Northern Illinois set to join Mountain West for football only in 2026

Northern Illinois has accepted an invitation to join the Mountain West for football only in 2026, the school and conference announced Tuesday.

The Huskies will go from the Midwest-based MAC to a conference in which the easternmost school is in Colorado Springs, Colorado. They will join Air Force, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State, UNLV, UTEP and Wyoming in the Mountain West.

“This move will open new opportunities for our student-athletes, expand the reach and strengthen the national brand of Huskie Football as they represent NIU and compete for championships the hard way, and the right way,” NIU president Lisa C. Freeman said in a statement.

Mountain West commissioner Gloria Nevarez said NIU’s “history of football success and its commitment to academic excellence” were draws.

Northern Illinois has played 39 seasons in the MAC over two stints from 1975 to 1985 and since 1997. It was in the Big West Conference in football from 1993 to 1995 and operated as an independent from 1986 to 1992, as well as in 1996.

The Huskies went 8-5 this season and pulled off a huge stunner at then-No. 5 Notre Dame in September. The win vaulted them into The Associated Press poll for the first time in 11 years.

The Huskies have consistently been among the top teams in the MAC for two decades. They’ve played in 15 bowl games in that span, and the 2012 team even made the Orange Bowl, with star quarterback Jordan Lynch.

It’s not clear which conference Northern Illinois’ other teams will compete in starting in 2026. The school said it has “multiple options” with Midwest conferences and remains in talks with the MAC.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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