Louisiana Tech caught in C-USA, Sun Belt schedule dispute
While much of the sports world focused on Championship Week and the upcoming NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments, Conference USA quietly released its 2026 football schedule on March 12 — escalating a dispute involving Louisiana Tech and the Sun Belt Conference.
The 2026 slate is set. 🏈
The road to the CUSA Championship begins Aug. 29!#NoLimitsOnUs pic.twitter.com/osLLIt3HbT
— Conference USA (@ConferenceUSA) March 13, 2026
At the center of the issue: Louisiana Tech appears on Conference USA’s schedule despite plans to join the Sun Belt.
Conference USA is set to drop to 11 members when UTEP departs for the Mountain West on July 1. According to the league’s schedule, conference play begins Oct. 1, when Florida International travels to Jacksonville State, while Sam Houston hosts New Mexico State.
A day later, the Sun Belt Conference released its 2026 football schedule, which includes Louisiana Tech as a member. The league is replacing Texas State, which is leaving for the Pac-12, with the Bulldogs.
The 2026 slate is set. 🏈
The road to the CUSA Championship begins Aug. 29!#NoLimitsOnUs pic.twitter.com/osLLIt3HbT
— Conference USA (@ConferenceUSA) March 13, 2026
The conflicting schedules stem from a disagreement over Louisiana Tech’s departure timeline.
Dispute over exit date
The Sun Belt announced Louisiana Tech’s addition on July 15, 2025, stating the school would join “no later than July 1, 2027.” Louisiana Tech, however, has maintained it intends to join by July 1, 2026.
Under Conference USA bylaws, departing members must provide at least 14 months’ notice. Based on that requirement, the conference argues Louisiana Tech cannot leave until July 2027.
In a response to the school’s withdrawal notice, Conference USA said July 1, 2026, “is not an appropriate Effective Date for withdrawal” and reaffirmed that Louisiana Tech would be included in its 2026 schedule.
Louisiana Tech disputes that interpretation. In a statement issued after the schedule release, the university said it had made clear since July 2025 that it would not compete in Conference USA in 2026.
“To include our university in any schedule is misleading and, frankly, disingenuous,” the school said.
Legal action and precedent
The disputed has escalated to legal action. On March 4, University of Louisiana System (ULS) Board of Supervisors filed a lawsuit on behalf of Louisiana Tech in Lincoln Parish, seeking an injunction that would allow the school to join the Sun Belt in 2026.
Louisiana Tech argues that Conference USA has previously allowed early departures. In 2022, Marshall, Southern Miss and Old Dominion left for the Sun Belt after reaching a settlement with Conference USA, reportedly paying $1.75 million each.
Conference USA countered that its bylaws were amended after those departures to strengthen requirements for member institutions. In a 2025 letter, the conference said the changes were designed to ensure future schools adhere strictly to exit provisions, including financial penalties.
The league also said its board “did not and cannot accept Louisiana Tech’s offer to withdraw early” and therefore included the school in its 2026 schedule.
Scheduling fallout
The unresolved dispute has created a logistical headache.
As it stands, Louisiana Tech is listed on both Conference USA and Sun Belt schedules for 2026, resulting in overlapping games — including multiple instances of games scheduled on the same day.
According to Louisiana Tech, the Conference USA schedule would force the team to play three midweek games in October, interspersed with Sun Belt matchups.
“We worked in good faith toward an amicable separation within conference bylaws,” Louisiana Tech said in a statement after the schedule was released by Conference USA. “The proposed 2026 football schedule drafted by CUSA left us no choice but to pursue this remedy.”
Until the dispute is resolved, Louisiana Tech effectively has 20 scheduled games for the 2026 season — an impossibility that underscores the urgency of the dispute.
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