Air Force and UNLV are expected to remain in the Mountain West, passing on interest from the Pac-12 and American Athletic Conference, people briefed on the situation told The Athletic, furthering the western conference realignment drama.
The seven remaining Mountain West schools have another agreement to stick together, with heavy financial incentives coming their way from Pac-12 exit fees and poaching fees. Air Force and UNLV would receive larger financial packages than the others, potentially upwards of $25 million, which is more than four times the annual media payout for Mountain West members.
It’s another blow to the rebuilding Pac-12, which has raided the Mountain West for new members. It first added Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State two weeks ago, set to join in 2026. Its attempt to add AAC schools and create a “Best of the Rest” conference failed on Monday, so it turned back to the Mountain West and added Utah State on Tuesday while the Mountain West tried to keep its membership together. UNLV was believed to be the next target.
The Pac-12 is still at seven members for 2026, needing at least eight to meet NCAA FBS conference requirements. The Mountain West has seven football-playing members but six full-time members, as Hawaii is only an affiliate for football. The league would need to get back to at least eight full members.
The Pac-12 owes the Mountain West almost $150 million in combined fees, but on Tuesday it filed a lawsuit against the Mountain West, arguing the poaching fees are an antitrust violation. The Pac-12 and Mountain West last year signed a scheduling agreement that included poaching fees if the Pac-12 added some but not all Mountain West schools. Adding five schools has that poaching fee number at $55 million (on top of the $18 million in exit fees owed to the Mountain West by each school).
Because the poaching fees are now going through the legal process, it could take a long time to resolve. On Sept. 12, Mountain West sent a letter to the Pac-12, saying it would owe $43 million in exit fees for four schools. The Pac-12 responded on Tuesday saying the poaching fee clause was not legally binding.
While the Pac-12 could still add all seven remaining Mountain West members to the league at no cost, it appears to be past the point of no return on that, people involved in the situation said, and no one is quite sure what happens next.
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