Friday, July 05, 2013

RFC Summer Semester: A quick primer on the "Group of Five"

Editor's Note: For the first time in the seven-year history of the Real Football Central blog, we'll cover the so-called "Group of Five" conferences that make up the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).  

They're known as the American Athletic Conference, Conference USA, Mid-American Conference, Mountain West Conference, and the Sun Belt Conference.

With that said, here we go!  The websites for each conference are marked in BOLD type.

American Athletic Conference: Formed from the conference formerly known as the Big East, the University of Louisville will be in the AAC for just one season (2013), before jumping to the ACC next season (2014).  By 2015, the AAC will have 12 member schools. Also, Rutgers is expected to join the Big 10 Conerence by 2014.  Navy will join the AAC for football only by 2015 as well.

Conference USA:  C-USA will 14 schools playing football in 2013, but will lose East Carolina to the AAC by 2014.  Additionally, Tulsa will join the AAC in 2015.  Also, Western Kentucky will join C-USA by 2014,  while Old Dominion and Charlotte will join the conference for football by 2015.

Mid-American Conference:  Perhaps the most stable of all of the "Group of Five" conferences, don't expect any current members of the MAC to leave anytime soon.  Expect maybe, for current football associate member Massachusetts. 

Mountain West Conference:  Just last year, Boise State and San Diego State appeared poised to join to the conference that's now the AAC.  But the most recent realignment frenzy forced both schools to reconsider, and rejoin the MWC, for now. 

Sun Belt Conference:  The SBC currently has 10 members, but will have 11 full members by 2014.  By then, perennial FCS powers Appalachian State and Georgia Southern will be on board as full members, with Idaho State and New Mexico State joining as football-only members. 


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