Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility

7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Off Alaska Coast. No Danger to California

17 hours ago

Federal Immigration Crackdown Threatens California’s Historic Housing Reforms

21 hours ago

US House Clears Procedural Hurdle on Cryptocurrency Legislation

21 hours ago

Fresno County Lifts Evacuation Order for Max Fire Near Pine Flat Lake

22 hours ago

Newsom Calls Trump a ‘Son of a B***h’ Over ICE Raids and Guard Deployment

23 hours ago

Trump Indicated to Republican Lawmakers He Will Fire Fed’s Powell, CBS Reports

24 hours ago

Wall Street Steadies as Investors Assess Inflation Data, Earnings

1 day ago

Trump Administration Sued by US States for Cutting Disaster Prevention Grants

1 day ago

Open Mic Contest Offers Fans a Chance to Perform at Outside Lands 2025

1 day ago

PBS and NPR Mount Last-Ditch Fight to Save Federal Funding

2 days ago
Gonzaga Set to Join Rebuilt Pac-12, While UTEP Goes to Mountain West
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 10 months ago on
October 1, 2024

Gonzaga head coach Mark Few signals from the sideline during the first half of a Sweet 16 college basketball game against Purdue in the NCAA Tournament, March 29, 2024, in Detroit. (AP File)

Share

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Basketball powerhouse Gonzaga will become the latest member of the rebuilt Pac-12 Conference, the school announced Tuesday, while the Mountain West Conference moved quickly to secure its future adding UTEP.

Gonzaga will move from the West Coast Conference where it has dominated for most of the last quarter century into a conference that was being rebuilt around football, but should be pretty stout on the basketball court. Gonzaga will become the eighth Pac-12 member along with holdovers Washington State and Oregon State, and fellow newcomers Boise State, San Diego State, Fresno State, Utah State and Colorado State from the Mountain West.

Gonzaga will join the conference in all of its sports beginning July 1, 2026, as the Pac-12’s only private college up to this point.

“Today represents an exciting milestone for the Pac-12 as we welcome another outstanding institution with a rich history of success into our league,” Pac-12 Commissioner Teresa Gould said.

Gonzaga Does Not Have a Football Program

Adding Gonzaga still leaves the Pac-12 in need of another football-playing member for CFP purposes. Gonzaga does not have a football program.

The Mountain West is in the same position of still needing to add one more football-playing member even with the addition of UTEP. The Miners will leave Conference USA beginning in 2026.

“The addition of UTEP restores historic rivalries with several of our member institutions within the geographic footprint and provides valuable exposure in the great State of Texas,” Mountain West Commissioner Gloria Nevarez said in a statement. “We welcome and look forward to competing against the student-athletes of UTEP.”

Both conferences have been in a scramble to secure their futures outside the Power Four of college sports, but the addition of Gonzaga clearly gives the Pac-12 the advantage on the basketball court.

Last year, Washington State, Boise State, San Diego State, Colorado State, Utah State and Gonzaga all reached the NCAA Tournament in men’s basketball and two seasons ago San Diego State reached the national championship game.

Gonzaga athletic director Chris Standiford said talks with the Pac-12 progressed “earnestly” last weekend and the school formally applied for membership Monday night — it was unanimously approved.

“We are excited to join a conference with great tradition and a commitment to innovating during this evolving time in collegiate athletics,” Standiford said.

Pac-12 Continues to Restock for 2026 Relaunch

The Pac-12 began to restock for a 2026 relaunch last month by nabbing the five schools from the Mountain West to join Washington State and Oregon State, the only two Pac-12 schools left after a dramatic round of realignment took effect this summer.

The Bulldogs have thrived in the WCC, reaching the NCAA Tournament every year it has been played since 1998, with two Final Four appearances and eight seasons of at least 30 victories.

The school has in the past talked to the Big East about conference affiliation, and the Big 12 had discussed adding Gonzaga to its strong men’s basketball lineup, as it did with UConn earlier this year.

The Zags have also become a perennial tournament team in women’s basketball.

“Following discussions with Pac-12 member presidents, I believe membership will represent an opportunity to participate in building a conference that imagines new, forward-thinking ways to support student-athletes in a rapidly changing collegiate sports landscape,” Gonzaga President Thayne McCulloh said.

UTEP was a member of the Western Athletic Conference for nearly 40 years before joining Conference USA in 2005. Joining the Mountain West will reunite the Miners with previous conference foes like Nevada, San Jose State, New Mexico and Wyoming.

“There’s no doubt this will be better for our student-athletes, our fans, and for El Paso,” UTEP President Heather Wilson said. “We look forward to rekindling former rivalries and welcoming teams and their fans to El Paso.”

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

What Are Fresno Real Estate Experts Predicting for 2025 and Beyond?

DON'T MISS

First California EV Mandates Hit Automakers This Year. Most Are Not Even Close

DON'T MISS

Wall Street CEOs See Some Tariff Impact Filtering Into Customer Behavior

DON'T MISS

US House Poised to Send Stablecoin Bill to Trump After ‘Crypto Week’ Drama

DON'T MISS

Manhattan Prosecutor Who Handled Epstein Cases Is Fired

DON'T MISS

Why California Ag Is at Odds Over Converting Land to Solar Farms

DON'T MISS

Fresno County Irrigation District Pitches 137% Fee Hike for More Kings River Flood Water

DON'T MISS

Trump Says He Is Ending Government Funding California’s High-Speed Rail Project

DON'T MISS

Bakersfield Tax Return Preparer Pleads Guilty in $25 Million Fraud Scheme

DON'T MISS

Congressional Hopeful Lorenzo Rios Says No to PBS Funding. Once Led Local Station

DON'T MISS

US Attorney Beckwith Dismissed by Trump Admin, Replaced With Sanchez

DON'T MISS

Trump Says He Would Love for Fed Chair Powell to Resign

UP NEXT

US House Poised to Send Stablecoin Bill to Trump After ‘Crypto Week’ Drama

UP NEXT

Manhattan Prosecutor Who Handled Epstein Cases Is Fired

UP NEXT

Fresno County Irrigation District Pitches 137% Fee Hike for More Kings River Flood Water

UP NEXT

Trump Says He Is Ending Government Funding California’s High-Speed Rail Project

UP NEXT

Bakersfield Tax Return Preparer Pleads Guilty in $25 Million Fraud Scheme

UP NEXT

Congressional Hopeful Lorenzo Rios Says No to PBS Funding. Once Led Local Station

UP NEXT

US Attorney Beckwith Dismissed by Trump Admin, Replaced With Sanchez

UP NEXT

Trump Says He Would Love for Fed Chair Powell to Resign

UP NEXT

Trump Says Coca-Cola Agreed to Use Real Cane Sugar in US

UP NEXT

7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Off Alaska Coast. No Danger to California

Why California Ag Is at Odds Over Converting Land to Solar Farms

31 minutes ago

Fresno County Irrigation District Pitches 137% Fee Hike for More Kings River Flood Water

2 hours ago

Trump Says He Is Ending Government Funding California’s High-Speed Rail Project

15 hours ago

Bakersfield Tax Return Preparer Pleads Guilty in $25 Million Fraud Scheme

15 hours ago

Congressional Hopeful Lorenzo Rios Says No to PBS Funding. Once Led Local Station

16 hours ago

US Attorney Beckwith Dismissed by Trump Admin, Replaced With Sanchez

16 hours ago

Trump Says He Would Love for Fed Chair Powell to Resign

16 hours ago

Trump Says Coca-Cola Agreed to Use Real Cane Sugar in US

16 hours ago

7.3 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Off Alaska Coast. No Danger to California

17 hours ago

US Renewable Power Transmission Project Under Fire From Farmers

17 hours ago

Wall Street CEOs See Some Tariff Impact Filtering Into Customer Behavior

NEW YORK – Some top executives at Wall Street banks have been showing concern about higher inflation and potential deterioration of th...

29 seconds ago

The U.S. flag is seen on a building on Wall St. in the financial district in New York, U.S., November 24, 2020. (Reuters File)
29 seconds ago

Wall Street CEOs See Some Tariff Impact Filtering Into Customer Behavior

17 minutes ago

US House Poised to Send Stablecoin Bill to Trump After ‘Crypto Week’ Drama

Maurene Comey, Assistant U.S. Attorney and prosecutor on Combs' case, arrives at the Federal courthouse during the Sean "Diddy" Combs' sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy trial at U.S. court in Manhattan, in New York City, U.S., May 21, 2025. (Reuters File)
21 minutes ago

Manhattan Prosecutor Who Handled Epstein Cases Is Fired

Sheep Graze Next to Kettleman City Solar Farm
31 minutes ago

Why California Ag Is at Odds Over Converting Land to Solar Farms

2 hours ago

Fresno County Irrigation District Pitches 137% Fee Hike for More Kings River Flood Water

A drone view of a California High-Speed Rail Bridge where it crosses through Fresno, California, U.S. June 8, 2025. (Reuters)
15 hours ago

Trump Says He Is Ending Government Funding California’s High-Speed Rail Project

15 hours ago

Bakersfield Tax Return Preparer Pleads Guilty in $25 Million Fraud Scheme

16 hours ago

Congressional Hopeful Lorenzo Rios Says No to PBS Funding. Once Led Local Station

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend