East Carolina of Conference USA announced on Wednesday it has applied for membership to the Big East Conference.

"While we have formalized our interest in Big East Conference membership as a viable option, ECU will remain focused on competing at the highest level through the efforts of Conference USA," chancellor Steve Ballard and athletic director Terry Holland said in a statement.

The Big East is regrouping after Syracuse and Pittsburgh announced they would depart to join the Atlantic Coast Conference.

A source told ESPN's Joe Schad on Tuesday that the Big East's initial expansion targets would be the service academies -- Army, Navy, and Air Force -- with Central Florida and East Carolina as second-tier possibilities.