Mountain West Conference Invites Nevada and Fresno State

The Mountain West Conference has now added the Fresno State Bulldogs and NevadaWolfpack as the 10th and 11th members. Brigham Young University is still an active member at this time. According to the Colorado State athletic department Boise State's new conference is about to get rocked by a second defection this summer. The Mountain West, which added Boise State for 2011 in June, already has lost Utah to the Pac-10. The WAC had a July 1 deadline for teams to leave the league in time for the 2011 season at 6.55 p.m.



When the topic was broached with WAC commissioner Karl Benson earlier this summer in regards to Boise State, Benson said the Broncos would be allowed to leave, but face a stiffer exit fee. The statement was released before the Mountain West Conference officially invited Fresno State and Nevada. Nebraska rushed the field after it thought it pulled off the 12-10 upset in the Big 12 title game, but video replay showed Texas still had one second left. Hunter Lawrence came on to hit a 46-yard field goal as time expired, giving the Longhorns a 13-12 victory and pushing them into the title game.
BYU and Utah will once again be in the thick of the conference race as the trio has defined the league over the past few years. Four teams that reached the NCAA Tournament last season highlight the 2010-11 Utah women’s basketball non-conference schedule, including a home game against national runner-up Stanford. In addition to Stanford, which makes a trip to Salt Lake City on Nov. 19, the Utes will also face Washington (Dec. 1) and Arkansas (Dec. 4) in the Huntsman Center. The Mountain West Conference portion of the schedule, along with the broadcast schedule, will be released in the next few weeks.