Utah Valley University officials say the Big West Conference will be just that. After a decade in the Western Athletic Conference, the Wolverines will join the Big West on July 1, 2026. UVU Athletic …
Utah’s biggest university wanted a bigger platform for its sports.
Utah Valley University officials say the Big West Conference will be just that.
After a decade in the Western Athletic Conference, the Wolverines will join the Big West on July 1, 2026. UVU Athletic Director Jared Sumsion says the move makes sense for the Wolverines, as they look to elevate their brand and level of competition.
“We really feel like the Big West elevates our profile,” Sumsion said. “It elevates who we are. And we feel like we help elevate the profile of the Big West as well.”
(Rick Egan | The Salt Lake Tribune) Fans chant “MVP” as they cheer for Utah Valley Wolverines guard Justin Harmon (24), while celebrating their 72-65 overtime win over BYU, in basketball action between the Brigham Young Cougars and the Utah Valley Wolverines in Orem, on Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2021.
Here’s what you need to know about the Wolverines’ move.
How does UVU stack up?
With one season left in the WAC, Sumsion said the Wolverines will use their remaining season to prepare for what is to come with the Big West, both competitively and financially.
“We need to get better, competitively in some sports, and we have a couple facilities that could use some upgrades,” UVU’s AD said.
“It’s a more competitive league, and a lot of our sports are going to have to ramp up. That comes down to fundraising, building our facilities and getting ourselves ready for this opportunity.”
UVU will become the largest university in the conference with more than 46,800 enrolled students.
How does UVU stack up financially?
The Wolverines had $19.49 million in total athletic department expenses in 2024, compared to a total revenue of $18.44 million.
That would put UVU among the smaller budgets in the Big West, according to 2024 data:
Cal Poly — $35.9 million (includes football)
Cal State Bakersfield — $18.6 million
Cal State Fullerton — $26.3 million
Long Beach State — $29.6 million
Cal State Northridge — $22.8 million
UC Irvine — $31 million
UC Riverside — $20.9 million
UC San Diego — $24.6 million
UC Santa Barbara — $24.9 million
UVU’s biggest expenses of the year came from coaching salaries ($4.29 million), game and travel expenses ($3.87 million) and athlete financial aid ($3.79 million).
Are there Big West benefits?
The Wolverines’ basketball program could benefit most from the move. In March, the Big West fell short of being a two-bid league in the men’s NCAA basketball tournament when UC San Diego beat UC Irvine in the conference title game. If the Anteaters had won, both programs likely would have been in the Big Dance.
UVU failed to earn a bid into March Madness last season after it was defeated by Grand Canyon University in the WAC title game. With a win, the Wolverines would have played in the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history.
The Wolverines’ recent success in men’s basketball could eventually help the Big West become a multi-bid league.
But Sumsion said the Wolverines will be better positioned in other sports, too.
“We’ve been interested in joining a league that’s really strong,” he said. “The Big West is one of the premier mid-major leagues in the country.
“It’s a great baseball league and a great soccer league. It has a lot of sports with a lot of history. … We feel like we are going to be able to come in with some sports and immediately be competitive.”
Is more expansion to come?
The Wolverines will join as the only non-California school in their new conference. Big West commissioner Dan Butterly is excited about expanding his league’s regional footprint, citing new opportunities for future expansion.
With the latest addition of UVU, the conference will only have 11 programs by 2026. Butterly hopes to expand to 12 member institutions in the future to ease conference scheduling.
“We’re named the Big West,” Butterly said. “We’re excited about adding the state of Utah back to the footprint in the Big West.
“We still have institutions that we’re speaking with. There are institutions that want to join the Big West as they see the strength of the strategic plan moving ahead.”
The WAC is crumbling
Once the thriving home of the Utes and the Cougars, the Western Athletic Conference is struggling to hold on to members right now.
Seattle University is leaving to join the West Coast Conference next month.
UVU and California Baptist will leave for the Big West next year. Grand Canyon University is set to join the Mountain West then.
That would leave the WAC with just five full-time members, including Utah Tech and Southern Utah, in 2026.
Source: Utah News