The AAC announced Thursday that it accepted the membership of six new schools from Conference USA.
Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, North Texas, Rice, UAB, and UTSA were all invited and accepted as new members.
No date has been determined for when the new members will join, though 2023 is reportedly the earliest they'll arrive.
The conference will have 15 members but will operate as a 14-team league in football and men's and women's basketball.
The new members are expected to earn above $2 million annually from the AAC's TV deal, while the remaining members continue to average $7 million, sources told Yahoo Sports' Pete Thamel.
Conference USA has eight members following the mass departure. With the Sun Belt reportedly targeting some of its remaining members, the league finds itself playing defense in the latest round of realignment.
"This is a strategic expansion that accomplishes a number of goals as we take the conference into its second decade," AAC commissioner Mike Aresco said in a statement. "We are adding excellent institutions that are established in major cities and have invested in competing at the highest level. We have enhanced geographical concentration which will especially help the conference's men's and women's basketball and Olympic sports teams."
The American Athletic Conference is replacing UCF, Cincinnati, and Houston after they were accepted to join the Big 12 in September. The trio is expected to leave the conference by July 1, 2024, but could switch sooner if the schools negotiate a higher exit fee.
