Big Sky Conference

Idaho to rejoin Big Sky in football in 2018

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BIG SKY CONFERENCE PRESS RELEASE & SKYLINE SPORTS

The University of Idaho announced Thursday it will accept an invitation to play football in the Big Sky Conference beginning in fall 2018, pending approval by the State Board of Education.

“I understand the magnitude of this decision and the strong opinions that surround it, both for and against, but joining the Big Sky Conference is the best possible course for our athletics program and for our university,” said Chuck Staben, UI president. “We have carefully weighed our options and concluded that competing as an independent with an extremely uncertain future conference affiliation would be irresponsible when we have the alternative of joining one of the most stable FCS conferences. The Big Sky allows us to renew traditional rivalries and offers our athletes the opportunity to excel, just as they do in our other Big Sky sports programs.”

The Sun Belt Conference notified Idaho in March that the conference would move forward with a 10-team league after the 2017 football season, not renewing the membership of UI and New Mexico State University. UI will play in the Sun Belt two more seasons, moving to the Big Sky for the fall 2018 season.

Idaho was a charter member of the Big Sky Conference when the league was born in 1963. The Vandals won nine Big Sky football titles before leaving the league for the Western Athletic Conference in 1996. Idaho rejoined the Big Sky in all sports aside from football in 2014.

“I know many passionate Vandals view football’s place in the FBS as a mark of our institution’s ‘prestige’ and ‘relevance.’ But we consider prestige and relevance in an institution-wide context,” Staben said. “UI is our state’s land-grant institution, the unquestioned statewide leader in higher education. Success on the football field will complement UI’s prestige and relevance, but we will be defined by our individual and societal impact, measured by the entire student body experience, including our student-athletes; our academic excellence; our research, scholarly and creative success; and our deep engagement with communities across the state. Providing the best student experience for all students, across all aspects of university life is our responsibility and privilege.”

Big Sky commissioner Doug Fullerton said the conference is excited about adding Idaho’s football program to the Big Sky Conference. Fullerton, who will retire after 20 years as the BSC commission effective in July, has long lobbied for the Vandals to rejoin the Big Sky.

“The Big Sky Conference is excited about the University of Idaho joining the league in football,” Fullerton said. “We think that, given Idaho’s DNA of excellence, they will make our football programs better, and our football product better.”

Idaho athletic director Rob Spear said the Vandals’ goals of remaining competitive on the field will remain the same, regardless of conference alignment.

”We are extremely motivated to compete in the Sun Belt for the next two years and then align with like institutions that make geographic sense in the Big Sky Conference that will provide our student-athletes with a quality experience,” he said.

“We have two years to position our athletics department to best serve our students and provide the quality co-curricular benefits we expect from Vandal athletics,” Staben said. “We will be successful in the Big Sky Conference and will build a vibrant football culture that is an excellent front porch for our university.”

To be eligible for the FCS post-season, Idaho must cut to 63 scholarships. The FBS allows 85 full scholarship players on each roster. Normal transfer rules will apply to athletes, meaning transfers must sit out a season if they transfer to a Division I school. Spear said Idaho will be to 63 scholarships by 2018.

Spear said Idaho has not plan to eliminate sports at UI as the school is still in compliance with all Title IX rules.

The Vandals will be the 14th member of the Big Sky Conference for football. The league now has 12 full-time members while UC Davis and Cal Poly are football affiliates.

About Colter Nuanez

Colter Nuanez is the co-founder and senior writer for Skyline Sports. After spending six years in the newspaper industry with stops at the Missoulian, the Ellensburg Daily Record and the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, the former Washington Newspaper Association Sportswriter of the Year and University of Montana Journalism School graduate ('09) has cultivated a deep passion for sports journalism during his 13-year career covering the Big Sky Conference. In August of 2014, Colter and brother Brooks merged their passions of writing and art to found Skyline Sports.

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