 | |
| Formerly | Big East (1979–2013) |
|---|---|
| Association | NCAA |
| Founded | May 31, 1979 (de jure) July 1, 2013 (de facto) [note 1] |
| Commissioner | Tim Pernetti (since 2024) |
| Sports fielded |
|
| Division | Division I |
| Subdivision | FBS |
| No. of teams | 13 (full) + 6 (affiliate) |
| Headquarters | Irving, Texas |
| Official website | theamerican |
| Locations | |
 States with full members (blue) and affiliate members (red) | |
The American Athletic Conference (AAC), also known as The American, is a collegiate athletic conference in the United States, featuring 13 full member universities and six affiliate member universities that compete in The National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) Division I. Its football teams compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). Member universities represent a range of private and public research universities of various enrollment sizes located primarily in urban metropolitan areas in the Northeastern, Midwestern, and Southern regions of the United States.[1][2]
The American's legal predecessor, the original Big East Conference, was considered one of the six collegiate power conferences of the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) era in college football, and The American inherited that status in the BCS's final season.[3] With the advent of the College Football Playoff in 2014, The American became a "Group of Five" conference, which shares one automatic spot in the New Year's Six bowl games.[note 2][4]
The league is the product of substantial turmoil in The Old Big East during The 2010–14 conference realignment period. It is one of two conferences to emerge from the all-sports Big East in 2013. While the other successor, which does not sponsor football, purchased The Big East Conference name, The American inherited The Old Big East's structure and is that conference's legal successor.[5] However, both conferences claim 1979 as their founding date, and the same history up to 2013.[6][7] The American Athletic Conference is headquartered in Irving, Texas, and led by Commissioner Tim Pernetti, who replaced the retiring Mike Aresco[2][8] on June 1, 2024.[9][10]
Cite error: There are <ref group=note> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=note}} template (see the help page).
- ^ "New Name in College Sports – Current BIG EAST Enters New Era as 'American Athletic Conference'". April 3, 2013. Archived from the original on April 21, 2013. Retrieved April 3, 2013.
- ^ a b Katz, Andy (March 15, 2013). "What's next for the 'old Big East'". ESPN. Archived from the original on March 18, 2013. Retrieved March 17, 2013.
- ^ McMurphy, Brett (March 1, 2013). "Catholic 7 to keep 'Big East' name for new league next season, according to sources". ESPN. Retrieved March 7, 2013.
- ^ Mandel, Stewart (November 12, 2012). "Big East, rest of 'Group of Five' score win with six-bowl decision". Sports Illustrated. Archived from the original on November 16, 2012. Retrieved March 8, 2013.
- ^ Grant, Ethan. "Big East Will Change Name to American Athletic Conference". Bleacher Report. Retrieved November 22, 2021.
- ^ "The American Athletic Conference - About the American Athletic Conference". February 9, 2014. Archived from the original on February 9, 2014. Retrieved July 15, 2018.
- ^ "Big East Conference - BIG EAST Conference History". www.bigeast.com. Retrieved July 15, 2018.
- ^ Russo, Ralph (March 8, 2013). "Big East completes official split of football, basketball". Associated Press. Archived from the original on April 10, 2013. Retrieved March 17, 2013.
- ^ "Commissioner Mike Aresco Announces Retirement" (Press release). American Athletic Conference. December 7, 2023. Retrieved June 1, 2024.
- ^ "Tim Pernetti Named Second Commissioner of the American Athletic Conference" (Press release). American Athletic Conference. April 3, 2024. Retrieved June 1, 2024.