The Mountain West Conference’s subordinate changeover is authoritative Wednesday arsenic immoderate erstwhile schools caput to the reforming Pac-12 Conference and caller schools get to instrumentality their place.
The 27-year-old league is present made up of 8 schools who volition vie successful each sports, including football, with UNLV, Air Force, Hawaii, New Mexico, UNR, San Jose State, Wyoming and UTEP. Grand Canyon University and UC-Davis, volition vie successful each sports extracurricular of shot portion North Dakota State joining for football, Northern Illinois competing successful shot and gymnastics and Utah Tech joining for shot and men’s swimming and diving.
As the caller institutions are added, the Mountain West is losing Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State to the Pac-12, joining holdovers Oregon State and Washington State and caller full-time subordinate Texas State University. Gonzaga is besides jumping from the West Coast Conference to the Pac-12 for basketball.
Along with the caller league makeup, the Mountain West has moved its office from Colorado to Las Vegas, with an bureau abstraction acceptable up successful Town Square.
UNLV manager of athletics Erick Harper said having the MW located adjacent UNLV could person its advantages to hosting immoderate of the conference’s marquee events. That includes men’s and women’s hoops tournaments, which UNLV has hosted since 2007.
“Their bureau being present besides provides an accidental for the metropolis of Las Vegas to big immoderate Mountain West league championships,” Harper told the Review-Journal successful May. “We could person each the championships coming done present and fastener successful the shot title crippled astatine Allegiant Stadium.
”I deliberation it would beryllium spectacular to beryllium capable to big much Mountain West title contention present successful Las Vegas.”
After each schools but Oregon State and Washington State fled the Pac-12 successful 2023 for Power 4 conferences, a scheduling statement was signed with the Mountain West to marque up for mislaid league games by the 2 schools. That woody included connection that if the Pac-12 recruited schools from the Mountain West successful the aboriginal that poaching fees would beryllium paid by the Pac-12 to the MW.
That woody led to aggregate lawsuits filed regarding assorted fees the Pac-12 and exiting Mountain West schools would person to wage their conference. The full fees ballooned to much than $155 million.
In May, the 2 conferences agreed to intermission their lawsuits and enactment connected a settlement, which was agreed successful rule connected June 1, according to Northern California District Court records. It is expected that the settlement’s payout volition beryllium little than the primitively terms. A amusement origin proceeding connected the lawsuit is scheduled for Sept. 9, according to tribunal records.
In 2024, UNLV signed to stay with the Mountain West for six much years starting this year, taking the woody done 2032, with the committedness of the assemblage receiving $14.9 cardinal nary aboriginal than Wednesday and an further $21 cardinal — for a full of $35.9 cardinal — from poaching and exit fees.
It is unclear however overmuch wealth volition beryllium paid arsenic portion of the colony reached by the 2 conferences.
Contact Mick Akers astatine makers@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers connected X.
New Mountain West
Air Force Falcons
UC-Davis (non-football)
Grand Canyon University (non-football)
Hawai'i Rainbow Warriors
Nevada Wolf Pack
New Mexico Lobos
North Dakota State Bison (football only)
Northern Illinois Huskies (football, gymnastics only)
San José State Spartans
UNLV Rebels
UTEP Miners
Utah Tech (baseball and swimming only)
Wyoming Cowboys
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