Wright said that MSU Denver’s student population, urban location and the Regency Athletic Complex are strong selling points for the school.

The WAC has been expanding membership in the aftermath of a massive NCAA realignment that led to the conference losing 12 schools — including the University of Denver — and forced their hand to drop football after 51 years. Of the WAC’s nine members, seven were added in 2013 and just one — New Mexico State University — was a member before the decade began.

MSU Denver was one of many institutions that the WAC reached out to over the summer. Should MSU Denver join, it would give the conference their first member in the same state as their Englewood headquarters.

However, the transition process is difficult. A number of caveats exist for any prospective school, and MSU Denver is no different.

For a program to transition, they must pay application fees to both the conference they’re joining and the NCAA. The WAC charges $750,000 for application, though that could dropped, while the NCAA’s Division I fee is $1.6 million. A part of that payment comes through student tuition. Wright referenced his experience working with Southern Illinois University Edwardsville when the school was transitioning to Division I. In Division II, Edwardsville tuition included $50 for athletics. After the jump, the required payment increased to $185 a semester — about a 270 percent increase.