Aggies to join Western Athletic Conference
How quickly things change.
Just a year after Utah State University accepted an invitation to join the Sun Belt Conference, the Aggies accepted an invitation to become a member of the Western Athletic Conference Thursday morning.
The announcement was made public after rumors surfaced on ESPN.com and in various local newspapers and on radio stations Wednesday evening. President Kermit L. Hall and Athletics Director Rance Pugmire accepted the invitation from the chair of the WAC Board of Directors and University of Texas at El Paso President Dr. Diana Natalicio and WAC Commissioner Karl Benson.
New Mexico State University was also asked to join the league.
The board unanimously voted to give invitations to both institutions. The schools will begin competition in the 2005-06 season, with the exception of the USU women’s gymnastics team which is a member of the Western Gymnastics Conference, and the indoor track and field team which is a member of the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation.
The WAC is currently composed of Boise State, Fresno State, the University of Hawaii, Louisiana Tech, the University of Nevada, Rice University, San Jose State, Southern Methodist University, the University of Texas at El Paso and the University of Tulsa.
Rice, SMU and Tulsa are expected to join Conference USA for the 2005-06 season.
“New Mexico State University has been very desirous of joining the WAC for some time because of the location of the teams,” said NMSU President William Flores. “Geographically, they are close to NMSU and they are teams that our fans are familiar with. In addition, the WAC is home to UTEP, which is another exciting aspect because it allows us to play one of our historic rivals in conference competition.”
Hall said, “This action represents a significant step forward for Utah State athletics and for greater visibility of the university as a whole. It holds a promise for greater regional rivalries and traditions and academic excellence which will serve Utah State well in the future. I think the success of Utah State is very much tied to being able to build rivalries, not just in football, but in both men’s and women’s basketball, that will promote the kind of fan interest that I think is appropriate to a school like Utah State.”
Hall said one of the first things he did when he came to Logan in 2001 was visit almost all of the WAC presidents at their own institutions. He said he didn’t make it to Hawaii because the presidential office was in transition.
The rivalry between Utah State and New Mexico State will continue, as both were members of the Big West Conference from 1984 to 2000 and then were reunited in the Sun Belt Conference in 2003.
The Aggie teams will meet in football for the 28th time Nov. 6 in Las Cruces.
In its 26 years as a member of the Big West Conference, USU has recorded 36 conference team championships and in the last nine years the Aggies have won 23 league titles in seven different sports – basketball (four), men’s cross country (two), football (two), men’s outdoor track (six), women’s cross country (one), women’s track (five) and women’s gymnastics (three).
Utah State basketball Head Coach Stew Morrill, who was not happy after the SBC announcement last year, said it was a good day for those associated with Aggie athletics.
“President Hall and Athletics Director Rance Pugmire should feel a great sense of accomplishment because they have worked tirelessly to make it happen,” Morrill. “The Western Athletic Conference simply makes sense from a common sense viewpoint. All of our programs will face a tremendous challenge in this move upwards and we must make our fans aware of the help and patience we need for them to have success. I couldn’t be happier that we have found a ‘home’ in the West.”
Last year, Morrill said he has enjoyed being part of the Big West because it allowed him to tell recruits that they would have the opportunity to play in front of their family and friends in California where most of the potential players come from.
Utah State and Idaho are the only BWC teams that are not in the Golden State.
And, according to an article on ESPN.com, the WAC could extend an invitation to Idaho if it were to lose any of its members to the Mountain West Conference.
The USU women’s basketball team, which kicks off play Nov. 21 against Southern Utah University in the Spectrum for the first time in 16 years, is excited to become a member of the WAC.
“The timing is great for the development of our program and will allow us to take the next step,” said Aggie Head Coach Raegan Pebley. “There have been a lot of people who have put a lot of time into this, and Aggie fans should be proud of this move.”
Utah State football Head Coach Mick Dennehy said he has appreciated the opportunities the team has had with the Sun Belt Conference and hopes the relationships and rivalries will continue down the road.
Dennehy said his team also plans to continue to represent Utah State and the Sun Belt to the best of its ability through the 2004 season.
“The Western Athletic Conference is something that we have strived for for more than 30 years,” he said. “This is very meaningful to Utah State University. The regionality makes sense for us as an athletic program.”
Utah State volleyball Head Coach Burt Fuller said, “We are excited about the move, but it’s not for two more years. We still have to finish out this season and next season in the Big West Conference. Going over to the Western Athletic Conference is a real positive from our standpoint as there is real good volleyball in the WAC, and geographically it makes a lot of sense for us and I think it is going to be a great step for our program.”
The Aggie volleyball team is heading to Moscow on Saturday to take on Idaho in BWC action.
-juag@cc.usu.edu