sports. I think the MWC would get the same 2 year grace period - but if they tried that they would lose auto bids for other sports. Like I don't think they could play with 7 teams in basketball for 2 seasons and still keep the NCAA basketball auto bid for 2 seasons. The grace period is about not forfeiting pending and future NCAA payouts from NCAA.

So when he says they "need" to get one more school by 2026, that would just be the smart thing to do so they can keep conference as an actual conference for 2026 and beyond.