Will Stony Brook's move to CAA hurt in short term?
Hofstra midfielder Riley Forte defends Stony Brook midfielder David Miele-Estrella in 2021, but if SBU leaves America East at end of 2022 season, the Seawolves may not be eligible for conferemce championships. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
Stony Brook’s move from the America East to the Colonial Athletic Association became official on Tuesday morning when CAA commissioner Joe D’Antonio held a zoom news conference to announce it was expanding with the addition of the Seawolves, Monmouth and Hampton beginning on July 1.
In the long-term this will have huge benefits for Stony Brook as it becomes part of higher-profile conference with better NCAA Tournament prospects in all sports, takes the Long Island rivalry with Hofstra to a new level of intensity and increases the school’s visibility and earning potential.
The short term is far less rosy for the Seawolves. There is a provision in the America East bylaws that states that once a school has notified the conference that it is withdrawing, it can be ruled ineligible for conference championships. That would mean that Stony Brook could be ruled ineligible for the AE’s automatic bid to the Division I men’s and women’s basketball tournaments. The women’s team (15-2, 6-0) is in first place; the men’s team (12-6, 4-1) is in second place.
When Boston University exited the America East for the Patriot League in 2012, it was ruled ineligible for championships. This season Hartford announced it is exiting to scale back to Division III and has been permitted to compete for conference titles. The remaining AE members will decide before the beginning of winter championships if Stony Brook will be eligible.
There are details to be finalized regarding the CAA expansion for the next academic year as it loses James Madison to the Sun Belt Conference and adds three schools. Now at 12 teams, the CAA is likely to go to North and South divisions with six teams apiece, a move that will significantly reduce travel costs for each school. The SBU women’s tennis program will no longer travel to play in the Missouri Valley Conference.
"We were keenly focused . . . on geographic fit," D’Antonio said in evaluating expansion targets.
Stony Brook already plays football in the CAA and little will change there except for the membership; D’Antonio said teams will continue to play eight conference football games.
In moving to the CAA, Stony Brook has given all its sports programs a better opportunity to reach NCAA Tournaments, get better seedings and thrive. In men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s soccer, baseball and softball, this stronger CAA will be worthy of consideration for more at-large bids than it presently gets.
It could be particularly important to the highly successful women’s lacrosse program, which has never received one of the top four seeds for the NCAA Tournament because of the AE’s poor strength. In 2018 it was 19-0 and ranked No. 1 nationally and still got the No. 5 seeding.
"The CAA last year got four teams into the NCAA Tournament, and we were the lone representative for the American East," Stony Brook AD Shawn Heilbron said. "We feel like it will give us a stronger strength of schedule in conference and position our program for one of the top four seeds, which is really the key to winning a national championship. It’s certainly played a role in this decision."
Hofstra was a huge advocate of bringing Stony Brook in. As Pride AD Rick Cole Jr. explained "we’re already competing against them in every sport and now going to be twice a year and have conference impact . . . it’s very healthy for the college marketplace on Long Island. Every time we play them in any sport, the spectatorship goes up and the presence in the local media market goes up."
"The Stony Brook-Hofstra rivalry is already great and we’ve both been committed to it and these now will become conference games across the board which only amps up the rivalry," Heilbron said. "It’s going to be exciting for the athletes, students and fans."
There could be greater earning opportunities for conference members with a stronger men’s basketball conference. The CAA will enter the final year of its primary media rights deal with streaming service FloSports. D’Antonio said media "arrangements going forward will likely include both streaming options as well as national linear TV options and potentially local linear TV options."
The CAA will play its men’s basketball tournament in Washington, D.C., this season and next. With a stronger presence in Greater New York and the myriad of venues — including the Coliseum and UBS Arena on Long Island — D’Antonio said he "wouldn’t close the door" on having the tournament in the area.
Stony Brook will take on some costs along the way. LaValle Stadium and Island Federal Credit Union Arena measure up to other CAA schools, but Heilbron said the facilities for baseball and softball will require upgrades to match other conference members. "We will have to fundraise to make those improvements," he said.
Roger Rubin returned to Newsday in 2018 to write about high schools, colleges and baseball following 20 years at the Daily News. A Baseball Hall of Fame voter since 2011, he has covered 13 MLB postseasons and 14 NCAA Final Fours.
