For all the gloom and doom re: St. Mary’s they continue to win 25 games and make NCAA’s. All supposedly in the wake of financial problems, yet their MBB budget is a good deal higher than SCU’s. Must be MBB is their survival strategy……
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Haven’t we seen this story work out before…?
Maybe SMC will survive, but will they grow and thrive?
The dynamics of a small college in sleepy Moraga that sits in an area dominated by pro sports and in the company of 5 other DI programs are way different than a university that is a the center of a regional city and the only game in town to harvest fans and sponsorship dollars.
I know I knew it, but seeing it in print again….it is both suprising and bothersome that their MBB budget is bigger than SCUs.
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At the pregame bistro before the Humboldt game there was a discussion about the WCC future. Denver will be joining in 2026 & UCSD in 2027. But what was newsworthy was the WCC intends to add another school and to cap the league at 12 teams. So let the speculation on who will be the next to join begin.
Stu Jackson has been pretty open about this. I think it’s like 85% one of UCI, UCSB, or St. Thomas. The addition of Denver seems to be a move to get St. Thomas a closer traveling partner. So my money is there, but I don’t think it’s significantly more likely than the other two.
I think the bigger subtext is not the planned addition but the fact that the WCC isn’t openly anticipating losing any members. I know that we are all pretty unanimously of the opinion that SMC has next to no chance at getting into the Pac12, but that there isn’t any credible rumor of contingencies I think shows that the WCC doesn’t take it seriously either.
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St. Thomas would definitely present as an up-and-coming program and a solid regional rivalry with Denver.
However, I still think that now that we’ve added our first UC school, we’d be better off pairing with another UC. Having two UC programs could add more credibility to the conference in the basketball world. The addition of UC Irvine or even UC Santa Barbara might also boost our national recognition.
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No offense, but it’s hard to buy any of this.
DU and St Thomas are 700 miles apart - Santa Clara and Seattle U are about as far as the crow flies - that’s hardly a regional rivalry. They may both be new additions to the east of the rest of the conference, but I don’t see how that creates any rivalry? They have no athletic history against one another. We can’t gesture vaguely to the east and say “rivals.”
Further, I reject entirely the idea that UC Irvine or UCSB raises our “national recognition” at all, full stop.
No one cares one iota about either of those schools athletic programs outside of their home counties/regions. Even within their local areas, they’re generally irrelevant, beyond their diehards.
If having UC campuses in your conference raises your “national recognition,” why is the Big West a total low major conference? Way behind the current WCC? They’ve never had, or even been close to having, multiple bids? While the WCC has regularly had two or even three?
They may rate on some random ranking of Universities as being more prestigious (which I reject broadly anyway), but I don’t think adding either does anything for our collective basketball league. Regional UCs make us feel as parochial as ever. It’s like the Big East saying, well, the SUNY schools have a lot of alumni, better add one?
UCSB is a low-grade mid-major basketball program on par with most of the WCC (though I’d argue in terms of NCAA appearances and NBA alumni, they’re way toward the bottom of the core WCC), and in a regional market, and UCI is less than that.
UCLA and Cal have a following as athletic brands, followed by UC Davis as a massive step down in brand loyalty, then the rest of the UCs.
You can call me negative, but adding a former DII in the central time zone, or UCI/UCSB does essentially nothing for the WCC.
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It sounds like you feel pretty strongly about this, but I’m just discussing possibilities — not making decisions. Realignment is inevitable, and it’s worth examining the few realistic paths the WCC has to strengthen its profile.
The potential addition of St. Thomas would introduce a new geographic rivalry within the WCC. Both programs share the same time zone and are closer to each other than most of the existing members, which would create a unique dynamic. You mentioned they don’t have athletic history — that’s true, but that’s not the point. Rivalries in the WCC aren’t solely built on geography as much as legacy or competitive overlap. Seattle U and Santa Clara may very well have a competitive rivalry this season despite the distance seems to be in the scope of projection.
As for UC Irvine, they finished around 60 in KenPom and were right there with UC San Diego for a tournament bid. Adding a UC system school that’s already a perennial basketball power would significantly raise the WCC’s basketball credibility. Irvine brings a built-in rivalry with UCSD, solid recruiting territory, and consistent tournament-level performance — all things that would elevate the conference far more immediately than a St. Thomas addition could.
I’m not sure why your frustration is directed at me for exploring ideas that are, frankly, on everyone’s radar. The WCC isn’t a power conference — it’s in a moment of transition. With Gonzaga, Washington State, and Oregon State shifting the landscape, every realistic option should be on the table. Personally, I’m encouraged to see Stu Jackson taking a more aggressive approach to growth.
Have you got any constructive ideas? Any ideas at all even on who you think the WCC should target to elevate its basketball and overall profile?
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Nashty, I think Kev’s point is that adding a TOP UC program (i.e., UCI) that has some mindshare in the national collegiate basketball consciousness improves the conference overall (and not just in hoops). The Anteaters have made the men’s hoops tournament 2 times in the past 10 years, with a notable upset over Kansas State in their last appearance in 2019; and their women’s hoops made the tourney last year. But beyond basketball, they have been reasonably successful in “other” athletics, especially men’s volleyball. I’d argue that they are a more widely known sports program compared to St. Thomas. UCI has 7 national championships!
But you are right, suggesting Denver and St. Thomas are “rivals” is a bit of a stretch. (Maybe, over time, such a rivalry would develop.) And those schools’ fit (other than religion and lack of football) with the WCC is questionable. Additionally, it seems Denver’s focus, and to a lesser extent St. Thomas, are on winter sports. To wit: Denver has 35 national championships: 24 in skiing, 10 in hockey, and 1 in Lacrosse. UCI at least is more successful in sports in which the entire WCC participates.
Lastly, Kev, your response to ‘nashty came across as a bit harsh.
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I think my preferred order of the likely options is UCI → St. Thomas → UCSB. Irvine has a pretty good athletic program and reportedly Russell Turner isn’t going anywhere. So the Anteaters should stay relevant in basketball for years to come. Their women’s soccer team is pretty good.
The St. Thomas addition comes from the Tommies having one of the most ambitious athletic departments in the country right now, raising tons of money for new facilities. They’re like Sac State but without the weird semi-fraudulent add ons (like Shaq as a “manager”). It could all blow up, but they looked like a totally capable team in Moraga the other night.
This era shows what a coup adding BYU was. Gonzaga probably leaves the conference 10 years ago if that never happened, and SMC never even becomes SMC. That’s just not an option you can plan around. Same same the Pac-12 detonating so the WCC can loan OSU/Wazzu.
All of the best realignment options are basically adding an upper-middle WCC program with upside. UCI and St. Thomas fit that mold in different ways. Slightly less so UCSB. But that’s basically what you’re working with.
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Sorry all, I’m just grumpy because:
Failing to hold on to GU, BYU, Wazzu or Oregon State is likely to cause the WCC to become a one bid league. There simply are not candidates of similar caliber to replace them within the broader geographic footprint, which now apparently includes the Mountain and Central time zones.
We’ve watched the Pac-8/10/12, which had a century of wonderful history fall apart for no good reason. The WCC, which likewise was a model of stability for a long time, is not disintegrating but is now veering off into uncharted territory.
The WCC in its 8 team configuration from 1979 to 2011 represented a really good, philosophically aligned group.
The math and momentum of modern college sports (which, as you can tell, I detest) says we need to go toward 12 teams. And I think the further afield we get from what the WCC was, the more I worry.
Adding DU (zero tournament appearances) and Seattle U (none since 1969), transitioning D2 teams (UCSD, maybe St. Thomas) and UCs that fall in the post-war commuter school-mold (UCI, UCSB to an extent) all represent to me highly speculative additions.
The post-GU WCC is significantly less competitive, or nationally relevant. I’d rather mimic the Ivy League than toss in six programs that collectively bring to the table a handful of NCAA trips from the Big West, hazy pictures of Elgin Baylor and accumulated hope.
It’s all become so strange. The Broncos don’t have a scholarship player from the West Coast, and may in the near future be playing conference games in Minneapolis. I love college sports, but its rapidly approaching “what are we even doing here?” territory for me.
Apologies for being a grouch.
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I absolutely agree and I share this opinion. Its frustrating. I don’t think there are schools to replace the calibur that is leaving the conference. The realignment is going to significantly alter the wcc landscape. Im disappointed that the conference feels like its beginning to elevate its overall status if faces such a challenge. I was frustrated when Grand Canyon joined bailed as well.
I was not suggesting that St. Thomas and Denver U. Are rivals now. Only trying to imagine a world where they’re both in the WCC.
My apologies for being harsh about it.
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I think what this is all revealing is simply my own personal animus for UC Irvine.
I don’t like their modern, circular campus or the boring, sprawling town it sits in.
I love Santa Clara’s deep history stretching back to the 1700s, our rail station that allows students to not rely on cars to get around the Bay, and so on.
UCI was conceived as this big, sprawling modern lame monolith opening in 1960. They started a law school in 2007, and now various publications suggest it’s a prestigious place to go to school. It all just rubs me the wrong way.
Santa Clara University, and many of our long-time WCC mates, have a difficult to describe amount of “soul.” UC Irvine just doesn’t - the whole place exists as one big transaction for kids who would likely all rather be at UCLA.
I hope they and their 30,000 (!!!) undergraduates stay where I don’t have to think about them 
Thanks for coming to my TED talk. Russell Turner has done a tremendous job there, but for example, when they made the NCAA tournament in 2019, the rest of the Big West had a losing record.
If we’re going to be a 1 bid league post-GU, I’d like to see that bid go to one of the 7 long-suffering WCC schools rather than my apparent nemesis, UC Irvine.
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You are both gentlemen and expres yourselves well and accurately!
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St Thomas is trying to become what Denver currently is as a hockey powerhouse. 4 years ago they jumped from D3 to D1 and just last month opened a state of the art hockey and basketball arena.
Doesn’t mean they are rival yet, but if you start cross-pollinating their sports teams in other areas then there’s a chance they run into each other in the sport that matters for them - hockey.
Lots to agree with from both ‘Kev and ‘Nashty.
Ultimately, we’re all a little concerned with the future of the WCC and the Broncos.
One point not made often is that for the WCC as well as other conferences, some of the desire and motivation by the conferences to bring in additional schools is about quantity if not quality and achieving greater mass. There are only so many quality options west of the Mississippi and even fewer that fit the historical ‘profile’ of WCC schools. While we hope Denver ups their hoops game, adding them (along w/ UCSD and Seattle) boosts the size of the league and protects against the potential impact of future departures and reduces the risk of the league imploding all together.
And while the WCC isn’t likely to negotiate huge media deals, adding teams in large markets like Seattle and Denver that weren’t already represented within the league makes the league more attractive to media companies.
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