What now? New Mexico Interim AD Dave Williams responds to Mountain West defections

Mountain West members Boise State, Fresno State, Colorado State and San Diego State are set to join the Pac-12 for the 2026-27 academic year.

New Mexico, for the time being, will be staying in the Mountain West.

UNM Interim Athletics Director Dave Williams got the news around 11 p.m. Wednesday. He said there had been “rumblings” in the Mountain West as far back as a week ago. Williams told the Journal on Thursday that Mountain West Commissioner Gloria Nevarez’s office looked into it at the time, only to find there wasn’t a lot of perceived “credibility to what was being said.”

On Wednesday night, that all changed. When Williams picked up the phone, Nevarez was on the other end to deliver the news: The Pac-12 is back — at the Mountain West’s expense.

Last year, the Pac-12 lost 10 members to the Big 12, Big Ten and ACC, leaving Oregon State and Washington State in the lurch.

After adding four teams Thursday, the Pac-12 sits at six teams and has to add at least two more schools in order to meet the minimum number to be recognized as an FBS conference, an important step in receiving automatic bids to NCAA championships. What’s unclear is what additional schools might be selected from what conferences, and how many; Pac-12 Commissioner Teresa Gould told the Associated Press on Thursday that there isn’t a set number or “soft or hard” timeline for the league to lock in potential additions.

For now, the eight remaining Mountain West schools — including UNM — are faced with the same existential question OSU and WSU labored through around this time last year.

What now?

“I’m not sure any of us know enough to speculate what’s going to happen next,” Williams said.

What does this mean for UNM hoops?

After the news that four teams would be leaving the Mountain West for the Pac-12 became official Thursday morning, Williams said his day was spent researching “what is involved with the situation, why are they doing it and what’s the next step for them — and then, really, what does that mean for UNM?”

Williams added that he spoke with every athletic director at the remaining eight schools, five to seven other athletic directors around the country and UNM coaches such as football’s Bronco Mendenhall and men’s basketball’s Richard Pitino. Multiple conversations with Pitino centered around making sure UNM’s men’s basketball program has a chance to continue its upward trajectory after returning to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 10 seasons last year.

“That is absolutely a goal of whatever we continue to do,” Williams said. “What effect is this gonna have on our athletic department, and how do we maintain a nationally relevant structure for our basketball programs? That’s what we’d love to be able to figure out, that we have to be able to do.”

Williams also credited university leadership for their commitment to ensuring the athletic department is on a path toward maintaining its current “momentum.”

“They’re proud of the way that this athletic department has represented the school, this community and the state of New Mexico,” he said. “And we are going to work to assure that we find a relevant space in the world of college athletics to keep that momentum and keep that sense of pride within our athletic department.”

Financial implications

Because of the defections, the Mountain West is entitled to a nine-figure payday. The Journal and other outlets previously reported the league would receive $111 million from exit and penalty fees, the latter negotiated through the Pac-12 and Mountain West’s scheduling alliance last November.

Williams said the figure could be even higher. While the Pac-12 has to pay a total of $43 million in penalty fees, Boise State, Colorado State, San Diego State and Fresno State have to front between $17 million to $20 million each. If the exit fees — based on the amount of revenue created by the Mountain West in the previous year — are on the higher side, the league could receive up to $123 million.

Conversations have not been had about how that money might be split up among current members.

“We haven’t even begun to think about how that revenue gets distributed to the eight remaining members,” Williams added.

What’s next for the Mountain West?

The Mountain West has the minimum eight football-playing schools needed to be considered an FBS conference. There’s no impetus to add schools at the moment, but Williams said “informal” conversations with league leadership and fellow athletic directors were conducted Thursday.

“I’m sure there will be other leagues that will be looking at other possibilities, and even the Pac-2 still may be coming after some of us,” he said. “We’ve discussed those possibilities, and we’ll have contingency plans based on all those things that could happen.”

If the Mountain West were to backfill, fellow Group of Five schools remain far and away the most likely option with FCS programs in line to be evaluated. Few schools were publicly floated more than New Mexico State and UTEP, both card-carrying members of Conference USA.

NMSU Athletics Director Mario Moccia told the Journal on Thursday that he’s “ecstatic” over the Aggies’ CUSA membership, crediting the league for “being there” for the school after five years as a football independent.

“Probably no administrator outside of the SEC or the Big Ten doesn’t accept a phone call if somebody wanted to talk to you,” he added. “That certainly does not mean you’re going to entertain (an offer) — all it means is that you wouldn’t not answer the telephone from a colleague. But the first part overrides the second part tremendously.

“We are excited and happy being in Conference USA, and did well — (we) went to the (CUSA Championship) football game. Same with volleyball, same with soccer. The budgets are very similar (among) schools outside of Liberty. So there’s a lot of positives in Conference USA.”

Conference loyalty

Like Colorado State and San Diego State, UNM is a charter member of the Mountain West dating to its formation in 1998. Loyalty has been established on both sides through nearly 26 years of affiliation.

But a new era begs the question: What is UNM’s level of loyalty to the Mountain West right now?

When asked, Williams said the conference has been “great to us and it continues to be great to us” while pointing to how the league has survived previous defections in its 26-year history.

“I’m sure those same worries (then are happening now),” he said. “But our main concern and our focus is on what is best for New Mexico. Just as I’m sure the focus of the other schools is what is best for them.

“I don’t disparage anybody for wanting what’s best for their own personal situation. And so we are always evaluating, but I also think that the Mountain West has been outstanding to us and appreciate everything that the conference over the years has helped us become.”