NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Louisiana Tech's football team is currently listed on both the Sun Belt and Conference USA league schedules as the Bulldogs' acrimonious departure from Conference USA continues to drag out.
Last July, the Sun Belt extended membership to Louisiana Tech, and the school accepted, citing, among other things, the logic of joining a conference that includes two potential in-state rivals in Louisiana-Lafayette and Louisiana-Monroe, along with other programs in the Gulf South, including Southern Miss and South Alabama.
All of those schools are on the 2026 football schedule that Louisiana Tech released on Friday.
But Conference USA also released a full conference slate this week that includes Louisiana Tech matchups against league members Middle Tennessee, Florida International, Missouri State, Liberty, Kennesaw State and Jacksonville State.
When Louisiana Tech announced its move to the Sun Belt, the school stated that the move would occur no later than July 1, 2027, but left little doubt that it preferred to make the move for 2026-27 academic year.
Since then, Tech and Conference USA have failed to agree on a financial settlement aimed at compensating the league for the Bulldogs' departure.
Last week, the University of Louisiana System, which includes Louisiana Tech, filed a lawsuit asking a judge to force Conference USA to allow Louisiana Tech to leave the league when the current academic year ends on June 30.
Despite Louisiana Tech's "good faith efforts to resolve this matter amicably over a period of eight months ... CUSA has declined to engage in meaningful resolution and has instead placed Louisiana Tech on its 2026-27 athletic schedule in disregard of Tech’s explicit and repeated written notice that it would not participate in Conference USA competition beginning July 1, 2026,” the lawsuit states.
Louisiana Tech has been a Conference USA member since 2014.
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