Utah State has officially signed on to join the Pac-12 in 2026

Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes

LOGAN — The Pac-12 made it official in an unlikely way, but the Aggies' move to their new conference home is now complete.

Utah State will join the "Conference of Champions" beginning with the 2026-27 athletic year, the league and university announced jointly Tuesday evening.

The move, which was first reported Monday evening by ESPN and others, makes the Aggies the fifth team from the Mountain West to join up with Oregon State and Washington State in reconstituting the Pac-12 following last summer's defections by 10 of the schools to the Big Ten, Big 12 and ACC.

Utah State joins Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State as the seventh overall member of the conference. NCAA bylaws require conferences to have at least eight members to be included in the Football Bowl Subdivision.

"We are thrilled to welcome Utah State University to the Pac-12, as they join us on this exciting journey forward," Pac-12 commissioner Teresa Gould said in a statement. "With president Elizabeth Cantwell and athletics director Diana Sabau at the helm, Utah State brings invaluable strategic insights and leadership that will greatly benefit our conference and its members as well as a history of competitive excellence and success. Today marks another exciting step for the Pac-12 – and it's just the beginning of phase two."

The announcement following a semi-official declaration by the conference, which said in a lawsuit filed in federal court Tuesday morning against the Mountain West that the Aggies had been admitted as a seventh member Monday afternoon.

In a news release from the university, Utah State — which will officially join the league July 1, 2026 — noted its unique space as a "premier land- and space-grant institution continues to excel in academics and athletics" and its decade-long history in the Mountain West, including winning four total conference championships iin 2023-24 that ties for the second-most in the current league.

The Aggies' football and men's basketball winning percentage in league play over the past 10 seasons was 59.1%, which ranks third behind only Boise State and San Diego State. That, as well as Utah's reputation as one of the fastest growing states in the country, led to Tuesday's formal invitation.

"The vision of the Pac-12 Conference firmly aligns with USU's mission and our commitments to the future," Cantwell said. "This move unlocks new possibilities by directly enhancing the student-athlete experience and will significantly strengthen our reputation for competitive success, academic achievement, and research excellence."

Added Sabau: "Joining the Pac-12 Conference exemplifies our commitment to elevating USU academics and athletics. This will position all our teams in a multi-bid league for the NCAA postseason and championships. This is an incredible opportunity for our student-athletes, as well as our alumni, investors, the HURD and our Logan and Cache Valley communities and all of Aggie Nation."

Related topics

Utah State FootballUtah State AggiesSportsCollege

Sean Walker

• 
• 

KSL.com BYU and college sports reporter