In the calm before the chaos, Josh Berlo sent a text message.

More than half of DU’s athletics programs were about to move from the Summit League to the West Coast Conference—fulfilling decades of anticipation from administrators, coaches, fans, alumni, and employees alike. It was a big moment for Berlo, the vice chancellor of athletics and Ritchie Center operations, and for longtime supporters who had spent years hoping—and waiting—for it.

So, Berlo pulled out his phone and shared the news with a group chat before the story broke in the national media: DU Athletics is headed to the WCC.

“These are folks who had been working on this since the ’90s,” says Berlo, who arrived at DU in the summer of 2022, having spent nine years as the athletic director at the University of Minnesota Duluth and 13 years in administration at the University of Notre Dame. “To share that it had finally been accomplished—it meant a lot. This was an important goal for many.

“One of the responses said: ‘We’re finally home.’”

At the start of the 2026-27 academic year, nine athletic programs are joining the conference: men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s soccer, men’s and women’s golf, men’s and women’s tennis, and women’s volleyball.

A transition plan for men’s and women’s swimming and diving is in place and will be announced at a later date. DU’s move to the West Coast Conference does not impact conference affiliations for hockey (a member of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference), gymnastics (Big 12), men’s and women’s lacrosse (Big East), men’s and women’s alpine and Nordic skiing (Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate Ski Association), and triathlon (unaffiliated).

DU will join nine private universities located in California, Oregon, and Washington: Loyola Marymount University, University of the Pacific, Pepperdine University, University of Portland, Saint Mary’s College, University of San Diego, University of San Francisco, Santa Clara University, and Seattle University. Full member Gonzaga University, as well as affiliate members Oregon State and Washington State, will depart next season to join a newly restructured Pac-12 Conference. University of California San Diego is slated to join in 2027.

The WCC is home to some of the best mid-major sports programs in the country—Division I schools outside of the biggest, most high-profile “power conferences” like the SEC or the Big Ten. The conference doesn’t sponsor football, giving its members flexibility to invest in other priorities. It’s also known for its strong academic profile, assembling teams of high-achieving student-athletes—particularly in basketball and soccer—that compete on the national stage while maintaining high GPAs in the classroom.

“This move aligns perfectly with DU and who we are as a university,” says Berlo. “Being in a conference with top academic peers who compete for Division I championships is where we should be.”  

Elevating the game, on and off the field  

Academics might not be the first thing that comes to mind about a new sports conference, but it’s a consideration taken seriously at DU, where athletic teams regularly boast cumulative GPAs higher than the average for undergraduate students overall.

“It’s an incredible opportunity to continue to advance our exceptional academic and athletic programs,” Chancellor Jeremy Haefner says of the move. “The excellence of schools that are part of the West Coast Conference is a perfect complement to DU and will help us continue to recruit the very best students and faculty.”

Take, for example, U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges rankings—one of the most widely used sources for parents and prospective students choosing a university. The rankings are based on 17 measures of academic quality, from graduation rates to peer assessment. The average ranking for WCC institutions is 68th in the country, significantly higher than the Summit League’s average of 211. With DU currently ranked No. 117, the move places the University in the company of many peer institutions and aspirational research partners.

Some institutions have found that moving to more prestigious conferences can boost USNWR rankings, in part because of increased national exposure. The combined academic and athletic benefits led the Board of Trustees to give unanimous philanthropic support to the move, allowing the transition to be partially funded by some of the University’s most engaged leaders.

Increased exposure is an immediate benefit for student-athletes and coaches. The WCC has an eight-year, $920 million media rights deal with ESPN, which means games are streamed into millions of homes, as Berlo puts it, “where many of our students come from and student-athletes’ families live.”

He added that, with ballooning college sports media deals and the addition of name, image, and likeness (NIL) opportunities for athletes, conference affiliation is vital to the long-term success of an athletics department. A strong conference also empowers programs chasing regional and national success—something that can be seen in the conferences where other DU teams compete.

Berlo got a taste of the new competition last fall, when the men’s soccer team traveled to Oregon to play the University of Portland in the second round of the NCAA tournament.

“Their staff was like, ‘Hey, welcome to the venue. We’re excited you’re joining the conference, but we’re not cutting you any slack today,’” says Berlo with a laugh. And they didn’t—the Pioneers kept pace but ultimately lost in overtime.

“Those are the types of competitive programs I’m excited to see our student-athletes go up against,” Berlo adds. “They’re teams we’re already facing on these national stages.”  

A big win for recruiting 

A stronger academic profile, higher level of competition, and broader national exposure are critical—not just for current athletes and coaches but also for future Pioneers.

In basketball, which is the WCC’s flagship sport, the men’s conference tournament draws roughly three times the viewership of the Summit League tournament. Although Gonzaga, which has won 12 of the past 15 titles, is leaving for the Pac-12, there are several teams remaining who have made appearances in the NCAA tournament known as March Madness.

The DU men’s basketball program saw marked improvement this past season under first-year head coach Tim Bergstraser, with the team posting a 15-17 record and reaching the quarterfinal round of the Summit League tournament just one year after finishing 11-21. Sophomore Carson Johnson was selected as the Summit League Player of the Year, and he’s already confirmed that he’ll return next year for the Pioneers’ first foray into WCC competition.

A big part of recruiting players, says Bergstraser, is selling the conference, and the WCC is one recruits already know. Having previously coached at Minnesota State University Moorhead and several other institutions across the upper Midwest, he understands the Summit League and its Midwestern footprint well. He also appreciates the high-level basketball played in the WCC and why it’s so appealing to student-athletes.

“It's going to be a lot different now that we’re going to the West Coast [Conference],” says Bergstraser. “We’re definitely going to sell the winning success of that league in the recruiting pitch. When we lay out for them what this conference is like, I think we’re going to attract strong student-athletes."

For women’s soccer, there’s a prestige jump as well—and the added bonus of recruiting in states where the WCC is already a household name. DU’s 2025 roster included six players from the conference’s current footprint and three international players who hail from cities on the Pacific coast. Mixed with nine players from Colorado and Utah who are likely familiar with WCC soccer on some level, DU women’s soccer coach Julianne Sitch says the conference change can only improve recruiting.

“It’s really exciting and a great opportunity for the whole Denver athletics program, and especially for the soccer programs,” says Sitch. “Being able to compete in a premier conference with top schools, especially ones with strong academics, is a huge step. It’s going to help with recruiting—we’re already in the market, and now we can reach even more of the West Coast. This move will continue to elevate our program and push us toward even higher goals here at Denver.”

The recruiting impact extends to the general student body as well. Several WCC members—including Santa Clara, Loyola Marymount, University of San Diego, and Seattle University—consistently rank among DU’s top 30 admissions competitors.

At the same time, the move strengthens connections with alumni in Southern California, the Bay Area, and the Pacific Northwest—areas where established chapters are already actively engaged. By positioning DU alongside the respected institutions of the WCC, the transition enhances the University’s appeal not only to prospective students but also to current and future alumni in the region.

The right fit at the right time 

Berlo says it’s important to note that DU wasn’t “shopping” for a new conference, but that the confluence of academic and athletic factors was too good to pass up. It’s a progression that’s been building for three decades, since the University first began pursuing NCAA Division I status. DU started as an independent—as newly minted D-I athletic departments often do—before moving to the Sun Belt Conference prior to the 1999-2000 academic year. The University stayed there for more than a decade and, after a brief stint in the Western Athletic Conference, the Pioneers shifted to the Summit League for 2013-14.

Now, the University of Denver is finally home.

“It’s the right fit at the right time for us,” says Berlo. “And it’s a great opportunity for our student-athletes, coaches, fans, and anyone in the DU community who cares about our programs.”