The university officially announced it would join the Mountain West Conference in a football-only capacity starting in 2026. The move puts the Mountain West Conference at nine teams: NIU, Air Force, Grand Canyon, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State, UNLV, UTEP and Wyoming.

The Northern Illinois Huskies' football program is officially joining the Mountain West Conference for the 2026 season. NIU's board of trustees approved the MWC

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.

The Huskies will go from the MAC to a league in which the easternmost school is in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

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 will vote on whether NIU's football team will leave the Mid-American Conference (MAC). Peter Medlin

They will join Air Force, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State, UNLV, UTEP and Wyoming in the Mountain West.

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