony Brook, Towson, Villanova and William & Mary, along with Delaware.

Decisions regarding scheduling formats and championship field sizes are ongoing and will be determined over the coming months.

North Carolina A&T, located in Greensboro, N.C., is the largest historically black university in the country with an enrollment of more than 13,300.

“We bring a significant level of achievement as a university to this new association, which enhances our excitement about joining an athletics association with so many outstanding peers who share so much in common with our university,” said A&T Chancellor Harold L. Martin, Sr.

The school sponsors 17 Division I varsity teams and has had success as a member of the Mid‐Eastern Athletic Conference and most recently the Big South Conference.

The Aggies’ track and field programs, which are among the best in the nation, brought home three medals, two of them gold, in the 2020 Olympics. In football, NCA&T earned 11 MEAC titles, made five appearances in the NCAA FCS playoffs and won the Celebration Bowl four times from 2015‐19.

The men’s basketball team has reached the NCAA Tournament 10 times, while the women’s basketball squad has made five NCAA Tournament trips, including in 2021.

“We come from a tradition of exceptional athletic and academic achievement, and absolutely see the CAA as a new and prominent stage on which to continue that tradition,” said A&T Athletic Director Earl Hilton. “The case to join was clear and persuasive.”