DEKALB (WREX) — Northern Illinois University has accepted an invitation for the Huskies to join the Mountain West Conference as a football only member beginning in 2026, NIU and the Mountain West announced Tuesday. The announcement came following a meeting of the NIU Board of Trustees.

Northern Illinois University’s Board of Trustees approved a football-only move from the Mid-American Conference, or MAC, to the Mountain West Conference. Peter Medlin

The Mountain West added a perennial contender from another conference as a football-only member, giving the league nine teams for the 2026 football season.

The Mountain West Conference has announced the addition of Northern Illinois in football after the school's board of trustees approved the move on Tuesday. Northern Illinois, which will begin competing in the conference in 2026,

The Northern Illinois Huskies’ football team will be joining the Mountain West Conference, leaving the Mid-American Conference that it had been a member of for nearly 30 years.

Northern Illinois has accepted an invitation to join the ... 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 ...

The Mountain West Conference will have nine football-playing members for the 2026 season. Northern Illinois was officially introduced as the latest member of the conference on Tuesday. The Huskies compete in the Mid-American Conference and are still considering options for all non-football sports,

The addition of Northern Illinois gives the Mountain West nine football members. With it comes the ability to play a full 8-game conference slate. It also expands the MW footprint into Illinois and the coveted Chicago market. NIU is located 65 miles west of Chicago and currently plays in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).

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,

Northern Illinois confirmed on Tuesday that it is joining the Mountain West in 2026 as a football-only member. The school hasn't made any decisions on where its other sports will play but remains in discussions with the Mid-American Conference. The ...