Mountain West Conference

The Mountain West Conference (MW) is a group of colleges and universities in the western part of the United States that compete against each other in sports. It is part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I, which is the highest level of college sports in the United States. The conference began operating on January 4, 1999. Teams from the Mountain West Conference play football in a group called the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).

Schools in the Mountain West Conference are spread across many states, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Utah, Texas, and Wyoming. The conference is led by a leader called a commissioner. Gloria Nevarez has been the commissioner since January 1, 2023.

When the Mountain West Conference started, it included eight schools: the United States Air Force Academy, Brigham Young University, Colorado State University, San Diego State University, the University of New Mexico, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, University of Utah and the University of Wyoming. Before joining the Mountain West Conference, these schools were all part of another group called the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). Half of them helped start the WAC way back in 1962.

History

Genesis

The Mountain West Conference started because of changes in college sports in 1996. That year, some schools joined together to form the Big 12 Conference. This caused other groups to change too. The Western Athletic Conference grew larger but had problems with its many members.

In 1998, schools like BYU, Utah, Air Force, Colorado State, and Wyoming decided to leave and form a new group. They invited New Mexico, San Diego State, and UNLV to join them, creating the Mountain West Conference.

Early–2010s realignment

See also: 2010–2013 Mountain West Conference realignment

In 2010, Boise State joined the conference. Soon after, Utah left to join the Pac-12 Conference. Fresno State and Nevada also joined around this time. BYU decided to leave for other sports groups. TCU planned to move but changed plans several times.

During a special system for deciding top football teams, the Mountain West Conference team could qualify sometimes. The conference also talked about joining with another group but decided not to.

Further membership changes

In 2012, San José State and Utah State joined. Boise State decided to stay instead of moving away. San Diego State returned to the conference, allowing them to hold a championship game starting in 2013.

Later years saw more changes. In 2026, several schools like Boise State and San Diego State will leave for the Pac-12. New members joining include UTEP, Grand Canyon University, UC Davis, Northern Illinois University, and North Dakota State, expanding the conference in different sports.

Member schools

The Mountain West Conference has many schools that play sports together. Some schools will leave to join the Pac-12 Conference in 2026. There are also schools that help with certain sports but are not full members. The conference has had many changes over the years with schools joining and leaving.

NCAA team championships

See also: List of NCAA schools with the most NCAA Division I championships and List of NCAA schools with the most Division I national championships

Some championships are not included here. These are titles won outside of NCAA competition, such as Division I FBS football titles, women's AIAW championships, equestrian titles, and retroactive Helms Athletic Foundation titles.

Sports

The Mountain West Conference has competitions in eight sports for men and 11 sports for women that are approved by the NCAA. Hawai'i only joins for football, and Colorado College only joins for women's soccer.

Men's sports

Men's varsity sports not sponsored by the Mountain West

Future members in green.

Women's sports

Women's varsity sports not sponsored by the Mountain West

Future members in green. Departing members in pink.

CNBC list of the most valuable Mountain West schools

Rankings as of December 19, 2025 (2024–2025 academic year)

Athletic department revenue by school

This section shows how much money each school made and spent on their sports programs during the 2023–24 school year. The money comes from things like ticket sales, donations, TV rights, and student fees. Expenses include paying coaches, scholarships, and maintaining sports facilities.

The data is reported to the United States Department of Education. For one school, Air Force, the information comes from the Knight Commission for the 2022–2023 school year.

Conference champions

Main article: List of Mountain West Conference champions

The Mountain West Conference has many teams that win titles each year in different sports. These champions are the best in their sport for that season. You can find a full list of these champions in the linked article.

Rivalries

Conference (football)

Totals and records following the completion of the 2025 football season.

Non–conference (including other sports)

Football

See also: Mountain West Conference Football Championship Game

Starting in 2013, the Mountain West Conference split its football teams into two groups, called the "Mountain Division" and the "West Division." Each group had six teams, and they played a championship game to decide the conference winner. The first championship game was held on December 7, 2013, at Bulldog Stadium in Fresno, California, home of Fresno State. Teams played five games within their group and three games against teams from the other group each year.

In 2022, the conference changed its football schedule. They stopped using the two divisions and created a new system where each team plays two special rival teams every year and rotates through playing other teams over three years. Now, the two teams with the best records in the conference play in the championship game instead of just the division winners.

The Mountain West Conference has partnerships with six bowl games. Since 2014, if the Mountain West champion is the highest-ranked team from the smaller conferences, they can play in big bowls like the Cotton Bowl Classic, Fiesta Bowl, or Peach Bowl. In 2014, Boise State was the first team to qualify and won the Fiesta Bowl.

If Hawaii is eligible for a bowl but not the conference champion, they will play in the Hawaii Bowl. The Mountain West will only send a team to the Cactus or San Francisco Bowls if the main conferences for those bowls cannot fill their spots.

ESPN started the Bowl Challenge Cup in 2002 to honor the conference with the best bowl record. The Mountain West Conference has won it five times, more than any other conference, with records of 2–1 in 2004–05, 4–1 in 2007–08, 4–1 in 2009–10, 4–1 in 2010–11, and 5–1 in 2021–22.

Men's basketball

The Mountain West Conference and the Missouri Valley Conferences have an annual challenge series for men's basketball. This series started in the 2009–10 season and was renewed in the 2015–16 season after a short break. At first, all teams from both conferences played, but now, because the Mountain West has one more team than the Missouri Valley, one Mountain West team sits out each year.

The first game was played on November 13, 2009, between the Bradley Braves and the BYU Cougars in Provo. The series ended on December 23 with the Wyoming Cowboys playing the Northern Iowa Panthers in Cedar Falls, Iowa. This challenge is similar to the ACC-Big Ten Challenge, where teams from the Atlantic Coast Conference and the Big Ten Conference compete.

NCAA tournament records

As of the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season

Women's basketball

NCAA tournament records

Facilities

Notes

Elevation

The Mountain West Conference uses the slogan "Above the rest" because many of its schools are located very high above sea level—more than 4,000 feet! This height can affect how athletes perform in sports like football, soccer, and track and field.

The schools in this conference have some of the highest locations for college sports in the whole country.