The Pac-12 is ready to begin its rebuild.
The Conference of Champions is targeting Boise State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Colorado State of the Mountain West, with the schools on the verge of being accepted as members as soon as this week, two people with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press on Wednesday night.
The people spoke on condition of anonymity because the conference’s plans and discussions with possible new members were not being made public. They said, if an agreement is reached, the new schools would join in 2026.
Yahoo! Sports first reported the four Mountain West schools were applying for Pac-12 membership.
The Pac-12 is currently a two-school conference, with Oregon State and Washington State the only remaining members after the league was picked apart last year by other power conferences.
NCAA rules allow for a conference to operate with only two schools for two years. Teresa Gould was hired to be the Pac-12 commissioner earlier this year, leading a slimmed down league office.
Leaders at Oregon State and Washington State have insisted since the Pac-12 collapsed last year their priority was to rebuild.
Those efforts are poised to start about a week after Oregon State and Washington State failed to renew for 2025 a football scheduling agreement they have in place with the Mountain West this season.
In a recent interview with the AP, Washington State President Kirk Schulz hinted at what could be next for the the Cougars and Beavers.
“So I think my philosophy going through all this has always been, let’s look for what’s the best long-term solution for WSU. Let's look where our budget is and how much can we spend in a sustainable fashion around intercollegiate athletics. And can we put ourselves in a position to win championships, conference championships, where maybe you are in the top half of the league instead of near the bottom of the league in terms of resources,” he told the AP.
Oregon State and Washington State also have a two-year agreement with the West Coast Conference to be affiliate members, which covers men's and women's basketball and other Olympic sports.
Mountain West exit fees go down the further out a school departs, making it financially prudent for the Pac-12 to wait until 2026 to add the new schools. Still, the conference will have to pay close to $30 million for each school to the Mountain West in exit fees and penalties that were included in the scheduling agreement.
Oregon State and Washington State have tens of millions of dollars at their disposal to work with from the two remaining years of the current College Football Playoff agreements and a contract with the Rose Bowl that will also expired after the 2025 football season. Plus, they have revenue accrued by Pac-12 teams in recent years from the NCAA men’s basketball tournament and Pac-12 Network assets.
If the four schools leave the Mountain West, the conference would be left with eight members — Air Force, UNLV, Nevada, Utah State, New Mexico, Wyoming, San Jose State and Hawaii.
MW Commissioner Gloria Nevarez said in a statement late Wednesday night the conference was aware of media reports and its board of directors was meeting to discuss the next steps.
“All members will be held to conference bylaws and policies should they elect to depart,” she said. ”The requirements of the scheduling agreement will apply to the Pac-12 should they admit Mountain West members."
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AP Sports Writer Tim Booth in Pullman, Washington, contributed to this report.
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Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP
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