Mario Bautista
[Editor’s note at 3:10 p.m. Eastern time on Jan. 7, 2024: updated to insert NIU Board of Trustee’s approval of the Mountain West invitation and insert quotes from NIU AD Sean Frazier.]
[Editor’s note at 3:21 p.m. Eastern time on Jan. 7, 2024: updated to insert press statements from NIU president Lisa C. Freeman and Mountain West Conference commissioner Gloria Nevarez.]
[Editor’s note at 3:54 p.m. Eastern time on Jan. 7, 2024: updated to insert press statement from Mid-American Conference commissioner Jon Steinbrecher.]
[Editor’s note at 4:20 p.m. Eastern time on Jan. 7, 2024: updated to insert various relevant statements from Tuesday’s press conference in DeKalb, Illinois.]
This is considered a developing story and will be updated frequently.
The Mid-American Conference is anticipating to fall from 13 to 12 full members starting in 2026.
On Friday afternoon, The Action Network’s Brett McMurphy reported via Twitter that Northern Illinois’ board is expected to accept an invitation to join the Mountain West Conference as an affiliate member in football, eschewing the conference the university has called home over two separate stints totaling 37 seasons.
The Northern Star’s Skyler Kisellus reported later Friday afternoon the invitation was waiting on formal approval from the board; NIU’s Board of Trustees approved the $2 million entrance fee on Tuesday afternoon.
“This is a truly exciting day for Northern Illinois University, for the NIU football program and for Huskie fans throughout the country,” NIU President Lisa C. Freeman said via press release. “We are extremely pleased to accept the invitation for the Huskie football program to join a prestigious group of universities to compete in the Mountain West Conference. This move will open new opportunities for our student-athletes, expand the reach and strengthen the national brand of Huskie Football as they represent NIU and compete for championships the hard way, and the right way.”
The Mountain West Conference, based in Colorado Springs, Colorado, first expressed interest in Northern Illinois and Toledo on Sept. 26, with McMurphy first reporting and ESPN’s Pete Thamel confirming independently later that evening.
NIU is set to what is referred to as the “core seven” members of the Mountain West, which includes Air Force, Hawai’i, UNLV, Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State and Wyoming. NIU, along with UTEP— who accepted an invitation to the league as a full member on Oct. 1— are expected to round out the conference’s football members.
The move will put the Mountain West at nine football members.
“We are excited about adding the Northern Illinois University football program to the Mountain West,” Mountain West Conference commissioner Gloria Nevarez said via press release. ”In evaluating NIU, the MW Board of Directors and Directors of Athletics carefully considered and were impressed by its history of football success and its commitment to academic excellence. NIU shares the Mountain West’s vision of balancing academic performance with athletic competitiveness and prioritizing opportunities for an outstanding student-athlete experience both on and off the playing field.”
The Mountain West had been fairly active in acquiring new programs over the last two months leading up to the NIU news, adding Grand Canyon University on November 1st and UC-Davis on Tuesday afternoon to the conference in all sports except for football. McMurphy was first to report NIU’s official invitation late on Dec. 10.
“When you make a move like this, it shows the commitment you have in not only improving your athletic department, but improving your football program,” NIU head coach Thomas Hammock said about the impending move to the MWC during Tuesday afternoon’s presser.
This is not the first time NIU has left the MAC to go West; the Huskies were previously MAC members from 1975-1985 and re-joined the league in 1997 after eight years of independence and a three-season stint in the doomed Big West Conference.
Per NIU athletic director Sean Frazier, discussions to join another conference began as far back as 2022, stating during Tuesday’s press conference NIU needed to “make sure we’re in an environment where things are stable” as environment changes at the NCAA level— especially with the House settlement— started to take shape.
The MAC has not seen a full member leave the conference since 2005, when Marshall departed for Conference USA. The last affiliate member to leave, coincidentally, was UMass in 2015. The Minutemen will return to the MAC starting in 2025, this time as a full member.
“During two separate tenures, Northern Illinois University has been a good member of the Mid-American Conference,” MAC comissioner Jon Steinbrecher said via press release on Tuesday afternoon. “We appreciate the contributions of NIU’s student-athletes, coaches, administrators, and fans. As NIU has considered other conference opportunities, I appreciate the communication from NIU’s president. Her professionalism reflects the MAC’s shared values.”
“While we would have preferred that NIU remain a member of the MAC, we understand that each institution must make an independent decision,” Steinbrecher continued. “Indeed, in recent years, many NCAA Division I institutions have decided to change their conference affiliations, just as student-athletes and coaches have. The MAC has been proactive in this respect. For example, in February, the MAC was excited to have the University of Massachusetts join our conference. As a result, the MAC remains a strong conference, very well positioned to continue to compete at the highest level in intercollegiate athletics.”
With the move expected to take place in 2026, NIU is set to play one last season in the confines of the Midwest.
NIU’s non-football sports are up in the air at present; the expectation is the university will be joining the Horizon League, which does not sponsor football. Based in Indianapolis, Indiana, the Horizon League currently has 11 members, including notable basketball schools such as Oakland University, Robert Morris, Cleveland State, Wright State and Northern Kentucky.
(Youngstown State, another full member of the Horizon League, plays football as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference.)
However, during the Board of Trustees meeting, Sean Frazier stated NIU’s desire to stay a MAC member in other sports as the “#1 choice at this point”, per Edward Carifio of the DeKalb [IL] Daily Chronicle.
NIU president Lisa C. Freeman re-iterated the point during Tuesday’s press conference.
“We will be looking for the best regional opportunity for our other sports, and we will have time to do that,” Freeman stated. “That doesn’t mean our other sports won’t stay in the MAC.”
(Per current MAC by-laws, member institutions are required to sponsor football.)
Other potential all-sports stops for NIU include the Missouri Valley Conference and Ohio Valley Conference.
MAC commissioner Jon Steinbrecher released a press statement on Tuesday afternoon addressing the move.
NIU football is fresh off an 8-5 campaign in 2024, beating Fresno State in double overtime to win the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl on Dec. 23. The postseason win capped off a season highlighted by a road upset of current College Football Playoff participant Notre Dame and a brief two-week stay in the Associated Press Top 25.
