Big East Conference

The original Big East

The original Big East Conference was founded in 1979, when Providence College basketball coach Dave Gavitt spearheaded an effort to assemble an east coast basketball-centric collegiate athletic conference. The core of the Big East formed when Providence, St. John's, Georgetown, and Syracuse invited Seton Hall, Connecticut (UConn), Holy Cross, Rutgers, and Boston College (BC). Holy Cross turned down the invitation, as did Rutgers initially, while BC, Seton Hall, and UConn accepted. Gavitt became the Big East's first commissioner, and Villanova and Pittsburgh joined the conference shortly thereafter. PR firm Duffy & Shanley is credited with the initial branding and naming work for the conference.

The conference remained largely unchanged until 1991, when it began to sponsor football, adding Miami as a full member, and Rutgers, Temple, Virginia Tech, and West Virginia as football-only members. Rutgers and West Virginia upgraded to full Big East membership in 1995, while Virginia Tech did the same in 2000. Notre Dame also joined as a non-football member effective in 1995. Temple football was kicked out after the 2004 season, but rejoined in 2012 and intended to become a full Big East member in 2013.

The unusual structure of the Big East, with the "football" and "non-football" schools, led to instability in the conference. The waves of defection and replacement brought about by the conference realignments of 2005 and the early 2010s revealed tension between the football-sponsoring and non-football schools that eventually led to the split of the conference in 2013.

The conference reorganized following the tumultuous period of realignment that hobbled the Big East between 2010 and 2013. The Big East was one of the most severely impacted conferences during the most recent conference realignment period. In all, 14 member schools announced their departure for other conferences, and 15 other schools announced plans to join the conference (eight as all-sports members, and four for football only). Three of the latter group later backed out of their plans to join (one for all sports, and the other two for football only).

The present Big East

On December 15, 2012 the Big East's seven non-FBS schools, all Catholic institutions – DePaul, Georgetown, Marquette, Providence, St. John's, Seton Hall, and Villanova – announced that they had voted unanimously to separate from the Big East football playing schools, effective June 30, 2015. Among the many rumor-fueled news stories, it was reported that the so-called Catholic 7, in leaving the Big East, were looking for a more lucrative television deal than they would have received by remaining with the football schools. Of more concern may have been the limited window in which these non-FBS schools would hold a voting majority in the conference—after the defection of certain FBS schools to the ACC but before the effective inclusion of candidate FBS schools to replace them—and, therefore, architect a conference future both aligned with their institutional interests and true to the basketball roots from which the Big East grew. Five of the seven schools constituted a majority of the conference during its enormously successful early years, prior to the inclusion of football as a conference sport; only one of the FBS schools that were to remain in the conference, UConn, shared this heritage. In March 2013, it was announced that the Catholic 7 were not only parting ways with the FBS schools on June 30, 2013, but that they would retain the Big East name, $10 million from the old conference's treasury, and the right to hold the conference's basketball tournament at Madison Square Garden.

On March 14, 2013, it was reported that the Big East would be adding members in the next seven to ten days. The following day, ESPN stated that the Big East would add Butler and Xavier from the Atlantic 10 Conference, as well as Creighton from the Missouri Valley Conference, with an official announcement to be forthcoming within the next week, although the institutions which were reportedly joining were refusing to comment.

At a news conference in New York City on March 20, 2013, the reorganized league was formally introduced with Butler, Xavier, and Creighton included as members. Additional announcements included details of new contracts for television and for the use of Madison Square Garden as site of the men's basketball tournament. It billed itself as a return to Gavitt's original vision of a strong, Northeast-based basketball conference.

Field Hockey and Lacrosse Associate Members

During May 2013, the conference added several associate members in lacrosse and field hockey. The University of Denver joined the men's lacrosse league and started play in the 2014 season, while Rutgers University men's lacrosse played the 2014 season in the Big East before moving to the Big Ten in 2014–15. Rutgers also housed its field hockey and women's lacrosse teams in the Big East for 2013–14 before joining the Big Ten, as did Louisville in advance of its 2014 move to the ACC.

The 2013–14 school year also saw the arrival of Connecticut and Temple for both women's lacrosse and field hockey, Old Dominion for field hockey only, and Cincinnati for women's lacrosse only; all of these schools remain Big East affiliates in those sports.

The launch of a women's lacrosse league in the Big Ten for the 2015 season caused the American Lacrosse Conference (ALC) to dissolve after the 2014 season; two Southeastern Conference teams that had been ALC members, Florida and Vanderbilt, joined the Big East as associate members in that sport.

The most recent changes in Big East membership came during the 2015–16 school year. First, on December 8, 2015, the conference announced that Liberty and Quinnipiac would become associate members in field hockey effective with the 2016 season. Then, on May 3, 2016, the Big East announced that Denver, already an affiliate in men's lacrosse, would move its women's lacrosse team into the league in the 2016–17 school year (2017 season). In addition to the new associate members, full member Butler announced on October 21, 2015 that it would elevate its club team in women's lacrosse to full varsity status in the 2017 season and immediately begin Big East competition.

Charter members

All full members of the Big East are private institutions, and all are Catholic except for Butler.

Associate members

Former associate members

Since the American Athletic Conference did not sponsor lacrosse or field hockey, Rutgers and Louisville joined the Big East as associate members before joining the Big Ten Conference and Atlantic Coast Conference, respectively, in 2014.

Membership timeline

Big East Conference (1979–2013) members Big East Conference members Associate member

Men's sports

Since the relaunch of the Big East in July 2013, it has sponsored championship competition in ten men's and twelve women's NCAA sanctioned sports. Initially, seven schools were associate members in three sports. Two associate members departed in 2014 and were replaced by two new associates. In 2016, two new associates joined, and an existing associate member brought a second sport into the Big East.

^† = Associates Denver

Basketball

The 2013–14 season marked the inaugural season of the reconfigured Big East. Kicking off with media day at Chelsea Piers, the season started with much fanfare and excitement around the country's elite basketball-centric conference. Aided by the lucrative TV agreement with FS1, almost all Big East games were televised, helping to maintain and grow Big East basketball as a national brand. For 2014–15, the Big East had four schools ranked in the top 20 and six schools in the top 30 recruiting classes nationally according to ESPN, Scout and Rivals rankings. Villanova won the conference's first national championship since realignment in 2016.

All-time wins and NCAA appearances

This list goes through the 2015–16 season.

Soccer

All full Big East member schools field men's soccer teams.

Lacrosse

Big East men's lacrosse is made up of charter members Georgetown, Marquette, Providence, St. John's, and Villanova, as well as Denver. NCAA regulations state that there must be six teams for a league to receive an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, and since Butler, Creighton, DePaul, Seton Hall, and Xavier only field club teams, the Big East had to look elsewhere. Both Denver and Johns Hopkins were rumored as targets for potential invitation and Denver was ultimately invited to join the Big East as a lacrosse-only member. Denver joined the Big East as one of the hottest teams in the country; at the time of the relaunch of the Big East in July 2013, the Pioneers had made six NCAA Tournament appearances in the previous eight seasons and had appeared in two Final Fours in the previous three seasons. The University of Denver houses most of its other sports in The Summit League; most of that league's other teams are closer to that school's Denver campus than the bulk of the Big East. There is still uncertainty to whether or not Butler, Creighton, DePaul, Seton Hall, or Xavier will elevate their programs from the club level, or if any other programs will receive lacrosse-only invitations.

Baseball

Big East full member schools, Butler, Creighton, Georgetown, Seton Hall, St. John's, Villanova and Xavier all field men's baseball teams. DePaul and Marquette have never fielded Big East baseball teams, while Providence fielded one until 1999 when it was dropped and later replaced with Lacrosse.

Swimming & Diving

Big East men's swimming & diving is made up of charter members Georgetown, Providence, Seton Hall, Villanova and Xavier. Butler cut men's swimming & diving in 2007, when they also cut lacrosse. St. John's cut men's swimming & diving in 2003 due to Title IX, when they also cut football, men's cross country, men's indoor track & field, men's outdoor track & field and women's swimming & diving, and added men's lacrosse. The Big East Conference originally started sponsoring men's swimming & diving in 1979.

The Big East Conference Men's Swimming & Diving Championships have been held at some of the fastest pools in the United States. These pools include: Indiana University Natatorium, which has hosted multiple NCAA Men's and Women's Swimming & Diving Championships and multiple U.S.A. Olympic Trials in both Swimming and Diving; Nassau County Aquatic Center, which has hosted NCAA Men's and Women's Swimming & Diving Championships and the International Goodwill Games; and University of Pittsburgh's Trees Pool, which hosted a total of 17 Big East Conference Men's and Women's Swimming & Diving Championships. Out of the current members, Xavier has won a total of three Big East Conference Men's Swimming & Diving Championships, Villanova has won two, and Seton Hall has won one.

Cross Country

Villanova men's cross country team won three straight NCAA National Championships in 1966, 1967 and 1968, as well as a fourth in 1970. They also finished 2nd in 1962 and 1969. Providence men's cross country team have also finished in second in 1981 and 1982.

Women's sports

^† = Associates Connecticut, Liberty, Old Dominion, Quinnipiac, and Temple.

^†† = Associates Cincinnati, Connecticut, Denver, Florida, Temple, and Vanderbilt.

Field Hockey

The Big East began sponsoring field hockey in 1989, but conference records only indicate that a postseason tournament was held; the first recorded season of full league play was 1993, with Boston College, Connecticut, Georgetown, Providence, Syracuse, and Villanova participating. Georgetown left Big East field hockey after the 1994 season, and was replaced by incoming Big East member Rutgers. The next change in field hockey membership came in 2005, when BC left for the ACC and was replaced by Louisville. Georgetown returned its field hockey program to the Big East the next year, after which the conference's field hockey membership remained unchanged until the 2013 conference split. Shortly before the split, Old Dominion was set to join the original Big East as a field hockey associate.

The conference split left both successor leagues—the reconfigured Big East and The American—with too few field hockey members to qualify for an automatic NCAA tournament berth. As a result, both leagues agreed that only the "new" Big East would sponsor the sport, and that all American members with field hockey programs would become associates. Accordingly, the Big East field hockey conference would now be made up of Big East full members Georgetown, Providence, and Villanova; American members Connecticut, Louisville, Rutgers, and Temple; and Old Dominion, otherwise a member of Conference USA. Following the 2014 departure of Louisville and Rutgers for all-sports membership in conferences that sponsored field hockey (respectively the ACC and Big Ten), Big East field hockey operated with six members until Liberty and Quinnipiac joined as associate members in 2016.

NCAA National Championships

The only honors listed here are those earned by Big East field hockey members while playing the sport in the conference. In addition to these:

Swimming & Diving

Big East women's swimming & diving is made up of charter members Butler, Georgetown, Providence, Seton Hall, Villanova and Xavier. St. John's cut women's swimming & diving in 2003, when they also cut men's swimming & diving, football, men's cross country, men's indoor track & field and men's outdoor track & field, and added men's lacrosse. The Big East Conference originally started sponsoring women's swimming & diving in 1982.

The Big East Conference Women's Swimming & Diving Championships have been held at some of the fastest pools in the United States. These pools include: Indiana University Natatorium, which has hosted multiple NCAA Men's and Women's Swimming & Diving Championships and multiple U.S.A. Olympic Trials in both Swimming and Diving; Nassau County Aquatic Center, which has hosted NCAA Men's and Women's Swimming & Diving Championships and the International Goodwill Games; and University of Pittsburgh's Trees Pool, which hosted a total of 17 Big East Conference Men's and Women's Swimming & Diving Championships. Out of the current members, Villanova has won a total of nine Big East Conference Women's Swimming & Diving Championships.

Volleyball

All full members of the Big East sponsor women's volleyball. However, in the first season of the reconfigured Big East in 2013, Providence was an affiliate member of the America East Conference. The Friars joined Big East volleyball in 2014.

Cross Country

The Providence women's cross country team have been crowned NCAA National Champions in 1995 and 2013, as well as finishing 2nd in 1990 and 2012. The Villanova women's cross country team won two straight NCAA National Championships in 2009 and 2010 and six straight NCAA National Championships in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, and 1994. Villanova runners also won an individual NCAA National Championship in 1998, as well as placing 3rd in 1995, 2nd in 1996 and 3rd in 2011. The Georgetown women's cross country team were NCAA National Champions in 2011.

Lacrosse

The Big East began sponsoring women's lacrosse in the 2001 season with Boston College, UConn, Georgetown, Notre Dame, Rutgers, Syracuse, and Virginia Tech. The original lineup stayed in place until Virginia Tech and BC left for the ACC, respectively in 2004 and 2005. The conference replaced BC with Loyola (Maryland) for the 2006 season, and the Greyhounds remained an associate member until the school joined the Patriot League, which already sponsored women's lacrosse, in 2013. Originally, the conference championship was decided solely by league play; a postseason tournament was added starting in the 2007 season with the top four teams qualifying, a format that exists to this day. The next changes in women's lacrosse membership came in the 2009 season, when Cincinnati and Louisville (both of which had only added varsity lacrosse for the 2008 season) brought their teams into the Big East. Villanova followed in the 2010 season.

As in the case of field hockey, the 2013 conference split left the Big East and The American with too few lacrosse teams for an automatic NCAA bid. Also in a parallel with field hockey, the two conferences agreed that only the reconfigured Big East would sponsor the sport, with all women's lacrosse teams from The American becoming associate members. The first season of women's lacrosse in the reconfigured league in 2014 would thus include Cincinnati, UConn, Georgetown, Louisville, new varsity team Marquette, Rutgers, Temple, and Villanova. The Big East would lose Louisville and Rutgers after that season, respectively to the ACC and Big Ten, replacing them with Florida and Vanderbilt (the only two SEC schools sponsoring the sport) after the demise of the American Lacrosse Conference.

For the 2017 season, Butler will add varsity women's lacrosse and Denver will bring its women's lacrosse team into the league, giving the Big East 10 members in the sport.

NCAA team championships

Thru July 2, 2015

This list includes NCAA championships. Excluded from this list are all national championships earned outside the scope of NCAA competition, including Division I FBS football titles (0), women's AIAW championships (2 by Old Dominion), equestrian titles (0), and retroactive Helms Athletic Foundation titles (1 by St. John's).

NCAA championships won by Big East associate members in their Big East sports are also included, but those schools' championships in sports that they currently house outside the Big East are excluded. These schools are indicated in italics.

Facilities

Notes: