Pac-12 expansion candidates: UNLV Rebels

The rebuilt Pac-12 has eight members signed up for the 2026-27 athletics season: Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, Gonzaga, Oregon State, San Diego State, Washington State and Utah State. 

The conference must attract at least one more football-playing member before 2026 to reach the NCAA’s eight-team minimum to qualify as an FBS conference. Gonzaga does not have a football program. 

The Pac-12, which poached five teams from the Mountain West and Gonzaga from the West Coast Conference, is expected to add between one and six additional members in the coming weeks and months. 

As conference realignment wages on, Boise State Broncos on SI is taking a look at schools that have been linked to the Pac-12 in various reports. 

We have already covered the Memphis Tigers, North Texas Mean Green, Rice Owls, Sacramento State Hornets, Saint Mary’s Gaels, South Florida Bulls, Texas State Bobcats, Tulane Green Wave and UConn Huskies. Now we will break down one of the most obvious Pac-12 targets: the UNLV Rebels. 

University of Nevada, Las Vegas 

Location: Paradise, Nevada 

Current conference: Mountain West Conference 

Enrollment: 32,911

Endowment: $388.4 million

Athletics budget: $62,644,050

Football stadium: Allegiant Stadium (65,000 capacity)

Basketball arena: Thomas & Mack Center (17,923 capacity)

The case for UNLV

We’ve covered multiple schools that lie two time zones away from the Pac-12’s footprint. UNLV is surrounded by future Pac-12 members in bordering California, Oregon, Idaho and Utah. 

There are tourist destinations, and then there’s Las Vegas. A city unlike any other, Las Vegas is often labeled the Entertainment Capital of the World. It’s hard to imagine a better place to host future Pac-12 events. 

UNLV has appeared in back-to-back Mountain West football championship games and finished the 2024 season at No. 23 in the AP Top 25 with an 11-3 record. Head coach Barry Odom bolted for Purdue, but the Rebels made a splash hire in former Florida coach Dan Mullen, who signed a lucrative five-year, $17.5 million deal. 

The Rebels have a strong men’s basketball history, including a national championship in 1990 under legendary head coach Jerry Tarkanian. 

On the facilities front, UNLV would rank near the top of the new Pac-12. The Rebels share Allegiant Stadium with the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders and have a state-of-the-art, on-campus facility in The Fertitta Football Complex. Thomas & Mack Center is dated but functional. 

The case against UNLV

UNLV is in deep financial trouble. Back in October, Mick Akers of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported that the UNLV athletic department is facing a budget deficit north of $20 million. 

The Rebels’ need for cash likely explains their decision to pass on the Pac-12’s offer to join in September, a deal that was later accepted by Utah State. To keep UNLV from leaving, MWC commissioner Gloria Nevarez promised the Rebels a lump sum payment of 24.5 percent of the poaching fees due from the Pac-12, according to multiple reports. 

The MWC is currently being sued by the Pac-12 and Boise State, Colorado State and Utah State over poaching penalties and exit fees. The Rebels’ lump sum payment could be substantially less than the promised amount. 

Finances and litigation aside, UNLV is historically weak in football and hasn’t reached the men’s basketball NCAA Tournament since 2013. The Rebels do not have a massive following in a market dominated by professional sports. 

Verdict

When looking at market, location and recent football success, UNLV seems like a perfect fit for the new Pac-12. 

But the Rebels have real financial issues and appear to be prioritizing the MWC’s up-front cash — assuming it comes — over a longer-term bet with the Pac-12. 

With no recent success in men’s basketball and a historically weak football program, the Rebels are not worth breaking the bank for. But if the MWC loses in court and UNLV’s lump sum payment turns out to be relative peanuts, the Rebels might come crawling back to the Pac-12. And if they do, the Pac-12 should be ready to pounce.