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The Mountain West Conference has notified the Mid-American Conference of its interest in Northern Illinois and Toledo in joining the league as football-only members, according to Brett McMurphy of Action Network in a social media post Thursday night.
Mountain West notifies the MAC of its interest in NIU & Toledo as football-only members in 2026, sources told @ActionNetworkHQ. This adds Central Time Zone to MW, potentially increasing future media rights value. NIU & Toledo have combined for 7 of last 13 MAC titles. MW…
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) September 27, 2024
On Friday, NIU released a statement attributed to the university on the report, saying no formal offer has yet been received.
“Conference realignment is a highly dynamic situation, and NIU appreciates the interest in our strong brand and proven commitment to the success of our student-athletes. At this time, we have not received a formal offer to consider a change.”
NIU athletic director Sean Frazier was not available for comment Thursday night. A spokesperson for the school said he was already with a group of students in Raleigh, North Carolina, ahead of Saturday’s football game against NC State, and his availability Friday was uncertain.
While five Mountain West schools announced they will join the Pac-12, seven remaining schools Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding they will stay with the league through 2032 but would need eight full members to be recognized as an FBS conference, per NCAA rules.
Air Force, UNLV, Nevada, New Mexico State, San Jose State and Wyoming are the current full members, while Hawaii is a football-only member.
The Huskies and Rockets have appeared in 11 MAC championship games since 2010, with NIU winning five times and Toledo twice. With the elimination of divisions this year, the two teams could play each other for the league title, although the Huskies have started league play 0-1 after a loss to Buffalo.
NIU spent three years in the Big West Conference from 1993 through 1995. UNLV, New Mexico State and San Jose State were members at that time. The Huskies went 3-3 each year in the conference and were 11-22 overall in those seasons under Charlie Sadler.
The team went independent in 1996 with new coach Joe Novak before rejoining the MAC in 1997.
It’s not known what would happen to the other NIU sports, if they would be allowed to stay in the MAC or if they would join another conference such as the Horizon League, Missouri Valley or Ohio Valley.