The Mountain West Conference will not approve any exceptions “at this time” to San Diego State after the school announced its intention to resign from the conference last week, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
San Diego State told Mountain West last week that it “intends to resign,” although it has apparently not received an invitation to attend any other conferences at this time. The letter, the school said, did not count that notice as its official notice of resignation. He also requested a “one-month extension given unforeseen delays involving other collegiate athletic conferences beyond our control,” and a reduced exit fee or the ability to pay the exit fee in installments.
The Mountain West, in its response letter Friday, declined to acquiesce to those demands. The conference also said it does not accept San Diego State’s belief that he had not officially resigned, according to the report.
San Diego State will have to give a year’s notice if it wants to pull out next June, and it will owe about $16.5 million in exit fees. If the school waits until after June 30 to move, those costs jump to nearly $34 million.
While San Diego State intends to leave the conference, it’s unclear where the school will go. The Pac-12 conference seems like an easy landing spot for a number of reasons. With the Pac-12 set to lose USC and UCLA next year, San Diego State would be a way for the conference to keep a foothold in Southern California. The Pac-12, however, still doesn’t have a new television contract, and rumors of conference realignment — especially with the Big 12 — haven’t died down.
San Diego State first joined Mountain West in 1999. Its basketball team went 32-7 last season and reached the national championship game, marking its third straight NCAA Tournament appearance. The football team has won at least 10 games in five of its last eight seasons and has a new $300 million stadium.