It's March, the NCAA Tournament is around the corner, and neither the Sun Belt nor Conference USA have released a schedule yet.
That's because no one knows which league Louisiana Tech will play in next fall. The Bulldogs announced June 15, 2025, their intent to re-join the Sun Belt, effective July 1, 2026. Less than four months from that date, Louisiana Tech and C-USA have yet to agree on exit terms.
As detailed by the Lincoln (La.) Parish Journal, La Tech and C-USA officials met at conference headquarters in the Dallas area shortly after Tech's announcement last summer, with conference officials telling the school to make them an offer. Louisiana Tech contended that they gave more notice than Marshall, Old Dominion, and Southern Miss gave when they left for the Sun Belt in 2022, and their exit fee should be priced accordingly. C-USA believed it was entitled to two years' worth of conference distributions, citing league bylaws.
The school and the conference went back and forth until a couple weeks ago. Now, according to the paper, the University of Louisiana System filed a lawsuit on Tech's behalf against Conference USA.
“Today, Louisiana Tech took a necessary step in the best interest of its student athletes. When we joined Conference USA in 2013, its membership was different, its scheduling was different, and the landscape of college athletics was very different. Seven months ago, we notified CUSA of our intent to exit in July 2026. We have worked in good faith toward an amicable separation within conference bylaws. The proposed 2026 football schedule drafted by CUSA left us no choice but to pursue this remedy," Louisiana Tech said.
“Our move to the Sun Belt enhances the experience of our student athletes, renews regional rivalries, and significantly benefits the Louisiana economy. Additionally CUSA has previously acknowledged the difficulty of crafting an 11-team schedule if we were to remain next year. We have tried to offer a fair financial resolution to this dispute and are hopeful that we can resolve it without resorting to prolonged litigation.”
Louisiana Tech was previously a member of the Sun Belt before the conference launched its football arm in 2001. The Bulldogs competed in the WAC from 2001-12, then joined C-USA when it was a 16-team conference beginning in 2013. Today, Florida International is the only C-USA member still in the league from 2013, and the conference has added Delaware, Jacksonville State, and Missouri State from FCS in recent years to remain solvent.
The Sun Belt -- the only conference to still split into divisions -- has a West division comprised entirely of teams from Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. The Bulldogs will replace Texas State, who joins the Pac-12 on July 1.
When the Bulldogs join is now up to the Third Judicial District Court in Lincoln Parish.