In March 2012 , the A10 suffered a significant blow when conference mainstay Temple University announced its departure for the Big East Conference , with the school 's FBS football team moving from the MAC that fall and its other sports joining the conference in July 2013 ( by which time the Big East had split into two conferences , with Temple joining the football-sponsoring portion now known as the American Athletic Conference ) . Since the A10 does not sponsor football , it began membership discussions with three basketball-focused schools — Butler University , then of the Horizon League ; and two CAA members , George Mason University and Virginia Commonwealth University ( VCU )
Big East Conference
Big East Conference (1979–2013)
2010–13 Colonial Athletic Association realignment