A member of the America East Conference, the University of Maine sponsors teams in eight men's and nine women's NCAA sanctioned sports.

The program has developed 2 NBA players those being former Los Angeles Clippers Jeff Cross and former Boston Celtics and current head coach of the Dallas Mavericks Rick Carlisle.

The football program has produced many professional football players and coaches, such as center Mike Flynn, offensive lineman Justin Strzelczyk, quarterback Mike Buck, wide receiver/coach Phil McGeoghan, Pro Bowl linebacker Lofa Tatupu, who transferred to USC after his freshman year, linebacker Stephen Cooper, Pro Bowl fullback/special teams Montell Owens, defensive back Daren Stone, tight end Matthew Mulligan, defensive lineman Mike DeVito, linebacker Jovan Belcher, Pro Bowl fullback/defensive lineman Patrick Ricard and defensive back Brandon McGowan.

The largest crowd that the Black Bears have ever played in front of was 77,469 fans at Memorial Stadium, when Maine fell, 25–7, to the Nebraska Cornhuskers in Lincoln.

The team is scheduled to play BCS games at the ACC's Boston College in 2012 and the Big Ten's Northwestern in 2013.

Despite success over the past decade, including an NCAA tournament berth in 2011, Maine had never won a CAA regular season title.

That drought ended on November 16, 2013 as Maine defeated the University of Rhode Island 41-0 at home to win their first CAA title.

The program has produced many professional ice hockey players, such as Paul Kariya, Eric Weinrich, Keith Carney, Garth Snow, Mike Dunham, Dustin Penner, and Jimmy Howard.

the flagship for all football and hockey games, as well as their respective coaches shows are carried on the Voice of Maine News/Talk Network (WVOM-FM and WVQM; the current[as of?]

During the school year the Black Bear Insider is carried Sunday mornings on WVII at noon, and rebroadcast on Fox College Sports as well.

In 2006 the university sold the multimedia advertising and broadcast rights to all athletic events to Missouri-based Learfield Sports.