Mountain West Pauses Expansion Amid Legal Battles and Realignment Fallout

There have been a lot of legal issues between the Mountain West Conference, the Pac-12, and the five teams exiting the Mountain West for the Pac-12 in 2026 amid the conference realignment. The five teams leaving are the Boise State Broncos, San Diego State Aztecs, Colorado State Rams, Fresno State Bulldogs, and Utah State Aggies.

Recently, in a surprise move, the Mountain West decided to immediately add Grand Canyon University in all sports other than football, which stirred up problems among the exiting teams due to scheduling issues, most notably Boise State and San Diego State. With all the legal issues this entire process is causing, Mountain West commissioner Gloria Nevarez announced at the Mountain West Media Days on Wednesday that they have decided to "pause" expansion. 

“We’re going to pause right now as far as additional membership,” Nevarez said. “Never say never, but we really want to get through our media rights negotiation, take a deep breath, and then we’ll readdress the issue.” 

She also mentioned the media rights deal that the conference is currently trying to negotiate. That has been quite the trying process as well. While many do believe a deal is somewhat imminent, it hasn't been easy getting a deal done with one of the top media providers. However, most experts do anticipate a deal getting done in the coming weeks.

The UNLV Rebels are one of the teams remaining in the Mountain West and will be massively impacted by all the proceedings, including realignment, expansion, and TV deals. This is a process that UNLV athletic director Erick Harper will be following closely as the Rebels look to become the face of the Mountain West moving forward.