Louisiana Tech’s Joe Aillet Stadium in Ruston
MONROE, La. – Conference USA wants a lawsuit filed against it by Louisiana Tech University over its planned move to the Sun Belt Conference heard in federal court, according to a notice filed over the weekend..
CUSA filed its removal notice March 14 in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, Monroe Division.
The University of Louisiana System’s Board of Supervisors, on Louisiana Tech’s behalf, filed a petition for injunctive and declaratory relief against CUSA in a state court March 5 and an amended petition March 13.
In its filing to the Third Judicial District Court, Lincoln Parish, Louisiana Tech claims CUSA, in refusing to accept its offer to withdraw from the athletic conference, forced its hand.
In July, the university announced it plans to exit CUSA to join the Sun Belt Conference ahead of the 2026 football season.
“Tech since July 2025 has repeatedly sought discussions with the Conference, made written offers and requested dispute resolution,” Louisiana Tech’s state filing states. “Despite seven months of correspondence, written settlement proposals, and repeated requests for mediation, the parties have been unable to reach a resolution.
“Rather than continuing good faith negotiations, CUSA unilaterally placed Louisiana Tech on its 2026-27 athletic schedule without consultation and in disregard of Louisiana Tech’s explicit written notice that it would not participate in Conference USA competition beginning July 1, 2026.”
CUSA, in its removal notice, argues the University of Louisiana System’s Board of Supervisors is not an arm of the State, but a citizen. Thus, complete diversity exists, the conference contends.
For one, the conference argues the State of Louisiana is not formally liable for the board’s debts.
“The State’s willingness to pay depends entirely on legislative discretion,” CUSA wrote. “That is not formal liability. It is discretionary grace.”
It continued, “Judgments against the Board confirm the point: they are entered in the Board’s own corporate name, not against ‘the State of Louisiana.’”
In its state filing, Louisiana Tech claims that not only did CUSA proceed to put it on the 2026 football schedule, but it did so in a manner that creates “significant health and safety concerns” for its student athletes.
“The proposed 2026 football schedule requires Tech student athletes to play four (4) football games, with travel, in nineteen (19) days with less than five (5) days rest between games in a contact sport,” it wrote.
Mandatory participation, the university argues, also would adversely affect recruiting and “impair donor relationships and media engagement.”
“Those injuries are inherently difficult to quantify and cannot be fully remedied through monetary damages,” it wrote. “CUSA would not operationally be harmed by our exclusion and can be made whole financially through the very remedy provisions its bylaws provide.
“This schedule is unsafe, dangerous, and inconsistent with accepted principles and guidelines on rest, recovery, and travel periods.”
Louisiana Tech contends its exit will actually make things easier for CUSA in terms of scheduling. Currently, including the university, the conference has 11 teams; without it, there are even 10 teams.
As it stands, Louisiana Tech appears on both CUSA and Sun Belt football schedules for the upcoming season.
The university released an official statement regarding its lawsuit against CUSA earlier this month:
“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,” according to its March 6 statement.
“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.”
Brown Fox PLLC in Dallas and Cook Yancey King & Galloway in Shreveport are representing CUSA. DeCuir Clarke & Adams LLP in Baton Rouge is helping represent Louisiana Tech in the action.
