Go East, Mountain West Conference.

That's what one league member will do beginning in 2010 as the MWC officially announced an agreement with the Independence Bowl, played in Shreveport, La., to take on an Atlantic Coast Conference opponent. The contract runs through the 2013 season.

Previously, the Independence Bowl pitted a team from the Big 12 against a team from the Southeastern Conference.

"The new affiliation with the AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl will support our conference's continued growth in a number of areas," said MWC commissioner Craig Thompson. "The tradition and history of the bowl itself, with two of our institutions, Air Force and TCU, having played in past games, coupled with a recruiting area that is gaining more traction with our members, make this a very positive relationship. We have enjoyed competing against the Atlantic Coast Conference in the regular season and now look forward to a postseason matchup as well."

In other bowl news, the MWC announced it has extended deals with both the Armed Forces Bowl (in Fort Worth, Texas) and the New Mexico Bowl (in Albuquerque). Both agreements go through the 2013 seasons.

"The Mountain West Conference has enjoyed participating in the development of the New Mexico Bowl and looks forward to several more years of growth," said MWC commissioner Craig Thompson. "The participants and fans of the three teams that have played in Albuquerque have had nothing but positive things to say about the community and game festivities."

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