Pac-12 targets Mountain West members for expansion after AAC schools reject interest

Pac-12 leaders are mobilizing to recruit more members after a group of American Athletic Conference schools decided to reject the league’s interest in joining, likely resulting in a return to the West.

Conference leaders and consulting firm Navigate are meeting Monday to discuss other potential expansion options, including a push to target Mountain West members Utah State and UNLV, as well as ongoing talks with basketball giant Gonzaga.

The clock is ticking, though. The Mountain West is in a proverbial sprint to secure its membership with financial incentives, much of which comes from the exit and expected fines the league owes to schools that left for the Pac-12. The exit and fines are expected to exceed $120 million.

The Mountain West is proposing a tiered wealth distribution, with each member getting a financial boost. The Air Force Academy has already signed the agreement with the league. The academy is expected to receive a signing bonus of at least $10 million, sources tell Yahoo Sports. At least one other school, UNLV, is expected to receive a similar financial bonus.

Commissioner Gloria Nevarez has set a deadline of 5 p.m. MT (5 p.m. ET) for signing the agreement as the Pac-12 scrambles to poach potentially more members.

The Pac-12, currently a two-school league, will need to have eight full members by the summer of 2026 to meet NCAA conference requirements. In an effort to rebuild the conference, Oregon State and Washington State last week executed the first phase of a multi-step expansion effort that added Boise State, San Diego State, Colorado State and Fresno State. The teams will join the league in July 2026 and each owe an exit fee of at least $17 million to the Mountain West.

The field of Pac-12 candidates is narrowing. As of 3:30 p.m. MT, Utah State, San Jose State, Nevada and UNLV had not yet signed the Mountain West deal. UNLV and Utah State officials have seen the Pac-12 expansion presentation, Yahoo Sports reported last week.

While these two are expected to be top targets for the Pac-12, it is unclear whether a deal can be reached, especially given the situation in the state of Nevada, where politics plays a role.

The Nevada System of Higher Education and its Board of Regents govern both schools and must approve decisions regarding conference affiliation. The state’s current governor, Joe Lombardo, is a UNLV graduate. The president of the University of Nevada-Reno, Brian Sandoval, is a two-term governor of the state and has respect and power among the regents.

As for the Mountain West, the league must first secure its current members before agreeing to expansion targets, which range from Conference USA’s UTEP to FCS’s Tarleton State.