Fresno State President John D. Welty was named to the NCAA Board of Directors representing the Mountain West Conference at conference’s annual spring meeting. Welty also will serve the Mountain West on the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) Presidential Oversight Committee.
During its meeting earlier this month, the Mountain West board discussed league membership structure in the context of ongoing conference realignment within the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). The presidents mapped out a multifaceted strategy designed to guide conference decision-making process moving forward.
Support was expressed for the four-team BCS playoff model as a progressive step, and the group discussed options related to bracket composition, selection process and competition venues. There was consensus for a conference-champion component and playing the semifinal games within the bowl structure. The board advocated for an equitable revenue-distribution model with an academic-performance element.
The meeting included a conversation with NCAA President Mark Emmert about the overall landscape of intercollegiate athletics, the ongoing presidential reform agenda and the necessity to maintain both integrity and student-athlete focus within the enterprise.
The Mountain West board conveyed its concern with the developing economic model that continues to marginalize a broad spectrum of FBS institutions that serve an important role in sustaining the value of media contracts and the BCS format.
Fresno State is joining the Mountain West Conference in the new academic year for intercollegiate athletics competition.
