The Mountain West will add UC Davis as a full non-sports member on July 1, 2026, the conference announced Tuesday.
Itโs the latest addition for the MW following the upcoming defections of five schools for the rebuilding Pac-12 in summer 2026, now giving the MW 10 full future members, eight of which are football members. UC Davis and Grand Canyon will be non-football members but compete in most other MW sports.
๐๐๐ฅ๐๐จ๐ฆ๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐๐ข๐ง ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ, ๐๐ ๐๐๐ฏ๐ข๐ฌ! ๐ค pic.twitter.com/9aB5rvJxwx
โ Mountain West (@MountainWest) December 10, 2024
โAdding UC Davis further strengthens the trajectory of the Mountain West as it continues to build its brand that has proven to elevate institutions and student-athletes,โ MW commissioner Gloria Nevarez said in a statement. โChancellor Gary S. May and Director of Athletics Rocko DeLuca have shared their strategic plan and financial vision for enhancing student-athlete development, welfare, and competitive excellence, and I believe UC Davis brings a wealth of positives in the continuing growth of the Mountain West.โ
UC Davis, which moved up to Division I in 2007, has been a primary member of the Big West conference, with its football program in the Big Sky in the Football Championship Subdivision. That wonโt change. The California schoolโs menโs basketball program last reached the NCAA Tournament in 2017 and the women in 2021. The Mountain Westโs announcement noted that UC Davis is โcommitted to continuing to invest in its basketball program, which will parallel its new conference brethren.โ
โOur transition to the highly regarded Conference will introduce our Aggie community to a broader audience in major metropolitan areas and through increased media coverage,โ May said in a statement. โIt also provides us with an opportunity to align with universities that share similar academic strengths โ such as agriculture, engineering, and sciences โ while also expanding our competitive presence in the Western United States.โ
The schools departing the MW for the Pac-12 in 2026 include Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State.
Following their announced moves in September, the MW worked to keep UNLV and Air Force from defecting, providing them with heavy financial incentives to remain in the league. They stayed, the MW then added UTEP from Conference USA, and Hawaii announced plans to move from a football-only MW member to a full member, giving the MW eight football-playing schools, including Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State and Wyoming. FBS rules wouldโve required to get to eight full football members by 2028.
The Pac-12 remains at seven football members and still needs an eighth by summer 2026. The Pac-12โs attempt to add Memphis, Tulane, South Florida and UTSA from the American Athletic Conference was unsuccessful. Itโs now beginning its media rights search before it makes another push at further expansion, which will not include remaining MW schools.
Required reading
- Mountain West Conference adding Grand Canyon as full non-football member in 2026
- How did the Pac-12 and Mountain West get here? Explaining a realignment tug-of-war
(Photo: Zak Krill / Getty Images)
