The Northern Illinois University Huskies announced a move from the MAC to the Mountain West as a football-only member earlier in January. The move was anticipated for several weeks but NIU waited until after the holiday break to make it official with a vote by the Board of Trustees on January 7, 2025. Once the official announcement was made, a copy of the agreement between NIU and the Mountain West Conference was requested to see what details, if any, we could find out.
Spoiler: it’s heavily redacted much like the full membership agreement between UC Davis and the Mountain West. UC Davis will not be a football member of the MW when it joins in 2026-27 but will have some small advantages compared to other current FCS programs. Nevertheless, some insights are provided in this agreement that will impact NIU even without knowing the specific numbers.
What the Agreement Says
According to a copy of the agreement (photos provided below), NIU will join the Mountain West in football no later than July 1, 2026. If NIU fails to join the MW by July 1, 2026, the university will owe $4,000,000 to the conference no later than July 31, 2026. Beyond that, there isn’t a bunch of concrete numbers to be reported but there are other takeaways from the agreement.
- NIU will receive an incentive payment within 30 days of joining the Mountain West. The amount has been redacted.
- The Mountain West will pay part of NIU’s exit fee from the MAC within 14 days. The amount NIU will receive has been redacted.
- NIU will receive revenue as part of its membership in the MW. The estimated amounts it might receive have been redacted.
- NIU will receive a partial share of its media revenue in 2026-27 and will receive a full share of its media revenue in 2027-28. The agreement states that NIU will receive a percentage of a full member’s share. The percentages NIU will receive each year have been redacted.
- NIU will pay an entrance fee of an unspecified amount. While the agreement has redacted the number, NIU has publicly stated it will pay $2 million.
- NIU will be part of the Mountain West’s Grant of Rights that runs from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2032.
- NIU will pay annual dues to the Mountain West. The agreement states that NIU will pay a percentage of a full member’s annual dues but the exact percentage and estimated amount have been redacted.
- NIU will be expected to increase its football budget by the start of the 2026 season and increase it again by the 2027 season. The football expense budget amounts for both seasons have been redacted.
Photo Courtesy of NIU Athletics