Posted by Matt Norlander

There it is. Here's what the old one, the one that was in used until a few minutes ago, looked like.

That one was certainly still feasible, but this is a new era for the Mountain West, so new logos must be implemented. I believe that's an NCAA bylaw, in fact. The logo has a nickname, you know. It's true! They're calling it "The Rock" and insisting this new era of MWC athletics go by the moniker: "This is our time." It's all dipped in so much seriousness I can't help but laugh at the irony. Outside from getting Fuel to play at the presser, there isn't too much else that could've been done here to signify just how unintentionally last-decade this whole shebang turned out to be.

At today's unveiling, the new, boxy logo was described as "a very corporate look, a very simple look." Indeed it is. And utterly underwhelming. Seems many conferences are afraid to be daring and creative and forward-minded in their logo desigins. The Pac-12 is excluded from such criticism.

But this is all part of the rebranding process for the 12-year-old Mountain West, which pushes on, as it'll have a new caravan of teams in the next two years. Boise State is joining this fall, and Fresno State, Hawaii and Nevada will join the league in 2012. Meanwhile, BYU and Utah are leaving immediately, while TCU has one more year of dues to pay before it bolts for the Big East, a natural geographical fit.

Here's the release about the logo and today's ceremonies, which act as the initiation into the new Mountain West regime.

"This initiative is emblematic of the evolution of our league," [league commissioner Craig] Thompson stated. "The overwhelming majority of the people we spoke to said the Mountain West is bold, feisty and highly competitive, and we strongly believe these qualities are reflected in our new brand identity and our new logo. ... Our fans were right in noting that our evolving membership and geography reflect both 'Mountain' and 'West' equally. The logo is bold, strong and balanced just like our league. We like the fact that it's instantly recognizable to fans on either side of the playing field."

In time it will be. But it's just a logo, and one that's giving me a hankering to fire up my old Compaq and play a round of Doom.

Update: Here's the amazing introduction video played from today's presser. I love seeing conferences prop themselves up like this.