#Rice american athletic conference upgrade#

Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and Safety Information / Your California Privacy Rights are applicable to you. ^ Back to Top ^ © 2023 ESPN Internet Ventures. Three and a half years a long time so we won't know exactly whether we would take additional members, or stay at 12, but there will be a subsequent process that we'll go through.' 'And we'll likely play divisions in most sports, and then when they leave in '25 we'll fall back to 12, or make decisions at that point in time. 'We'll just put together 14 team schedules,' Bowlsby said when asked how the league would handle the overlap. And that doesn't mean that they wouldn't try and come earlier than that, but it won't be won't be later than that.'Ĭonsidering Oklahoma and Texas both said they weren't leaving to join the SEC until July 1, 2025, there's a possibility the Big 12 could temporarily expand to a 14-team conference. 'Accepting membership, and in the case of those three, they've all said not later than July 1 '24. 'I'm just referring to the letters that they sent to us,' Bowlsby said. Instead of viewing the AAC's expansion as replacing the schools that are leaving, the source said it's more of a strategic move to grow the league, which will help protect it from future attrition, while also create some regionalization that can help with divisions, and prevent teams from having to travel through more than one time zone.īig 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby told ESPN on Wednesday 'it's not known at the present time' when UCF, Cincinnati and Houston will join. Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby did not immediately return a request for comment. If those three schools abided by the bylaws, Aresco said, their exit date would be July 1, 2024.Īnother source told ESPN that while there hasn't been a formal declaration of a timeline, there's a sense within the AAC that Cincinnati, UCF and Houston would like to join the Big 12 for the 2023 season if possible. AAC bylaws require schools to give a 27-month notice before they leave and pay a $10 million buyout fee.ĪAC commissioner Mike Aresco told ESPN in mid-September that the league would be willing to negotiate an earlier exit fee to accommodate the departures of UCF, Cincinnati and Houston. The addition of six more schools would expand the AAC to a 14-team conference in football and basketball while crippling Conference USA, where all of the schools currently call home.Īccording to the source, the earliest they could join the conference would be the 2023-24 season, but it depends on what the AAC works out with the schools that are leaving. The AAC's desire to expand comes after Cincinnati, UCF and Houston decided this fall to eventually join the Big 12. It's the first step in the realignment process, which is expected to move quickly this week after the university presidents and their general counsels have time to review the terms. The American Athletic Conference has received applications from six schools hoping to join the conference, and the AAC is expected to send them each a formal letter by the end of the week detailing the terms of expansion, a source with knowledge of the process told ESPN on Tuesday.įlorida Atlantic, Charlotte, North Texas, UTSA, Rice and UAB have each officially requested to join the AAC, a move that was first reported by Yahoo Sports on Monday.

Source: Six schools officially apply to join American Athletic ConferenceĬollege Football, Men's College Basketball, Florida Atlantic Owls, Charlotte 49ers, North Texas Mean Green, UTSA Roadrunners, Rice Owls, UAB Blazers

#Rice american athletic conference upgrade#

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