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Callahan: CAA bolsters itself with trio of new additions

01/28/2022, 1:00pm EST
By Kevin Callahan

Kevin Callahan (@CP_KCallahan)

The Colonial Athletic Association reacted to change with predictably more change, following the trend in college sports that more is better.

So after losing one of its flagship members, the CAA snatched a trio of schools from other conferences Tuesday to send further ripples through college basketball conference’s turbulent waters.

Replacing James Madison University will be Monmouth, Stony Brook and Hampton. They will be joining the Mid-Atlantic centric league on July 1, which means the newcomers will be visiting Drexel next hoops season.


Zach Spiker (above) and Drexel will have a few new conference opponents starting next year. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

This three-for-one swap can be considered a win for the CAA both on the court and on cable TV.

On Thursday, Drexel's men dumped JMU 88-82 to drop the Dukes to under mediocrity at 3-4 and currently into sixth place in the 10-team standings. The women are faring much better, with a 14-2 (6-0) record, looking to defend their league title from a year ago.

Coach Mark Byington lifted JMU's men to a surprising regular season CAA championship in his first season last year after the Dukes were picked ninth in the preseason poll.

However, JMU certainly hasn’t dominated the CAA over the last two decades as last season was the Dukes first No. 1 seed in the CAA tourney since 1992-93.

Also, Byington was able to dip into Philadelphia and recruit Jaylen Stinson, a decorated freshman guard from Archbishop Wood. However, since JMU accepted a bid to the Sun Belt Conference in November, the ability to pull players from Philly without conference games closer to the city is at the very least marginalized.

Monmouth alone makes the swap for JMU tilt in favor toward the CAA in hoops. The Hawks, who are 12-6 going into Friday’s game against Canisius under coach King Rice, adds to the CAA’s men’s basketball profile by having won three regular-season basketball crowns in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference over the last 10 years. Also, the Hawks settled for two NIT appearances during this span. 

Monmouth's women are also making a resurgence, going 10-6 (5-2 MAAC) thus far on the 2021-22 season.

Adding to this win on the hardwood for the CAA is the recent success of Hampton and Stony Brook, which reached the NCAA tourney a combined three times in the last decade.

Competing out of the Big South, Hampton made consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances in 2015 and 2016. The Lady Pirates were also peaking around then, with 28 wins in both 2013 and 2014, but they're 7-8 this season.

Meanwhile, Stony Brook, which arrives from the America East, played in the NCAA tourney once and the NIT twice in the last 10 years. On the women's side, the Seawolves have a 16-2 record (7-1 AEast), and are two seasons removed from a 27-win year.

The CAA doesn’t need to worry about JMU seizing the league’s NCAA bid before exiting as the league banned the Dukes from all conference championships this year.

Even with the players being used as pawns once again in this latest conference shuffling, the CAA looked at the big picture and responded by adding these three new members that will enhance the conference on the court and on cable.

Drexel University President John Fry, Chair of the CAA Board of Directors, said the move was “tremendous.”

"I am profoundly grateful for the sustained engagement of our Presidents over the last 15 months, as together with our athletics directors, we have forged a principled vision for the future in these turbulent times,” he added in a statement.

The newbies pad the CAA’s membership to 12 teams in basketball, joining the Dragons, Delaware, Charleston, Elon, Hofstra, North Carolina Wilmington, Northeastern, Towson and William & Mary, which is the lone remaining charter member for the league that started in 1985.

The CAA, which is based in Richmond, has had a handhold in Philadelphia for football with Villanova. The league expands to 13 teams with the addition of Hampton and Monmouth as Stony Brook was already a member. The two new teams join Delaware for the fall gridiron season along with Albany, Elon, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Richmond, Towson and William & Mary. 

The loss of JMU in football, however, is a major body shot as the Dukes are a national power. Perhaps, Monmouth can duplicate JMU’s success on the gridiron with more exposure in the CAA.

In basketball, Monmouth, located in West Long Branch, N.J, adds another regional team a relatively short distance from the Drexel campus. which should help the Hawks recruit in Philly. Monmouth is also only an hour drive from New York city. Currently, there are 11 players from North Jersey and New York but none from Philadelphia.

Monmouth President Dr. Patrick F. Leahy called it “a great day” and said the CAA “will enhance the Monmouth brand and increase our exposure at the regional and national levels.”

“I am very excited to give our student-athletes and coaching staffs the opportunity to elevate our programs to a new level,” Leahy said. “The MAAC, Big South, and America East Conferences have been very good to us over the past eight-plus years, and I am grateful to the leaders of those leagues and the member institutions for their collegiality and competitive spirit. 

“I anticipate that this move to the CAA will energize the entire Monmouth University community and serve as a tremendous point of pride for our students, alumni, and friends.”

Geographically speaking, which equates to TV revenue, the CAA encompasses major metro spreads from Boston to Charleston, S.C. The conference’s footprint not only already included Philadelphia and New York, but with Monmouth and Stony Brook joining Hofstra (Hempstead, N.Y.) the league’s visibility in the Big Apple has been tripled.

Hampton is an even swap on the map with JMU as both schools are located in Virginia, which also includes William & Mary in Williamsburg.

In between Charleston on the southern end of the CAA and Northeastern at the northern tip in Boston and schools in the New York and Philly sphere, are members located in Newark, Delaware and Towson, Maryland as well as Elon and Wilmington in North Carolina.

CAA Commissioner Joe D’Antonio said “all three institutions fit perfectly into the framework of the Conference’s vision.”

“The CAA is excited for what the future holds,” D’Antonio added, “and will continue to be focused on making decisions that ensures its membership a competitive and sustainable model.”

And a win for the CAA both on the court and on cable TV.

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