The A-10 began sponsoring football in 1997 when it absorbed the Yankee Conference , a Division I-AA ( now known as Division I FCS ) football-only conference . The move was triggered by a change in NCAA rules that reduced the influence of single-sport conferences over NCAA legislation . The following teams were in the Yankee Conference at the time of its demise : Boston University dropped football after the first season of A-10 football . After the 1999 season , UConn started a transition from Division I-AA to Division I-A football ( now Division I FBS ) that was completed in 2002 . In 2004 , UConn , already a member of the Big East for other sports , became a football member of that conference . The other schools all remained in the A-10 football conference until the management change after the 2006 season
Big East
Big East Conference (1979–2013)
Atlantic 10 Conference