Albany and Stony Brook will join the Colonial Athletic Association for football, beginning with the 2013 season, conference commissioner Tom Yeager announced Tuesday. Both programs have competed at the FCS level -- Alabny in the Northeast Conference and Stony Brook in the Big South.
"This is certainly a momentous day for CAA Football," Yeager said. "The addition of Albany and Stony Brook bring playoff-tested programs from the Northeast into an already nationally-prominent league."
Recently, Albany won the Northeast Conference title in 2011 and Stony Brook has captured the last three Big South conference titles.
Yeager, as a result, sounded pleased with their success.
"Albany's success last season is evidence Coach [Bob] Ford has built a program that will be ready to compete right away in our league," he said. "Coinciding with its new on-campus football stadium opening in 2013, we are looking forward to having the Great Danes create some great conference rivalries immediately."
On Stony Brook:
"Coach Priore has Stony Brook poised for yet another run for the NCAA Playoffs. Welcoming the Seawolves into our league next season will present our current members with yet another challenging matchup come Saturday's in the fall."
For more on the Patriots basketball program, stay tuned to SB Nation DC. For all your college basketball news and notes be sure to check out SB Nation's NCAA hoops hub.