RICHMOND, VA. (August 10, 2023) – The Coastal Athletic Association's (CAA) Football's Board of Directors has approved Bryant University as the conference's newest member. Bryant will join CAA Football on July 1, 2024, and increase the league's membership to 16.

"We are excited to welcome Bryant University as the newest member of the CAA Football Conference," CAA Commissioner Joe D'Antonio said. "Bryant is an outstanding academic institution that features a successful and competitive football program. Both of those attributes fit perfectly into 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 continues to be focused on making decisions that ensures its membership a competitive and sustainable model."

Bryant, which is located in Smithfield, R.I., is currently a member of the Big South-OVC Football Association. Entering its 25th season of football, Bryant has posted an all-time record of 130-120 (.520), while going 82-78 (.513) at the Division I level. The Bulldogs have won seven or more games five times at the Division I level and reached as high as No. 21 in the national rankings during the 2014 season.

Bryant plays its home games at 4,400-seat Beirne Stadium, which features a FieldTurf playing surface. The Bulldogs can also practice and train at the Conaty Indoor Athletic Center, an 80,000-square foot facility that includes a full 120-yard turf field.

CAA Football has established itself as one of the premier FCS conferences. Twelve of the league's 15 current members have made the playoffs since 2015. CAA Football has sent multiple teams to the playoffs for the past 31 years and has had three or more squads in the field in 15 of the past 17 seasons. The conference has had at least one team reach the semifinals nine times in the past decade and has had a squad competing in the national championship game nine times in the last 18 years.

Institutions in CAA Football are located along much of the Atlantic Coast, with the geographic footprint stretching across 10 states from Maine to North Carolina. Members include University at Albany (Albany, N.Y.), Campbell University (Buies Creek, N.C.), University of Delaware (Newark, Del.), Elon University (Elon, N.C.), Hampton University (Hampton, Va.), University of Maine (Orono, Maine), Monmouth University (West Long Branch, N.J.), University of New Hampshire (Durham, N.H.), North Carolina A&T State University (Greensboro, N.C.), University of Rhode Island (Kingston, R.I.), University of Richmond (Richmond, Va.), Stony Brook University (Stony Brook, N.Y.), Towson University (Towson, Md.), Villanova University (Villanova, Pa.) and William & Mary (Williamsburg, Va.).