Will FCS powerhouse North Dakota State be heading to the FBS?… A national college reporter is hearing it could be a possibility.
Brett McMurphy, a national college reporter for Action Network, reported on the social media platform “X” that the Mountain West is considering inviting NDSU to become a member in the Conference. McMurphy is reporting that an unnamed source told him the invite to the league would be a a football-only member.
The reasoning for the Mountain West considering adding NDSU in football comes amid “waning” interested from Northern Illinois. McMurphy mentioned that Northern Illinois is currently leaning towards remaining in the Mid-American Conference. Per McMurphy’s post on X he states, “If NIU stays in MAC, MV (w/8 football members) still seeking 9th football team, source said”.
The Mountain West is looking to revamp its league with multiple current members leaving the conference for invites in other leagues. The Mountain West currently has 12 members through the 2024 football season in Air Force, Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, New Mexico, Nevada, San Diego State, San Jose State, Hawaii, Wyoming, Utah State, and the University of Nevada-Las Vegas (UNLV). The MW will be losing Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, and San Diego State to the Pac-12 in the 2026-27 academic school year.
As of right now the MW has eight football-playing members beginning in the 2026-27 school year in Air Force, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State, the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), UNLV, and Wyoming.
