UNLV Aims To Dominate New-Look Mountain West With Bold Coaching Moves

The Mountain West Conference is going to look a lot different in 2026. With some of their top athletic schools moving to the new Pac-12, it may be tough to even recognize it. However, the UNLV Rebels decided to stay in the Mountain West and now have a chance to become the class of the conference in both football and basketball. The school made two splashy hires this offseason, bringing in former Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets head coach Josh Pastner to coach the men's basketball team and hiring former Florida Gators head coach Dan Mullen to coach the football team. Both hires were made by UNLV's athletic director, Erick Harper. Harper recently sat down with the Las Vegas Review-Journal and spoke about the new-look Mountain West and the school's decision to stay instead of jump ship for the Pac-12.  

Erick Harper On How Competitive He Expects The New-Look Mountain West Conference To Be:

"I’d say it might be too early to tell, but there’s going to be strong competition throughout the conference. Everybody is trying to get better every single day. That hasn’t changed. Obviously, we’ve had two really, really good years (in football) and have a coach not afraid to play anybody anywhere at any time. We will have a very competitive schedule and will also be working our tails off to win the conference every single year."

Erick Harper On Deciding Between Staying In The Mountain West Or Moving To The Pac-12:

"We have to be the best possible UNLV that we can be. And at this point, we looked at everything we did back when all the realignment was going on, and we still feel like we made the best decision for UNLV and the future of UNLV." 

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