Early on Wednesday, it was made official that the Butler Bulldogs would be moving to the Atlantic 10 conference from the Horizon League, through a press release and a new landing page for the Atlantic 10 website. Butler is set to join all of its athletics outside of its football (which will remain with the Pioneer League) and women's golf (which the Atlantic 10 does not have a program for) on July 1, 2013.
A-10 Commissioner Bernadette V. McGlade had a statement in a press release:
"Welcoming Butler University as the newest member of the Atlantic 10 Conference is an honor and privilege. Institutionally, they are a perfect fit for the league and bring a tradition of excellence in academics, athletics, integrity and personnel," stated A-10 Commissioner Bernadette V. McGlade. "As a conference driven by national prominence in men's basketball, Butler further strengthens our league. Complementing their success in men's basketball is a broad-based sports program that will compete well in the A-10."
Butler has been very good over the past couple seasons with multiple appearances in the NCAA Tournament, so it was only a matter of time before their basketball program moved on to bigger and better things. Butler made it to the final four in two of the last three years.
On top of that, Patrick Nero, the director of athletics and recreation from George Washington Athletics had this to say about Butler joining the conference:
"The Atlantic 10 Conference has always been a premier basketball conference in the country, and today with the addition of Butler, that fact is underscored once again. Not only is Butler a welcome addition to our league, but this move exemplifies once again why the George Washington University is proud to be part of the A-10."
There will be more to come when the actual press conference if underway Wednesday afternoon.
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