The veil of secrecy surrounding this week’s mediation between the Mountain West Conference and its former pal/now despised pilfering rival Pac-12 is something to behold.
A few months ago, the leagues agreed to go into a closed-door mediation starting this past Monday. Nary a peep has leaked — neither from the Mountain West nor any loose lips wanting to spill the tea (pardon the Gen Z parlance).
By now there’s usually someone who comes forward with an anonymous tip, one of those “unnamed sources” who violates the code of quiet to share the details. Not yet, not this week anyway.
At stake is tens of millions of dollars and, by all accounts, the future of one — or both — leagues. There are at least three lawsuits pending between them. The one drawing the most flies being the fight of poaching and exit fees.
The Mountain West is banking its future on the wheelbarrow of cash coming its way if Utah State, Boise State, Fresno State, Colorado State and San Diego State go through with their planned jump to the Pac-12. Based on an agreement the conferences forged when signing a pact for a football scheduling agreement prior to last season, the Mountain West said it would help Washington State and Oregon State fill out their schedules with MWC opponents so long as the Pac-12 keep its mitts off the Mountain West if and when it looked to expand. Such a move would mean exit fees in the neighborhood of $35 million.
The deadline for the five schools to sign off on the transfer is next week and, by various reports, none have.
The windfall — anywhere from $55 million to over $100 million, depending on who’s cooking the books — would generate enough overhead for the Mountain West to keep it competitively stable for the time being. A big part of that would go to UNLV and Air Force, a pair of high-profile,…
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Publish date : 2025-05-24 03:36:00
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