James Madison has accepted membership into the American Conference and will become a full league member no later than July 1, 2028, the university announced Monday.
James Madison’s board of visitors voted unanimously Monday to authorize the university to notify the Sun Belt Conference that the Dukes are leaving the league.
The Dukes have competed in the Sun Belt in football, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball and other sports since they transitioned from the FCS to the FBS in 2022. James Madison’s football team became a full FBS member following two years of reclassification.
“We are honored that our request for membership in the American Conference has been accepted,” James Madison president James Schmidt said in a statement. “I am grateful to Commissioner Tim Pernetti and the conferences’ presidents and chancellors for their confidence in James Madison University. The American is home to member institutions who share our ambitious academic goals and our unwavering commitment to student success.
“With this move, we carry deep appreciation for the Sun Belt Conference and its member institutions. Their partnership helped position JMU for this moment, and we are proud of everything we built together.”
The university said it will have to pay an undisclosed amount in Sun Belt Conference exit fees and an American Conference entry fee. JMU said the exit fee will be covered by “new private funding from generous supporters, while the entry fee has already been committed from new private corporate partners who championed this move. “
“Athletics and the university worked collaboratively with these individuals and partners in ensuring a financial model to meet this opportunity,” JMU said in a release on its website. “As a result, the university did not have to fund any entry or exit costs internally. The university is committed to soliciting further support to ensure the competitive success of the move to the American.”
James Madison’s football program has become one of the best in the Group of 6 conferences since joining the FBS. Curt Cignetti guided the Dukes to a 19-4 record in two seasons, in 2022 and 2023, before leaving for Indiana.
The Dukes hired Holy Cross coach Bob Chesney to replace Cignetti, and Chesney’s teams went 21-6 over two seasons before he left for UCLA. James Madison won its first Sun Belt Conference title last season and finished 12-2. It appeared in the College Football Playoff for the first time, losing 51-34 in a first-round game at Oregon.
The Dukes are off to a 6-0 start this year in former Florida coach Billy Napier’s first season.
“We’re ecstatic for James Madison to take the next step in our university’s growth by joining the American Conference,” Dukes athletic director Matt Roan said in a statement. “We work every day to best position our athletics program for excellence, and today’s announcement is the next step in our strategic elevation. The American offers opportunities for all our sports to thrive, to grow our brand and media exposure, to expand our constituent base, and to continue to elevate the impact of James Madison on college athletics.”
James Madison had been an affiliate AC member with its women’s lacrosse team competing in the league since 2022 and its women’s swimming and diving team starting this year.
The Dukes said all but one of their 18 varsity sports will compete in the AC when it becomes a full-time member. The women’s field hockey team will remain in the Mid-American Conference.
