The university released a one paragraph announcement when requested.

“Utah State University informed the Mountain West in writing of its decision to depart the conference on May 29, 2025, and paid the mandatory deposit for exit fees. Utah State will compete in the Mountain West in 2025-26 and begin competition in the Pac-12 in the fall semester of 2026.”

That deposit is $5,000.

Schools leaving the Mountain West are required to pay an exit fee of $18 million and had to officially make their intentions known to the Mountain West in writing by June 1. Had that not happened, the exit fee would have doubled to $36 million.

Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State and San Diego State are also leaving the Mountain West for the Pac-12. The five soon-to-be former MW schools will join Oregon State and Washington State — the two Pac-12 schools that were left behind.

Gonzaga has also been announced as a new member of the Pac-12, but the Bulldogs do not have football. That leaves the Pac-12 needing one more school that has an FBS football team.

To be recognized by the College Football Playoff for the 2026-27 season, the Pac-12 needs eight football teams by July 1. With that deadline a month away, that puts the Pac-12 on the clock, which has been ticking.

There have been many rumors about schools that could possibly be invited. The latest speculation on social media has Texas State being invited to make it eight football schools. There have been other names come up and then those schools have announced their respective commitments to the conferences they currently belong too.

Meanwhile, the Mountain West and Pac-12 are still battling over lawsuits each filed against the other. The two leagues began mediation in February to discuss litigation. There has been no reports of anything being decided yet.

SOFTBALL

An assistant coach has been added to the USU staff. Head coach Todd Judge announced on Wednesday that Jared McDonald will be an assistant coach for the Aggies.

Also on Wednesday, Shelby Thompson, who spent the 2025 season as an assistant coach, has been elevated to the team’s pitching coach.

McDonald joins the Aggies following a baseball playing career at both the college and professional levels, followed by a four-year stint as the coordinator of baseball/softball operations at the Illinois Bone & Joint Institute.

As a player, McDonald played two seasons of college ball for Pima Community College in Tucson, Arizona, then one season at Arizona State. At Pima, he earned first-team All-American, all-region and all-conference honors in 2008. He was a recipient of the Rawlings Big Stick Award after hitting .467 with 16 doubles, five triples, 11 home runs and 41 RBIs in 53 games. He was selected in the 40th round by the Chicago Cubs in the 2008 Major League Baseball draft, before transferring to Arizona State for his junior year.

At ASU, McDonald helped lead the Sun Devils to a third-place finish at the College World Series in 2009. He played in 58 games as the team’s starting shortstop. McDonald was then drafted in the 21st round of the MLB draft by the Chicago White Sox. 

McDonald played from 2009-11 in the White Sox minor league system at the single-A level, before spending eight years in independent leagues for seven different teams. With the Rockland Boulders in 2016, he set the all-time minor league record for consecutive games on-base with 75.

Following his playing career, McDonald completed his bachelor’s degree in technological entrepreneurship & management at Arizona State and was named the coordinator of baseball/softball operations at the Illinois Bone & Joint Institute, where he was responsible for staffing, player evaluation, development and programming. He also worked as an account executive for the Van Wagner Sports & Entertainment Group in Chicago from 2022-23, dealing with corporate sponsorships and sales.