North Dakota State University football is heading to the Mountain West in 2026. The school will reportedly shell out roughly $17 million in total to move to a new conference next season, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
The move, which is expected to be announced Monday, will move NDSU out of the Missouri Valley Conference, where the team has played since 2008.
The move will be costly. NDSU will reportedly pay $12 million to join the Mountain West. In addition to that, the school will pay $5 million to the NCAA to move to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).
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The move was expected, as Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger reported Friday that the two sides were inching closer to a deal. NDSU and the Mountain West have been in talks for over a year.
There’s a reason for that, as NDSU has won 10 of the past 15 national championships at the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level. The school has won 90 percent of its games and 10 conference titles in the Missouri Valley Conference since 2011. It has nothing more to prove at the FCS level.
Team athletic director Matt Larsen said as much on the “Hot Mic with Dom Izzo” podcast in January, saying the school wanted to play at “the highest level,” and added that it would “absolutely explore” that opportunity if it was a realistic option.
NDSU joining the Mountain West would give the division 10 football teams for 2026. NDSU would join Air Force, UNLV, Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State, Wyoming and other new full members Hawaii, Northern Illinois and UTEP. Hawaii, Northern Illinois and UTEP will join also join the conference in 2026.
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Notably, the move will reportedly only apply to NDSU’s football program. The other sports at the school will presumably remain in their current conferences. Most sports at NDSU play in the Missouri Valley Conference, though its wrestling program plays in the Big 12. NDSU won’t be the only school to split up its athletics in the Mountain West. Northern Illinois has a similar agreement, in which only it’s football and women’s gymnastics team will move into the Mountain West next year.
