In 1997 , the Big East Conference gave the University of Connecticut and Villanova University a December 31 deadline to decide if they were going to upgrade their respective football programs and join the Big East football conference . Villanova , a private institution , declined the invitation . However , in October 1997 , the University of Connecticut Board of Trustees overwhelmingly endorsed , by a vote of sixteen to one , the football team 's plan to upgrade the program to Division I-A status . Part of the plan would be to build a new stadium , as the current stadium , Memorial Stadium , fell well below the minimum occupancy level of 30,000 , as set by the NCAA . Originally , the new stadium was to be built on campus
Big East Conference
Big East Conference (1979–2013)
UConn Huskies football