The Big East is hosting a 3 p.m. conference call with Navy officials reportedly to announce that Navy will join the league for football only in 2015.
ESPN and CBSSports.com first reported the news, and it was confirmed by The Associated Press.
The Big East has been courting Navy, a football independent, for months and service academy officials had made it known they liked the idea of joining.
But when the Big East added Boise State and San Diego State as football-only members and Houston, SMU and Central Florida as full members in December, the Midshipmen were not ready to get on board.
Those schools are scheduled to begin competing in the Big East in 2013.
The Big East is losing Pittsburgh and Syracuse to the Atlantic Coast Conference and West Virginiato the Big 12, but it’s unclear when.
Syracuse basketball coach Jim Boeheim has said he doubts the Orange will remain in the Big East past the 2012-13 season.
West Virginia filed a lawsuit against the Big East so it can join the Big 12 in 2012. The Big East sued West Virginia to make the school abide by the league’s 27-month notification period, which would keep the Mountaineers in the Big East through the 2013-14 school year.
A Rhode Island judge has ordered West Virginia and the Big East to enter non-binding mediation to resolve their competing lawsuits.
Pitt, Syracuse and the ACC have said they will not challenge the Big East bylaws.
The Big East wants to end up with a 12-team football conference, split into eastern and western divisions, and hold a league championship game.
(The AP contributed)
