With news breaking overnight that the Pac-12 conference is targeting Boise State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Colorado State of the Mountain West, another ripple effect is soon to run through college athletics and this time it could hit the Dakota’s.
According to two people with knowledge of the situation, those four schools could be accepted as members of a new Pac 12 conference starting in 2026, as soon as this week.
The Pac-12 is currently a two-school conference. Oregon State and Washington State are the only remaining members after the league was picked apart by other conferences.
Where should the Mountain West look to fill those spots? Brookings and Fargo.
The time has come for the Dakota schools, along with Montana and Montana State, to make the big move to the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level.
The power of FCS football over the past few years has been concentrated in South Dakota, North Dakota and Montana and there’s nothing to suggest that’s going to change any time soon. There’s nothing left for SDSU and NDSU football to prove in FCS after back-to-back national titles for the Jackrabbits and nine national titles for the Bison over 11 years (2011-2021).
Former contenders in FCS have made the move up to FBS in recent years, including James Madison, Jacksonville State, Delaware and Sam Houston. Even Missouri State, a middle of the road team in the Missouri Valley Football Conference, is moving to Conference USA.
The decision for SDSU and NDSU is a tough one. They can stay where they are, continue to dominate FCS and add more national championships to the trophy case. Or they can take a gamble, join the top level of college football and compete with the top teams in the country.
I don’t think there will be a better situation for both schools than to join the Mountain West conference. Assuming those four school make the move to the Pac-12, that would leave eight Mountain West football teams; Air Force, Wyoming, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah State, Hawaii, UNLV and San Jose State.
Ideally, South Dakota State, North Dakota State, Montana and Montana State would fit right in to get the Mountain West back to its current 12 teams. Who knows what the future holds. Will any other Mountain West teams leave? Would the conference be interested in those four schools? Is there a spot for South Dakota and North Dakota?
What amazes me about conference realignment is how quickly it happens. There was no word on these Mountain West teams leaving until Yahoo Sports broke the story just after 10:30 pm on Wednesday night, September 11. Same can be said for almost all conference past changes. They come out of nowhere.
There are a lot of factors to make changes happen. “Each Mountain West school is contractually bound to a $17 million exit fee, and the Pac-12 is on the hook for an additional $10-12 million penalty fee for every school they acquire as part of a scheduling agreement the conference struck with the Mountain West.”
The NCAA Division I council changed the membership requirements for FBS schools last year. The council eliminated attendance requirements at FBS school. This means that teams don’t need to average at least 15,000 in paid attendance for a home football game.
The other change increased the application fee to transition from FCS to FBS from $5,000 to $5 million.
Money is the biggest issue in the move up to FBS.
South Dakota State has the best facilities in FCS and has better facilities than some FBS or Power 4 conference teams. A $65 million Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium. $32 million for the Sanford-Jackrabbit Athletic Complex. An estimated $50 million to renovate Frost Arena into First Bank and Trust Arena. $6 million for the Stiegelmeier Family Student-Athlete Center. $5.2 million for the Frank J. Kurtenbach Family Wrestling Center.
I’m not sure a $5 million transition fee would be a big deal when facility upgrades over the past 15+ years are north of $160 million.
Additional costs for travel, an increase in football scholarships from 63 to 85, the impact on Title 9 and the impact on other sports other than football are also considerations.
According to South Dakota News Watch in March 2023, the SDSU athletics budget was $20 million, while USD was a $18.5 million.
Business is booming for SDSU. Record football crowds, record ticket sales, record donations and record revenues.
According to Landon Dierks in an article for the Mitchell Republic from August 2023, “the Jackrabbit Club, a fund used to offset part of an annual scholarship bill that hovers around $4.3 million, has increased its value from $1.85 million to $2.3 million over the past year. The annual Jackrabbit Athletic Scholarship Auction in April 2023, generated $2.1 million in 2023, up from a figure just shy of $1.6 million the year before. Jackrabbit Sports Properties, the marketing branch of the SDSU athletic department, is likely to see a record year for corporate sponsorships.”
If SDSU can make the move financially and the Mountain West is interested, I think it’s time to make the big move up to the highest level on college athletics.
The Pac 12 still need two more schools to join as the NCAA requires a minimum of eight to qualify as an FBS conference. More spots may open up in the Mountain West or elsewhere.
It’s not an easy decision. It may not even be the right one. Nobody knows. Do you leave the comfort of the Summit League and the conference basketball tournament in Sioux Falls. Do you leave the comfort of the Missouri Valley Football Conference and the recent dominance of national championship success?
If SDSU didn’t take the chance two decades ago to move up from Division II, they would never be in the situation they are now. It may be time to take another gamble.