Southern Utah & Utah Tech Joining Big Sky Conference, Sources Say

Well, this is ironic.

Yesterday, June 24th, I wrote an article detailing the 5 most likely colleges to join the Big Sky Conference in 2026 after Sacramento State leaves.

How accurate was I? Find out below.

READ MORE: 5 Teams The Big Sky Conference Could Replace Sacramento State With

Southern Utah AND Utah Tech Announce Move To Big Sky Conference

Ross Dellenger with Yahoo! Sports tweeted the following on Wednesday morning, June 25th.

The Utah Tech move isn't a surprise to me. Sources close to the University of Montana told me last week that Utah Tech would be the likely replacement for Sacramento State when the Hornets leave in June 2026.

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The move that DOES surprise me is Southern Utah rejoining the Big Sky. The Thunderbirds were full-time members of the Big Sky Conference from 2012 - 2022.

Southern Utah subsequently departed for the WAC and seemed to leave a bitter taste in the mouths of those in the Big Sky Conference.

Earlier this year, the WAC took a massive blow when Cal Baptist, Grand Canyon, Seattle U, and Utah Valley all announced they were leaving for different conferences.

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Dellenger also reported that the WAC will form a football alliance with the Atlantic Sun Conference and rebrand it as the United Athletic Conference.

Read his full thread here. 

The Big Sky additions of Utah Tech & Southern Utah will bring the Big Sky's membership to 11 full-time schools and 13 football teams.

UC Davis has been rumored to be jumping to the Mountain West, so we will see if a move follows.