Editing Mountain West Conference (section)

==History==
{{Location map+ | USA West | width = 350
| float = right
| caption = Mountain West Conference member locations (Western United States)<br>[[Image:Purple pog.svg|10px]] – Full member<br>[[Image:Red pog.svg|10px]] — Departing member<br>[[Image:Green pog.svg|10px]] — Future member<br>[[Image:Yellow pog.svg|10px]] – Associate member (women's soccer)<br>[[Image:Orange pog.svg|10px]] – Associate member (baseball & women's swimming)
| places =

{{Location map~ | USA West | mark = Red pog.svg | label = San Diego State | position=top | lat_deg =32 | lat_min =47 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =117 | lon_min =4 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark = Purple pog.svg | label = San Jose State | position=left | lat_deg =37 | lat_min =20 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =121 | lon_min =53 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark = Red pog.svg | label = Fresno State | position=right | lat_deg =36 | lat_min =49 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =119 | lon_min =45 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark = Purple pog.svg | label = UNLV | position=right | lat_deg =36 | lat_min =6 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =115 | lon_min =9 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark = Purple pog.svg | label = Nevada | position=right | lat_deg =39 | lat_min =33 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =119 | lon_min =49 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark = Red pog.svg | label = Boise State | position=right | lat_deg =43 | lat_min =36 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =116 | lon_min =12 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark = Red pog.svg | label = Utah State | position=left | lat_deg =41 | lat_min =44 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =111 | lon_min =49 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark = Purple pog.svg | label = New Mexico | position=top | lat_deg =35 | lat_min = 5 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =106 | lon_min = 37 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark = Red pog.svg | label = {{nowrap|Colorado State}} | position=left | lat_deg =40 | lat_min =34 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =105 | lon_min =5 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark = Purple pog.svg | label = Air<br>Force | position=right | lat_deg =38 | lat_min =59 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =104 | lon_min =52 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark = Purple pog.svg | label = Wyoming | position=top | lat_deg =41 | lat_min =19 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =105 | lon_min =35 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark=Green pog.svg | label=UTEP | position=top | lat_deg =31 | lat_min =46 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =106 | lon_min =30 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark=Green pog.svg | label=Grand Canyon | position=right | lat_deg =33 | lat_min =30 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =112 | lon_min =7 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark=Green pog.svg | label=UC Davis | position=top | lat_deg =38 |lat_min =32 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =121 | lon_min =45 | lon_dir =W}}

{{Location map~ | USA West | mark = Yellow pog.svg | label = Colorado College | position=left | lat_deg =38 | lat_min =85 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =104 | lon_min =83 | lon_dir = W}}
{{Location map~ | USA West | mark = Orange pog.svg | label = Washington State| position=left | lat_deg =46 | lat_min =43 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =117 | lon_min =9 | lon_dir = W}}
}}
{{Location map+ | USA Hawaii | width = 200
| float = right
| caption = Mountain West Conference member locations (Hawaii)<br>[[Image:Green-blue pog.svg|10px]] – Football-only and future full member
| places =

{{Location map~ | USA Hawaii | mark = Green-blue pog.svg | label = Hawaii | position=bottom | lat_deg =21 | lat_min =18 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg =157 | lon_min =48 | lon_dir = W}}
}}

{{Location map+ | USA Illinois | width = 200
| float = right
| caption = Mountain West Conference member locations (Illinois)<br>[[Image:Blue pog.svg|10px]] – Future football-only member
| places =

{{Location map~ | USA Illinois | mark = Blue pog.svg | label = NIU | position = bottom | lat_deg = 41 | lat_min = 56 | lat_dir = N | lon_deg = 88 | lon_min = 47 | lon_dir = W}}
}}
[[File:MountainWestMD-2016-0726-CraigThompson.png|thumb|right|Craig Thompson was hired as the inaugural commissioner of the Mountain West on October 15, 1998, and served until his retirement on December 31, 2022. Before joining the MW, he had been commissioner of the [[Sun Belt Conference]].]]

===Genesis===
The creation of the MW was a delayed aftereffect of the [[1996 NCAA conference realignment]], which had initially been triggered two years earlier when the [[Big Eight Conference]] agreed to merge with four members of the [[Southwest Conference]] (SWC) to create the [[Big 12 Conference]], which would begin competition in the 1996–97 school year.

The Western Athletic Conference, which had initially announced plans to expand beyond its then-current 10 members to at least 12, ended up with even more potential expansion prospects. Ultimately, the WAC took in three of the four SWC schools left out of the Big 12 merger—[[Rice University]], [[Southern Methodist University]] (SMU), and [[Texas Christian University]] (TCU). Three other schools were added to bring the total membership to 16, namely [[Big West Conference]] members [[San Jose State University|San José State University]] and UNLV, plus the [[University of Tulsa]], an [[NCAA Division I FBS independent schools|NCAA football independent]] and otherwise a member of the [[Missouri Valley Conference]]. The WAC's 16 teams were divided into four four-team "quadrants", two of which rotated between the Mountain and Pacific Divisions every two years. However, the newly expanded WAC was soon wracked by tension between the established and new members.<ref name="Deinhart 2011-09-14">{{cite news |url=http://collegefootball.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1264788 |title=WAC a cautionary tale for superconferences |first=Tom |last=Deinhart |work=[[Rivals.com]] |publisher=[[Yahoo! Sports]] |date=September 14, 2011 |access-date=July 12, 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928042810/http://collegefootball.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1264788 |archive-date=September 28, 2013}}</ref>

In spring of 1998, BYU and Utah proposed a permanent split into two eight-team divisions. The proposal would have forced some schools into an unnatural alignment because of the geographic distribution of the conference.<ref name="Deinhart 2011-09-14"/> Air Force was the most strident opponent of this proposal, threatening to become an independent.<ref name="Deinhart 2011-09-14"/> Soon after the proposal by BYU and Utah, the presidents of Air Force, BYU, Colorado State, Utah, and Wyoming met at [[Denver International Airport]] to discuss their future, and they agreed to break away from the WAC to form a new conference.<ref name="Deinhart 2011-09-14"/> They invited the WAC members New Mexico, San Diego State, and UNLV to join them in what became the Mountain West Conference.

The next move for the MW came in [[2005 NCAA conference realignment|2005]], when the conference added TCU, who had spent the previous four seasons in [[Conference USA]] (C-USA).

===Early–2010s realignment===
{{See also|2010–2013 Mountain West Conference realignment}}
On June 11, 2010, [[Boise State University]] agreed to join the conference as its tenth member. On June 17, 2010, Utah announced it would be leaving the Mountain West to join what would become the [[Pac-12 Conference]]. On August 18, 2010, amidst rumors that BYU was considering leaving the Mountain West to go independent in football and rejoin the Western Athletic Conference in all other sports, the Mountain West Conference officially extended invitations to [[California State University, Fresno]] (Fresno State) and the [[University of Nevada, Reno]] (Nevada). Both schools accepted and would become the tenth and eleventh members of the league.<ref name=ESPN>{{cite news |url=https://www.espn.com/college-sports/news/story?id=5735144 |title=Fresno State, Nevada to remain in WAC until 2012 |work=ESPN |date=2010-10-28 |access-date=2013-08-09}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Adelson |first=Andrea |title=Utah State turned down invite to MWC |url=https://www.espn.com/blog/ncfnation/post/_/id/24908 |access-date=2013-08-09 |work=ESPN}}</ref> BYU announced on August 31, 2010, that it would leave the Mountain West Conference and go Independent in football and become a member of the [[West Coast Conference]] (WCC) in other sports starting in 2011.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.espn.com/college-sports/news/story?id=5517305 |title=BYU to leave Mountain West Conference, join West Coast Conference in all sports except football |work=ESPN |date=2010-09-01 |access-date=2013-08-09}}</ref> On November 29, 2010, TCU announced all athletic teams would move to the [[Big East Conference (1979–2013)|Big East Conference]] effective in 2012.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/40416658/ns/sports-college_football/ |title=Big East Gets Bigger, Adds TCU For 2012 Season |first=Stephen |last=Hawkins |work=NBCSports.MSNBC.com |date=2010-11-29 |access-date=2010-11-29 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101201011523/http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/40416658/ns/sports-college_football/ |archive-date=December 1, 2010}}</ref> (Less than a year later, on October 10, 2011, TCU announced it would not join the Big East but would join the Big 12, home to fellow former SWC members [[Baylor University|Baylor]], [[University of Texas at Austin|Texas]], [[Texas Tech]], and formerly [[Texas A&M]], in 2012 instead.)<ref name="TCUBig12">{{cite news|url=http://gofrogs.cstv.com/genrel/101011aad.html|title=TCU Accepts Invitation To Join Big 12 Conference|publisher=[[TCU Horned Frogs|TCU Athletic Department]]|date=October 10, 2011|access-date=October 11, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111012192118/http://gofrogs.cstv.com/genrel/101011aad.html|archive-date=October 12, 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> On December 10, 2010, the [[University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa]] accepted a bid to become the 10th member of the conference for football only.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/40611296/ns/sports-college_football/ |title=Hawaii Joins Mountain West Conference
 |first=Jaymes |last=Song |agency=Associated Press |work=NBCSports.MSNBC.com |date=2010-12-10 |access-date=2010-12-10 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101213141604/http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/40611296/ns/sports-college_football/ |archive-date=December 13, 2010}}</ref> These changes would leave the Mountain West Conference with 10 teams for the 2012 football season.

During the era of football's [[Bowl Championship Series]] (BCS), which was replaced by the [[College Football Playoff]] (CFP) in 2014, the MW champion qualified for a BCS bowl four times after the BCS formula was tweaked to allow teams from non-BCS conferences to play in BCS bowls if ranked in the top 12. However, two of the three schools that qualified are no longer with the conference.

On October 14, 2011, the Mountain West and C-USA announced a plan for a football only alliance.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/7102822 |title=Mountain West, Conference USA announce football-only alliance |work=ESPN |date=2011-10-15 |access-date=2013-08-09}}</ref> On February 13, 2012, the two leagues announced that both conferences would be dissolving after the 2012–13 season to reform into one conference with at least 15 members for all sports, and a 16th team, [[University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa]] as a football-only member.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/football/ncaa/02/13/mwc.merger.ap/index.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120216035601/http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/football/ncaa/02/13/mwc.merger.ap/index.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 16, 2012 | work=CNN | title=MWC, C-USA to form new league | date=February 13, 2012}}</ref> However, when the two conferences discussed their plans with the NCAA, they were told that due to NCAA rules, they would forfeit substantial revenues. Specifically, the new conference would receive only one automatic bid to NCAA championships; at least one of the former conferences would lose future revenue distributions from the NCAA men's basketball tournament; and at least one former conference would not be able to collect exit fees from any members that departed to join the new conference.<ref name="McMurphy 2012-04-17">{{cite news |url=https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/conference-usa-mountain-west-merger-unlikely/ |title=Conference Mountain West merger "unlikely" |first=Brett |last=McMurphy |publisher=CBSSports.com |date=April 17, 2012 |access-date=April 21, 2012}}</ref> As a result, the Mountain West and C-USA backed away from a full merger. In late March of that year, the commissioners of both conferences stated that all 16 schools had entered into binding agreements to form a new "association",<ref name="McMurphy 2012-03-28">{{cite news |url=https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/new-c-usa-mwc-league-will-be-completed-by-early-june |title=New C-USA, MWC league will be completed by early June |first=Brett |last=McMurphy |publisher=CBSSports.com |date=March 28, 2012 |access-date=April 10, 2012}}</ref> although the Mountain West and C-USA would have apparently remained separate legal entities.<ref name="McMurphy 2012-04-17"/> In the end, this alliance never materialized due to both conferences soon adding new teams.

On May 2, 2012, [[San Jose State|San José State]] and [[Utah State]] agreed to join the conference for the 2013–14 academic year. On December 31 of that year, Boise State announced that it had backed out of its previously announced move to the Big East for football and the Big West for other sports, and would remain in the MW.<ref name="McMurphy 2012-12-31">{{cite news |last=McMurphy |first=Brett |date=December 31, 2012 |title=Boise State spurns Big East |url=https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/8796807 |access-date=December 31, 2012 |work=ESPN}}</ref>

On January 16, 2013, San Diego State accepted an offer to remain/return to the Mountain West Conference in all sports. Keeping SDSU in the conference gave the Mountain West 12 football members, allowing for a [[Mountain West Conference Football Championship Game|championship game]] to be held. The first championship game took place on December 7, 2013.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Dodd |first=Dennis |date=January 16, 2013 |title=Mountain West planning title game with 'addition' of SDSU |url=https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/mountain-west-planning-title-game-with-addition-of-sdsu |access-date=August 5, 2024 |work=CBS Sports}}</ref>

===Further membership changes===
In February 2018, ''[[The San Diego Union-Tribune]]'' reported that the MW was looking to expand in the near future. In the report, commissioner Craig Thompson revealed that the conference had discussed expansion with six schools, with [[West Coast Conference|WCC]] member [[Gonzaga University|Gonzaga]] (which has not sponsored football since World War II) the only school mentioned by name. Thompson added that Gonzaga could potentially join the MW as a full but non-football member as early as July 2018. While Thompson said that BYU had not contacted the conference, the report indicated that BYU would be open to an MW return, at least in non-football sports, should Gonzaga join.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sports/aztecs/sd-sp-gonzaga-mountain-west-sdsu-20180228-story.html |title=Mountain West confirms it has talked expansion with ... Gonzaga |first=Mark |last=Zeigler |newspaper=San Diego Union-Tribune |date=February 28, 2018 |access-date=March 1, 2018}}</ref> A later ''Union-Tribune'' report indicated that talks were advanced enough that the conference's presidents planned a vote on an invitation to Gonzaga during the MW [[2018 Mountain West Conference men's basketball tournament|men's]] and [[2018 Mountain West Conference women's basketball tournament|women's]] basketball tournaments in Las Vegas, but decided to delay the vote until after the [[2018 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|Final Four]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sports/aztecs/sd-sp-mountain-west-gonzaga-byu-analysis-20180307-story.html |title=Is Gonzaga (and maybe BYU) really coming to the Mountain West? |first=Mark |last=Zeigler |newspaper=San Diego Union-Tribune |date=March 7, 2018 |access-date=March 10, 2018}}</ref> However, on April 2, the day of the [[2018 NCAA Division I men's basketball championship game|Division I men's title game]], Gonzaga athletic director Mike Roth notified the MW, the WCC, and media that the school would remain in the WCC for the immediate future.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2018/apr/02/gonzaga-athletic-director-mike-roth-says-zags-stay/ |title=Gonzaga athletic director Mike Roth says Zags staying in WCC |first=Jim |last=Meehan |newspaper=[[The Spokesman-Review]] |location=[[Spokane, WA]] |date=April 2, 2018 |access-date=April 2, 2018}}</ref>

On June 30, 2022, UCLA<ref>{{cite web |last=Jarmond |first=Martin |date=June 30, 2022 |title=UCLA to Join Big Ten Conference at Start of 2024–25 Season – UCLA |url=https://uclabruins.com/news/2022/6/30/bruin-athletics-ucla-to-join-big-ten-conference-at-start-of-2024-25-season.aspx |access-date=July 3, 2022 |publisher=Uclabruins.com}}</ref> and Southern Cal<ref>{{cite web|url=https://usctrojans.com/news/2022/6/30/usc-to-make-historic-move-to-big-ten-conference-in-2024.aspx |title=USC to Make Historic Move to Big Ten Conference in 2024 – USC Athletics |publisher=Usctrojans.com |date= |access-date=July 3, 2022}}</ref> announced their departure from the [[Pac-12 Conference]] to the [[Big Ten Conference]] beginning in the 2024–25 academic year. After that announcement, [[San Diego State]] had been considered one of the top candidates for Pac-12 expansion. On June 16, 2023, [[Pete Thamel]] of [[ESPN]] reported that San Diego State had given the Mountain West Conference notice that the school would be departing from the conference and asked for an extension for the departure deadline of July 1, 2023, to avoid paying extra exit fees.<ref>{{cite web |last=Thamel |first=Pete |author-link=Pete Thamel |date=June 16, 2023 |title=Sources: San Diego St. tells Mountain West it plans to exit |url=https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/37864747 |access-date=June 20, 2023 |work=ESPN.com}}</ref> The Mountain West Conference denied the request for a deadline extension and considered the letter from San Diego State as a formal notice of departure and began to proceed with the separation process; however, San Diego State disputed that its letter of intent was a formal notice.<ref>{{cite web |last=Straka |first=Dean |date=19 June 2023 |title=Mountain West rejects exceptions requested by San Diego State as it eyes withdrawal, per report |url=https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/mountain-west-rejects-exceptions-requested-by-san-diego-state-as-it-eyes-withdrawal-per-report |access-date=June 20, 2023 |publisher=cbssports.com}}</ref> On June 30, 2023, with the Pac-12 still lacking a media rights agreement for 2024–25, ESPN reported that San Diego State would remain in the Mountain West Conference, rescinding the intention to withdraw from the conference.<ref>{{cite web |last=Kasabian |first=Paul |date=30 June 2023 |title=Report: SDSU Plans to Remain in Mountain West amid Pac-12 Move Rumors |url=https://bleacherreport.com/articles/10081288-report-sdsu-plans-to-remain-in-mountain-west-amid-pac-12-move-rumors |access-date=30 June 2023 |publisher=Bleacher Report}}</ref> The MW and San Diego State reached a settlement of their dispute the following month, with SDSU remaining a member for the immediate future.<ref>{{cite news |last=Thamel |first=Pete |author-link=Pete Thamel |date=July 18, 2023 |title=Source: SDSU remains in Mountain West as sides resolve dispute |url=https://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/38032484 |access-date=July 19, 2023 |website=ESPN.com}}</ref>

In September 2023, after a mass exodus from the Pac-12 left [[Oregon State]] and [[Washington State University|Washington State]] as its only remaining members, MW commissioner Gloria Nevarez began discussions with the two schools regarding various options for partnership, affiliation, or merger.<ref>{{cite web |date=September 2, 2023 |title=Mountain West had talks with Oregon St., Wazzu |url=https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/38314274 |access-date=August 5, 2024 |website=ESPN.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Prisbell |first=Eric |date=September 6, 2023 |title=How the Pac-12's assets complicate Oregon State, Washington State's future |url=https://www.on3.com/os/news/how-the-pac-12s-assets-complicate-oregon-state-beavers-washington-state-cougars-future |access-date=August 5, 2024 |website=on3.com}}</ref> On December 1, 2023, the conference announced that it would enter into a football scheduling agreement with the two schools for the 2024 season. All 12 Mountain West members will play one game against either Oregon State or Washington State next season, giving both schools three home games and three away games. These games will not count towards Mountain West conference standings, and Oregon State and Washington State will remain members of the Pac-12.<ref>{{cite press release|title=Mountain West Announces Football Scheduling Agreement With Oregon State and Washington State|url=https://themw.com/news/2023/12/01/mountain-west-announces-football-scheduling-agreement-with-oregon-state-and-washington-state/|publisher=Mountain West Conference|date=December 1, 2023|access-date=December 22, 2023}}</ref> On April 16, 2024, it was also announced that Washington State would be joining the MW as an affiliate for baseball and women's swimming.<ref>{{cite press release|title=Mountain West Adds Washington State in Baseball and Women's Swimming|url=https://themw.com/news/2024/04/16/mountain-west-adds-washington-state-in-baseball-womens-swimming/|publisher=Mountain West Conference|date=April 16, 2024|access-date=April 16, 2024}}</ref>

On September 12, 2024, it was announced that Boise State, Fresno State, Colorado State, and San Diego State would be leaving the MW and joining the [[Pac-12 Conference|Pac-12]] in 2026.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ushering in a new era, the Pac-12 Conference strengthens its legacy by welcoming four respected academic and athletic universities |url=https://pac-12.com/news/2024/9/12/general-ushering-in-a-new-era-the-pac-12-conference-strengthens-its-legacy-by-welcoming-four-respected-academic-and-athletic-universities.aspx |access-date=2024-09-12 |website=pac-12.com |language=en}}</ref> On September 23, Utah State also accepted an offer to join the Pac-12 in 2026 as its seventh member.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Vannini |first1=Chris |title=Utah State agrees to join Pac-12 as league pushes for Mountain West members, Gonzaga: Sources |url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5789845/2024/09/23/utah-state-pac-12-mountain-west/ |website=The Athletic |access-date=23 September 2024}}</ref>

On October 1, 2024 it was announced that the [[University of Texas at El Paso]] (UTEP) will be joining the Mountain West starting in the 2026–27 academic year.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-10-01 |title=Mountain West Officially Welcomes UTEP Into The Conference |url=https://themw.com/news/2024/10/01/mountain-west-officially-welcomes-utep-into-the-conference/ |access-date=2024-10-01 |website=Mountain West Conference |language=en-US}}</ref> On October 14, [[Craig Angelos]], athletic director of football-only member [[Hawaii Rainbow Warriors and Rainbow Wahine|Hawaii]], confirmed outside reports that the school would upgrade to full MW membership in 2026.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.staradvertiser.com/2024/10/14/sports/sports-breaking/most-of-uhs-non-football-sports-will-join-mountain-west/ |title=Most of UH's non-football sports will join Mountain West |first=Stephen |last=Tsai |newspaper=Honolulu Star-Advertiser |date=October 14, 2024 |access-date=October 15, 2024}}</ref> This move was officially announced the next day.<ref>{{cite press release |url=https://themw.com/news/2024/10/15/mountain-west-officially-welcomes-hawai%ca%bbi-as-a-full-time-member/ |title=Mountain West Officially Welcomes Hawaiʻi as a Full-Time Member |publisher=Mountain West Conference |date=October 15, 2024 |access-date=October 15, 2024}}</ref> On November 1, 2024, [[Grand Canyon University]] announced it was joining the Mountain West no later than July 1, 2026.<ref>{{cite press release |url=https://gculopes.com/news/2024/11/1/general-gcu-accepts-invite-to-mountain-west-conference.aspx |title=GCU accepts invite to Mountain West Conference |publisher=Grand Canyon University Athletics |date=November 1, 2024 |access-date=November 1, 2024}}</ref>

On December 10, 2024 it was announced that UC Davis would join the Mountain West Conference in all sports except football, for which it will remain in the [[Big Sky Conference]]. This move is expected on July 1, 2026.<ref>{{cite press release|title=UC Davis to join Mountain West Conference in 2026-27|url=https://ucdavisaggies.com/news/2024/12/10/athletics-uc-davis-to-join-mountain-west-conference-in-2026-27.aspx |access-date=2024-12-10| language=en-US}}</ref>

On January 3, 2025, [[Northern Illinois University]] accepted an invitation from the MW to join for [[Northern Illinois Huskies football|football]] only in 2026.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://sports.yahoo.com/northern-illinois-set-to-move-to-mountain-west-as-football-only-member-221640586.html |title=Northern Illinois set to move to Mountain West as football-only member |first=Nick |last=Bromberg |website=Yahoo Sports |date=January 3, 2025 |access-date=January 5, 2025}}</ref> The move became official on January 7, after approval by NIU's governing board.<ref>{{cite press release |url=https://niuhuskies.com/news/2025/1/7/niu-football-joins-mountain-west-conference.aspx |title=NIU Football Joins Mountain West Conference |publisher=Northern Illinois Huskies |date=January 7, 2025 |access-date=January 7, 2025}}</ref>