September 25, 2024 |
Wyoming opens conference play on Saturday against Air Force.
With other teams, including Colorado State, Boise State, Fresno State and San Diego State, departing the Mountain West for what they believe will be greener pastures in the PAC-12, the Cowboys and the Falcons will remain in the Mountain West.
The cost to leave the league won’t be cheap. Each school will be hit with an $18 million dollar exit fee. The PAC-12 will help pay a portion of the fee, but a number has not been announced. The so-called Pacific Conference will also pay $43 million in poaching fees to the Mountain West for taking schools like CSU and Boise State which are more than a stone’s throw away from the ocean.
The transition is expected to take place over the next two years, with the 2026-2027 academic year marking the official start of CSU’s PAC-12 membership. CSU has promised to maintain its traditional rivalries, including the Border War matchup with Wyoming.
Still each of the departing schools will see a tab from the Mountain West for about $110 million in exit fees and penalties.
Despite poaching the Mountain West, the PAC 12 will still be two schools short of the eight they need to have locked down in two years by NCAA rule.
Anything can happen, and has in college football where brand loyalty is meaningless. Just a year ago, ten PAC 12 schools left the conference for greener pastures after league officials were unable to secure lucrative media deals.
So, coming this Saturday, two teams that will remain in the Mountain West will meet again in War Memorial Stadium.
The Cowboys, who have scored only 51 points this season while giving up 143, come into the matchup 0-and-4, tied with winless New Mexico at the bottom of the conference standings.
Air Force is 1-and-2 overall, with one of those losses coming in Conference play on September 7 in a 17-7 defeat to San Jose State on September 7. The Falcons had a bye last week.
Saturday’s kickoff is set for 6 p.m. Mountain Time on Saturday night.
Air Force plays Navy the following week with Wyoming taking a bye on October 5.
