Wichita State is joining the AAC
Wichita State is joining the American Athletic Conference beginning next year, a league official with direct knowledge of the situation told The Commercial Appeal.
School presidents from the AAC voted unanimously during a Friday morning conference call to add the Shockers as a non-football member beginning with the 2017-18 season in hopes of further boosting the league’s basketball profile. The conference is expected to make an official announcement later today.
The Wichita State men’s basketball program has qualified for the NCAA tournament six years in a row under Coach Gregg Marshall, including a Final Four appearance in 2013. The Shockers are expected to return their entire nucleus from last season’s team, which lost to Kentucky in the NCAA tournament’s round of 32. They will likely be the preseason AAC favorite.
Wichita State had been increasingly concerned about their standing within the college basketball landscape as a member of the Missouri Valley Conference. The Shockers earned a No. 10 seed in this year’s NCAA tournament despite being ranked No. 19 in the country in the USA Today Coaches Poll heading into the postseason.
Their addition gives the AAC 12 member schools for both football and basketball going forward. All of Wichita State’s athletic teams -- the Shockers do not have a football program -- are expected to compete in the AAC beginning next year.
Given Wichita State’s recent success in men’s basketball, it provides Memphis with another quality opponent in league play and more potential revenue from the AAC. The NCAA annually distributes money to conferences based on their recent performance in the NCAA tournament.