WAC TIMELINE
1960s
Logo: 1962-1982
July 27, 1962 – The original charter for the Western Athletic Conference is signed by the presidents of the charter member universities. Paul Brechler is named the WAC’s first commissioner.
Nov. 10, 1962 – Arizona State wins the first WAC championship as it captures the cross country title.
Dec. 19, 1964 – Utah becomes the first school since the formation of the conference to participate in a bowl game as it defeats West Virginia, 32-6, in the Liberty Bowl.
June 12, 1965 – Arizona State wins its first national baseball championship with a 2-1 victory over Ohio State. It is the first NCAA title in WAC history.
March 20, 1966 – Utah becomes the first school to reach the NCAA Final Four, and Brigham Young captures the championship of the National Invitation Tournament.
Sept. 20, 1967 – UTEP becomes the WAC’s seventh member.
Sept. 26, 1968 – Colorado State becomes the WAC’s eighth member.
June 20, 1969 – Arizona State captures its third national baseball title with a 10-1 victory over Tulsa.
Sept. 1, 1969 – Wiles Hallock replaces Paul Brechler as commissioner.
Nov. 24, 1969 – UTEP wins its first men’s cross country national championship.
1970s
July 1, 1971 – Stan Bates becomes the WAC’s third commissioner as he replaces Wiles Hallock.
Dec. 27, 1971 – The first Fiesta Bowl, originated to match the WAC champion against an at-large team, is played in Tempe, Ariz. Arizona State defeats Florida State, 45-38.
March, 1974 – UTEP captures its first men’s NCAA indoor track and field title.
June, 1975 – UTEP wins its first men’s outdoor track and field national championship.
June 19, 1976 – Arizona wins the College World Series, its first national championship in any sport.
Dec. 27, 1976 – The Presidents’ Council receives official notification of the intention of Arizona and Arizona State to seek affiliation with the then-Pacific-8 Conference.
April 8, 1977 – San Diego State University is extended an invitation of membership effective July 1, 1978.
May 2, 1977 – The University of Hawai’i is extended a membership invitation dependent upon the institution’s meeting of certain criteria set by the Council.
June, 1977 – Arizona State wins the men’s outdoor track and field national championship and the College World Series title.
June 30, 1978 – Arizona and Arizona State officially withdraw from the conference.
Sept. 29, 1978 – The University of Hawai’i officially is approved as a member effective July 1, 1979.
Dec. 22, 1978 – After a seven-year tie to the Fiesta Bowl, the WAC begins a new affiliation with the Holiday Bowl in San Diego.
Aug. 29, 1979 – The United States Air Force Academy is accepted as a member effective July 1, 1980.
1980s
Logo: 1982-1992
May 1, 1980 – Dr. Joe Kearney is named the fourth commissioner in conference history as he replaces Stan Bates.
Nov. 23, 1981 – UTEP captures its seventh men’s NCAA cross country title.
March, 1982 – UTEP brings home its seventh men’s NCAA indoor track and field title in nine years.
June, 1982 – UTEP wins its sixth men’s outdoor track and field national championship in eight years.
May 1, 1983 – The Presidents’ Council approves the concept for a WAC Basketball Tournament beginning in 1984.
Dec. 21, 1984 – BYU earns the conference’s first national football championship with a victory over Michigan in the Holiday Bowl to complete a 13-0 season.
July 16, 1987 – The WAC and KUTV of Salt Lake City agree to the conference’s first one-million-dollar package for the regional syndication of men’s basketball games.
Feb. 23, 1988 – The WAC and the Holiday Bowl reach an agreement for the conference champion to host the game through the 1992 season.
1990s
Logo: 1992-2005
May 9, 1990 – The WAC and ESPN agree to the conference’s first contract for the telecast of men’s basketball games by a national network.
July 1, 1990 – The WAC merges with the High Country Athletic Conference to form a single conference for men’s and women’s athletics.
June 12, 1991 – Fresno State is accepted as the WAC’s 10th member effective July 1, 1992.
Dec. 1, 1991 – BYU’s Ty Detmer wins the Heisman Trophy, a first for a WAC athlete.
April 24, 1992 – Utah wins the women’s NCAA national championship in gymnastics. It is the first-ever women’s national title in WAC history.
June 10, 1992 – The WAC selects the Delta Center in Salt Lake City as the site for its men’s and women’s basketball tournaments. Commissioner Kearney announces his retirement effective July 1, 1994.
Aug. 13, 1992 – The WAC is included in the Western Bowl Alliance, which guarantees at least one conference team an appearance in the Aloha and Copper Bowls for the next two years.
April 20, 1994 – Karl Benson is appointed the fifth commissioner in league history, replacing Dr. Joe Kearney.
April 21, 1994 – The WAC Council of Presidents extends an invitation of membership to UNLV, Rice, San Jose State, SMU, TCU and Tulsa.
June 14, 1994 – The WAC signs a multi-year football contract with ESPN and ABC.
January, 1995 – For the first time, three WAC football teams finish the season ranked among the nation’s top 25 in both the USA Today/CNN Coaches’ Poll and the Associated Press Top 25.
May 9, 1995 – The WAC signs a multi-year contract with ESPN for the telecast of 22 men’s and two women’s basketball games annually, the largest such contract in WAC history and the first national telecast of WAC women’s basketball. The WAC becomes the only conference in the country with an exclusive contract with ESPN for football and basketball.
Dec. 11, 1995 – The WAC’s first website is published.
Feb. 19, 1996 – The MGM Grand Garden Arena is selected as the site of the inaugural WAC volleyball tournament, to be contested Nov. 26-30 in Las Vegas.
Feb. 26, 1996 – The WAC Council selects Pacific and Mountain as the names for the newly-created divisions to be instituted in 1996-97.
July 1, 1996 – The WAC becomes the nation’s largest NCAA Division I-A conference with 16 members competing in 11 men’s and 10 women’s championship sports.
Nov. 26-30, 1996 – The WAC hosts its first ever volleyball tournament at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. BYU defeats Hawai’i, 3-2, in the championship match.
Dec. 7, 1996 – BYU and Wyoming play in the inaugural WAC Football Championship game at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas. BYU wins the game in overtime, 28-25, before a record-setting crowd of 41,238, the largest for a team sporting event in Nevada.
Jan. 1, 1997 – The WAC has its second team ever play in a New Year’s Day bowl. BYU defeats Kansas State in the Cotton Bowl, 19-15, and sets the record for most wins by a Division IA school with 14.
June 23, 1997 – The WAC becomes a Bowl Alliance member beginning with the 1998 season.
Nov. 24, 1997 – BYU’s women’s cross country team edges Stanford, 100 to 102, to capture the NCAA title. It is the first women’s national championship in school history.
March 30, 1998 – The Utah Runnin’ Utes advance to the NCAA men’s basketball title game. Utah leads most of the game but bows out in the final five minutes to Kentucky.
May 25, 1998 – Fresno State’s softball team wins the national championship with a 1-0 victory over Arizona.
May 27-30, 1998 – UNLV wins the men’s NCAA golf title. It’s the third national championship for a WAC team during the 1997-98 season.
Nov. 28, 1998 – Hawai’i and BYU meet in the WAC Volleyball Tournament final and the Wahine win, 15-12, 21-19, 13-15, 16-18, 24-22. The 89 points scored by Hawai’i sets a new NCAA record.
June 8, 1999 – The WAC signs a two-year football and basketball television deal with Fox Sports Net.
June 10, 1999 – The WAC Council of Presidents extends an invitation of membership to the University of Nevada beginning July 1, 2000.
June 30, 1999 – Air Force, BYU, Colorado State, UNLV, New Mexico, San Diego State, Utah and Wyoming officially withdraw from the conference.
Oct. 17, 1999 – The WAC Council of Presidents invites Boise State and Louisiana Tech to join the league on July 1, 2001.
Dec. 25, 1999 – The Hawai’i football team breaks the NCAA record with an eight and a half game improvement in wins from the previous year with a 23-17 victory over Oregon State in the Oahu Bowl.
2000s
Logo: 2005-Present
July 1, 2000 – Nevada becomes an official member of the WAC and increases the membership to nine schools.
Dec. 31, 2000 – Fresno State competes in the inaugural Silicon Valley Football Classic in San Jose.
March 29, 2001 – Tulsa wins the men’s basketball NIT title with a 79-60 victory over Alabama.
June 20, 2001 – The WAC signs a three-year deal with ESPN for telecasts of football and basketball.
July 1, 2001 – Boise State and Louisiana Tech become official members of the WAC, while TCU withdraws. This increases the membership to 10 schools.
Aug. 7, 2002 – The WAC initiates an innovative and creative two-year pilot project to create an academic alliance among its 10 member institutions.
Dec. 31, 2002 – Boise State and Fresno State both win their bowl games. The Broncos beat Iowa State 34-16, in the Humanitarian Bowl, while the Bulldogs defeated Georgia Tech, 30-21, in the Silicon Valley Football Classic.
Feb. 22, 2003 – The men’s basketball teams from Fresno State, Hawai’i, Louisiana Tech and Tulsa compete in ESPN’s inaugural Bracket Buster Saturday event.
June 23, 2003 – Rice wins the NCAA title in baseball, the school’s first team title in any sport.
Oct. 23, 2003 – The WAC Board of Directors extends invitations for membership to New Mexico State and Utah State, effective July 1, 2005.
June 4, 2004 – The WAC Board of Directors extends an invitation for membership to the University of Idaho, effective July 1, 2005.
Nov. 2, 2004 – Sacramento State is added as an affiliate member in baseball beginning with the 2006 season.
Dec. 31, 2004 – Boise State’s 22-game winning streak comes to an end in the Liberty Bowl. The Broncos finish the season in the top 15 for the third consecutive year.
April 7, 2005 – The WAC announces the addition of women’s gymnastics beginning in 2005-06 and reinstates postseason tournaments for both softball and baseball in 2006.
July 1, 2005 – Idaho, New Mexico State and Utah State become official members of the WAC. Rice, SMU, UTEP and Tulsa withdraw giving the WAC a total of nine members.
Nov. 10, 2005 – Fresno State defeats Boise State, 27-7, in football, ending the Broncos’ WAC-record 31-game conference winning streak.
Nov. 19, 2005 – Fresno State leads top-ranked and two-time defending national champion USC, 42-41, midway through the fourth quarter, before dropping the game 50-42.
Nov. 24, 2005 – The WAC streams its first sporting event (the opening match of the volleyball tournament) via the internet using WAC.tv.
Feb. 17-18, 2006 – The WAC goes 3-1 in BracketBusters as Nevada, Louisiana Tech and Utah State earn men’s basketball wins.
March 26, 2006 – The WAC sponsors its first WAC Women’s Gymnastics championship since 1993 in Logan, Utah.
April 3, 2006 – Louisiana Tech men’s basketball player Paul Millsap becomes the first in NCAA history to lead the nation in rebounding three years in a row.
Jan. 1, 2007 – Boise State becomes the first WAC team to play in a BCS bowl game and beats Oklahoma in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, 43-42, in overtime.
Feb. 16-17, 2007 – Boise State, Nevada, New Mexico State and Utah State win men’s basketball games to give the WAC a perfect 4-0 record in BracketBusters.
April 28-29, 2007 – A total of 17 WAC football players are chosen in the NFL Draft, the most ever (per school) in the seven-round format.
Jan. 1, 2008 – Hawai’i becomes the second WAC team to play in a BCS bowl game in two years, taking on Georgia in the Allstate Sugar Bowl.
June 25, 2008 – Fresno State wins the national championship in baseball. The Bulldogs beat Georgia in the best-of-three series, winning 6-1 in the deciding game.
Sept. 3, 2008 – The WAC announces a contract extension with ESPN that guarantees more than 300 regular season and 45 championship events will be aired on the ESPN networks through the spring of 2017.
December, 2008 – For the first time in its history, the WAC sends more than half of its football teams (five) to postseason bowl games.
April-June, 2009 – The WAC announces neutral site locations for the 2009 Volleyball Tournament (Las Vegas), the 2010-12 Baseball Tournaments (Mesa, Ariz.) and the 2011 Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments (Las Vegas).
Dec. 12, 2009 – The Hawai‘i women’s volleyball team sweeps No. 16 Michigan in the NCAA Tournament Regional Final to advance to its ninth Final Four appearance in school history.
2010s
Logo: 2014-2023
Jan. 4, 2010 – Boise State makes its second appearance in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl and beats TCU, 17-10. The Broncos become the second team in FBS history to end a season 14-0.
Aug. 27, 2010 – The WAC and Learfield Sports announce the creation of the WAC Sports Network to enhance the coverage of football and basketball in the WAC’s media markets.
Nov. 11, 2010 – The WAC Board of Directors extend invitations for membership to Denver, UTSA and Texas State, effective July 1, 2012.
Nov. 28, 2010 – For the first time since 1997, the WAC has three football teams – Boise State, Nevada and Hawai’i – ranked in the AP top 25.
May 30, 2010 – Hawai‘i defeats top-seeded Alabama on a two-out walk-off homer by Jenna Rodriguez in the bottom of the seventh inning in the deciding game of the NCAA Softball Tuscaloosa Super Regional, sending UH to its first-ever Women’s College World Series. The moment is nominated for “Best Upset” at the 2010 ESPN ESPY Awards.
June 14, 2011 – The WAC Board of Directors extends an invitation for membership to Seattle U, effective July 1, 2012.
July 14, 2011 – The WAC Board of Directors extends an invitation for membership to UT Arlington, effective July 1, 2012, increasing membership to 10 schools.
Dec. 16, 2011 – Hawai‘i All-American Kanani Danielson, who led her team to a 31-2 record and the regional semifinal of the NCAA Tournament, is selected as the 2011 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award® winner in NCAA Division I women’s volleyball.
July 1, 2012 – Denver, Seattle U, UT Arlington, UTSA and Texas State become official members of the WAC. Fresno State, Hawai‘i and Nevada withdraw giving the WAC a total of 10 members.
Oct. 9, 2012 – The WAC Board of Directors extends invitations for membership to CSU Bakersfield and Utah Valley, effective, July 1, 2013.
Nov. 27, 2012 – The WAC Board of Directors extends an invitation for membership to Grand Canyon, effective, July 1, 2013.
Dec. 5, 2012 – Chicago State becomes a member of the WAC, effective July 1, 2013.
Dec. 12, 2012 – Northern Colorado is added as an affiliate member in baseball beginning with the 2014 season.
Dec. 19, 2012 – Texas-Pan American accepts an invitation to become the eighth member of the conference for the 2013-14 season.
Jan. 9, 2013 – The WAC reinstates men’s soccer. CSU Bakersfield, Grand Canyon and Seattle U join affiliates Air Force, Houston Baptist, UNLV and San Jose State for the 2013 season.
Feb. 7, 2013 – UMKC accepts an invitation for membership to join the conference effective July 1, 2013.
Feb. 11, 2013 – North Dakota is added as an affiliate member in baseball beginning with the 2014 season.
June 11, 2013 – Jeff Hurd is named the sixth commissioner in league history.
July 1, 2013 – CSU Bakersfield, Chicago State, Grand Canyon, Kansas City, Texas-Pan American and Utah Valley become official members of the WAC. Denver, Louisiana Tech, San Jose State, UT Arlington, UTSA, Texas State and Utah State withdraw giving the WAC a total of nine members.
Dec. 16, 2013 – The WAC announces the addition of Incarnate Word as an affiliate member for men’s soccer.
July 1, 2014 – The WAC unveils an updated logo along with the slogan, Learn • Compete • Inspire.
Nov. 4, 2014 – The WAC Board of Directors approves the return of the men’s and women’s basketball tournaments to Las Vegas and the Orleans Arena in 2016.
Nov. 6, 2014 – The WAC Digital Network officially launches.
Dec. 5, 2014 – Seattle U women’s soccer player Stephanie Verdoia, a third team All-American, is selected as the 2014 Senior CLASS Award® winner for NCAA Division I women’s soccer. She was also named the Capital One Academic All-America® of the Year for Division I Women’s Soccer.
July 1, 2015 – Texas-Pan American and UT Brownsville merge to form a new institution, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.
Jan. 13, 2017 – The WAC announces the addition of California Baptist University as an official member effective July 1, 2018.
March 22, 2017 – CSU Bakersfield men’s basketball becomes the first No. 8 seed in National Invitation Tournament history to advance to the semifinals at Madison Square Garden, having won three-straight road games in three different time zones to make the first NIT semifinal appearance for the WAC since 2001, when Tulsa claimed the title.
July 1, 2018 – California Baptist becomes the ninth current member of the WAC and begins the four-year reclassification period from Division II to Division I.
Jan. 11, 2019 – Dixie State accepts an invitation to join the conference effective July 1, 2020, replacing exiting member CSU Bakersfield, and will begin the four-year reclassification period from Division II to Division I.
Nov. 12, 2019 – Tarleton State accepts an invitation for membership in the conference effective July 1, 2020, replacing exiting member Kansas City, and will begin the four-year reclassification period from Division II to Division I.
2020s
July 1, 2020 – Dixie State and Tarleton State become the eighth and ninth current members of the WAC, respectively, and begin the four-year reclassification period from Division II to Division I.
Jan. 14, 2021 – The WAC announced the addition of Abilene Christian, Lamar, Sam Houston State, Stephen F. Austin and Southern Utah. The conference also announced the return of football at the FCS level.
Nov. 4, 2021 – Brian Thornton is named the seventh commissioner in league history.
July 1, 2022 – UT Arlington and Southern Utah join the WAC. Chicago State withdraws from the WAC. Dixie State formally changes its institution name to Utah Tech University.
Oct. 27, 2022 – The WAC officially moved operations from Denver, Colorado to Arlington, Texas.
July 1, 2023 – New Mexico State and Sam Houston State officially withdraw from the WAC.
Feb. 9, 2024 – San Diego State returns to the WAC as an affiliate member in men's soccer beginning with the 2024 season.
July 1, 2024 – Stephen F. Austin and UT Rio Grande Valley officially withdraw from the WAC. Tarleton State and Utah Tech officially complete NCAA reclassification process and become full-fledged members of NCAA Division I.
March 12, 2025 – Rebekah Ray is named the eighth commissioner in the history of the WAC.
July 1, 2025 – Grand Canyon and Seattle U officially withdraw from the WAC.