Pac-12, Mountain West, departing schools finalize settlement; what it means for Boise State

Broncos left MWC for Pac-12 on July 1

Pac-12 | Photo courtesy of Pac-12

The multi-year legal dispute between the Pac-12, the Mountain West and the five schools—including Boise State—that exited the MWC for the Pac-12 on July 1 has reached its conclusion. 

On Tuesday, the two conferences and the five schools announced in a joint statement that all parties agreed to a settlement. Back in May, the parties had agreed to a settlement in principle.

The MWC was seeking $55 million in poaching penalties from the Pac-12 and roughly $100 million in exit fees from departing members Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State.

Terms of the settlement were not disclosed in Tuesday’s announcement. 

Here is the full joint statement: 

“The Mountain West Conference, the Pac-12 Conference, Boise State University, Colorado State University, Utah State University, and The Board of Trustees of the California State University for the benefit of San Diego State University and California State University, Fresno have reached final agreements to settle all pending litigation among the parties. With these matters concluded, the conferences and institutions can move forward with certainty and focus on serving their student-athletes, campuses, fans, and communities.”

Back in May, Mark Zeigler of the San Diego Union-Tribune reported that the MWC will receive “significantly less” than the $155-plus million commissioner Gloria Nevarez was seeking. 

The legal drama reaching an official conclusion before the start of the 2026-27 athletics season is a positive development for the Pac-12 and each member school. The lawsuits could have caused potential distractions for fans, administrators, coaches and athletes during an exciting first season of the reborn conference. 

The settlement could also help the Pac-12 and MWC rebuild a working relationship moving forward as the top two FBS conferences primarily based in the West. The two conferences will likely play multiple non-conference football games each season with even more overlap in men’s and women’s basketball. 

Each team in the new Pac-12 will need to schedule 16 non-conference men’s basketball games per season and four or five non-conference football games in 2027, depending on the utilization of flex scheduling in the future. 

Boise State and New Mexico will face off in men’s basketball this season in December.

The Pac-12/MWC drama began nearly three years ago after 10 former Pac-12 members exited the conference for the ACC, Big Ten and Big 12, leaving behind Oregon State and Washington State. Left in the lurch, Oregon State and Washington State agreed to a scheduling partnership with the MWC for the 2024 football season that included an option for the following year. 

In September 2024, the MWC announced that the scheduling agreement would not be renewed. Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State all agreed to join the Pac-12 one week later, followed by fellow MWC member Utah State, Gonzaga (WCC) and Texas State (Sun Belt). 

After securing commitments from the first four MWC schools, the Pac-12 filed a federal antitrust lawsuit over the legality of a poaching penalty included in the scheduling agreement. Boise State, Colorado State and Utah State filed a separate lawsuit related to the exit fees.

Both lawsuits were officially settled on Tuesday.