Big Sky to Add Southern Utah, Utah Tech in 2026

Southern Utah University and Utah Tech, formerly known as Dixie State, will join the Big Sky Conference as full members beginning in the 2026-27 academic year, following Sacramento State's departure for the Big West Conference. Southern Utah returns to the Big Sky after previously competing from 2012 to 2022, while Utah Tech continues its rise from junior college to Division I FCS. The Western Athletic Conference, which both schools are leaving, has been weakened by departures and will merge its football operations with the ASUN to form the United Athletic Conference. With this expansion, all three of Utah's FCS football programs—Southern Utah, Utah Tech, and Weber State—will compete together in the Big Sky for the first time. The move brings the Big Sky to 11 full members, helping preserve automatic NCAA tournament berths and stability during ongoing national conference realignment. The expansion is widely viewed as a stabilizing development for the Big Sky Conference.