This is part of an ongoing series covering various college realignment news for all three NCAA Divisions as well as the NAIA. The roundup below will cover news and reports since July 15, 2025, and provide updates on previously discussed topics. As a reminder, all official moves starting with the 2025-26 academic year can be found here and those starting in 2026-27 are here. We’ll break out the reports for each Division in the following order: Division 1, Division 2, Division 3, and NAIA. Clicking the links will bring you to that specific section. If a division is not highlighted, there has been no news since the most recent post.
| School(s)/Conference | News Item |
|---|---|
| American Conference | Rebrand |
| CIAA | May Sponsor Varsity Flag Football in Future |
| Great Northwest | Partnering with Hudl |
| Memphis | Trying to Join Big 12 |
| Mid-South Conference | Partnering with Urban Edge Network |
| North Carolina | Realignment Target for Big Ten and SEC? |
| RMAC | Paywalling Network with Hudl |
| Sacred Heart | Football Joining CAA |
| Sun Belt | Open to Expansion |
| United East | Sponsoring Varsity Flag Football in 2025-26 |
NCAA Division 1 News
The American Rebrands… Slightly
The American Athletic Conference has made a slight rebrand to just the “American Conference” or The American. The new name became official on Monday, July 21, a few days before the conference’s football media days later in the week.
Memphis Makes Big Offer to Join Big 12
The University of Memphis made a massive offer to the Big 12 Conference in hopes of being able to join as a full member. According to Ross Dellenger of Yahoo, Memphis offered the Big 12 $200 million over the next five years to become a full member of the conference. As part of the deal, Memphis would not receive any TV revenue distributions, add more than $150 million in sponsorships, and willingly allow the Big 12 to expel the team after the 2030-31 academic year if the conference voted to do so. Memphis currently lacks the support from the other members to join, which requires approval from 12 of the 16 members. Realignment is only getting crazier with FOMO leading to… “unique” proposals like this.
North Carolina Leaving the ACC in the Future?
North Carolina may be on the way out of the ACC in the next round of realignment, according to reporter Jim Williams. UNC could end up in the Big Ten or SEC with the specific focus on adding the Tar Heels’ football program. Williams didn’t rule out the possibility of Clemson and Florida State leaving, while potential backfills include Connecticut, Memphis, South Florida, and Tulane. Williams even said that some sort of deal could be made with the Big 12, but didn’t provide additional details. Even though this move wouldn’t happen until 2030 at the earliest, it goes to show that realignment never stops.
Sacred Hearts Joins CAA in Football
Sacred Heart University (Fairfield, Connecticut) will join the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) in football beginning with the 2026-27 academic year. Sacred Heart is currently an FCS independent. The CAA will have 13 members in 2026, but as mentioned when Villanova left the CAA for the Patriot League, the conference is not as strong after several departures over the previous five years. The addition of Sacred Heart seems like a quantitative addition, perhaps easing additional realignment departures.
Sun Belt Open to Further Expansion
Sun Belt Conference Commissioner Keith Gill stated that the conference is open to further expansion. The SBC recently saw Texas State announce it would leave to join the Pac-12 in the 2026-27 academic year, which led the conference to add Louisiana Tech earlier this month. Louisiana Tech will join no later than the 2027-28 academic year. The MAC’s Ohio Bobcats were floated as a potential expansion target before LA Tech, while fellow Conference USA members Middle Tennessee and Western Kentucky are two additional schools that are frequently mentioned in future possibilities.
NCAA Division 2 News
CIAA May Sponsor Varsity Flag Football in Future
The Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) may elevate flag football to varsity status in 2026-27, according to commissioner Jacqie McWilliams-Parker. The CIAA held a club flag football championship for the 2024-25 academic year, with Winston-Salem State winning the title.
Great Northwest Partners with Hudl
The Great Northwest Athletic Conference will partner with Hudl to create the GNAC Network beginning with the 2025-26 academic year. The GNAC will have a pay-per-view wall for the first 48 hours after each event, but will become free afterwards. There are multiple tiers to obtain access, including $12 for a single event, a monthly pass for $25, and a full season pass for $120. Additional pricing options based on each sport can be found here.
RMAC Moves to Paywall
The Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) will move its network behind a paywall with Hudl beginning with the 2025-26 academic year. Single event passes, monthly, and annual subscriptions will be available. The GNAC is also partnering with Hudl to institute a paywall for the upcoming season.
NCAA Division 3 News
United East to Sponsor Varsity Flag Football
While the CIAA did not make flag football a varsity sport for 2025-26, the United East Conference will. Cairn University, Cedar Crest College, Gallaudet University, Keystone College, and Penn State Harrisburg will compete at the varsity level for 2025-26. Gallaudet won the unofficial United East tournament last season.
NAIA News
Mid-South to Stream Championships on Urban Edge
The Mid-South Conference will stream its championships on the Urban Edge Network beginning with the 2025-26 academic year. The Mid-South will simultaneously stream the championships on its network for free. The two sides are hoping to expand the partnership to include regular season games. Earlier in July, the Urban Edge Network and the Sun Conference announced a partnership that will show the Sun’s contests on demand. UEN also announced deals with the Heart, SSAC, and the NAIA to stream championships in June.
Photo Courtesy of Memphis Athletics