By Nicole Auerbach, USA TODAY

No longer just a joke: Boise State will belong to the Big East and the Big West conferences at the same time.

The Broncos are, of course, headed to the Big East for football. But there have been rumors swirling about them maybe not following through with that, especially because there was the obvious question: What about the other sports?

Now we have our answer. Almost all of Boise State’s Olympic sports will join the Big West conference effective July 1, 2013, the day the school’s football program officially joins the Big East.

“Boise State’s membership in the Big West Conference complements our Big East Conference football presence and reflects our emerging coast-to-coast profile,” Boise State President Bob Kustra said in a statement. “We are truly excited by the prospects of competition and collaboration with all these new partners both athletically and academically. The Big West will be an outstanding home for the majority of our intercollegiate sports and will provide great opportunities for our student-athletes.”

San Diego State will be doing the same thing as Boise State, with its football team in the Big East and a majority of its non-football teams in the Big West.

Boise State said its women’s gymnastics team is scheduled to compete in the Western Athletic Conference starting next season and the wrestling team will continue its affiliation in the Pacific-12 Conference. Conference affiliation for the Bronco women’s swimming and diving team and the men’s and women’s indoor track and field teams has not been determined yet.

Last but not least, the money. According to the school release, Boise State’s entry fee to join the Big West is $2.5 million — which will be paid in five annual payments. The Broncos will also pay a travel cost per conference visiting team for regular season competitions in Boise at an estimated cost of $750,000 per year, an equity share into the league’s reserve to be determined at a later date and a one-time membership initiation fee estimated at $50,000.

… [For more on Boise State to join Big West in most sports, click here.]