The PAC-12’s “war chest” helped keep the conference alive, can the WAC pool its resources together to weather the realignment storm?
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The conference shuffling out west created another existential crisis for the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). The long-embattled conference enters the 2025-2026 academic year with seven schools and six at the start of the 2026 academic year. The likely defection of Utah Valley would drop the conference to five members. With hardly any Division II schools aggressively seeking Division I membership, the end appears near for the conference.
Surprisingly, there is a possibility the conference will rise from this round of realignment alive. The WAC has several sources of revenue to both keep and attract members.
The media made much of the PAC-12's over $100 million "war chest" to rebuild the conference. Although it is hard to assess exactly how much money the WAC has to save the conference, this article takes a deep dive into some of the potential helpful revenue streams available to the conference.
NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament units are one of the biggest financial draws of Division I membership. Each year, conferences get shares of money for each game a conference plays in the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. This year, a unit totaled $2 million. More importantly, the unit system dictates conferences distribute units over the next six years after a tournament. In short, conferences will distribute $2 million to its members for the next six years.
Currently, units from NCAA Tournaments dating back to the 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament are active. The WAC has played one game in each tournament since 2021, playing additional games in 2022 and 2024. New Mexico State and Grand Canyon won first-round games before falling in the round of 32, gaining an extra unit each year.
While the mass exodus of schools has hurt the WAC, fewer members means the remaining schools get more NCAA Tournament money. In a day and age when size means security for conferences, the WAC could carve a niche as a conference that benefits from fewer members through the distribution of these NCAA Tournament units. Units alone could keep the conference alive long enough to gain more stability.
Exit fees are a prescient topic in the PAC-12/Mountain West conflict, reaching the point of litigation between the two leagues. The WAC charges a $2 million exit fee. The conference receives $8 million in exit fees from four members' exits. This could potentially attract members from other conferences. Perhaps a scenario pays out where the WAC pays Chicago State's exit fees from the NEC and provides a travel subsidy? The imagination can run far with this idea, but the funds are there.
The WAC can use its small size as a draw to keep its current members and reach seven or eight members. Although the information is unavailable for several mid-major leagues, one can assume the rights fees have marginal differences between leagues. Thus, the WAC can use this as a bargaining tool for current and prospective members.
Chicago State seems like an ideal school for the WAC to poach due to the terrible Northeast Conference (NEC) media deal. This past season, ESPN linear channels aired one NEC game. To make matters worse, ESPN only streams a few games on ESPN+ each year. Most mid-major leagues have all of their non-linear TV games streamed by ESPN+. The benefits of being in Division I are not enough to retain members in the NEC. Last month, St. Francis (PA) announced a drop to Division III.
The WAC offers more than the NEC, yet it is in a worse position. Money talks, but will it talk loud enough to take Chicago State out of its new home? Just a few years ago, Chicago State nearly shut down. Why would the Cougars burn the bridge to their lifeline for a few hundred thousand dollars? Still, the WAC's media deal creates possibilities.
Sacramento State's pursuit of FBS glory is worthy of another article alone. However, their ambitions could benefit the WAC. According to Hero Sports' KC Smurthwaite's report, the WAC is right behind the Big West in landing Sacramento State if the Hornets go independent.
Adding Sacramento State would give the WAC six members, presuming Utah Valley leaves since they applied to the Big West Conference. Sacramento State continues to prove it will do anything for FBS grandeur. It is reasonable to believe that they would commit their alleged robust NIL resources to help keep their Olympic sports home alive if it means they become an FBS member.
The WAC’s situation is dire. However, the PAC-12 resurrected itself from much worse circumstances. Although their “war chest” is not as vast as the PAC-12, the WAC has resources to use to survive.
