Over the past decade of extensive NCAA conference realignment, a large cohort of historic members has departed Conference USA. Early waves saw schools like Marshall, Old Dominion, and Southern Miss leave for the Sun Belt Conference, while other prominent programs such as Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, North Texas, Rice, UAB, UTSA, and earlier departures like UCF, Houston, and SMU transitioned into the American Athletic Conference or other major leagues in search of enhanced television exposure.