UND has scheduled a press conference Monday to make a major announcement regarding conference affiliation.
The school is expected to announce that it will join the Big Sky Conference as a full member, ending a three-year search for a stable home for its athletic programs.
The announcement will take place at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center at 3 p.m. Montday. If the Big Sky becomes the home for Sioux athletics, it will be the biggest single development since UND moved its athletic programs to the Division I level.
UND's search for a conference home has been the school's priority. For months, however, that search seemed to go no where.
But the Big Sky came into the picture a couple of months ago. UND's membership was placed on a fast track by the league, far different that the school's two-year flirtation with the Summit League.
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The Summit League was scheduled to conduct an official site visit at UND today and Tuesday. But UND canceled that visit Friday, opening the door for today's Big Sky announcement.
The Big Sky appealed to UND because it offers football. The Summit does not, meaning UND's football program would have to operate as an independent -- a move that has the potential to seriously damage one of the school's high profile athletic programs.
The Big Sky also is expected to offer full membership to South Dakota and Southern Utah, perhaps as early as today.
South Dakota and UND both made the move to Division I at the same time. Southern Utah currently is a member of the Summit League for all sports but football. But the Utah school has long sought Big Sky membership.
