Western Athletic Conference football explained

WAC football champions
Optional Subheader:Conference Football Champions
Sport:Football
Conference:Western Athletic Conference
Number Of Teams:8
Years:1962–2012, 2021–2022
Current Champion:Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks
Abilene Christian Wildcats
Most Championships:BYU Cougars (19)
Website:WACSports.com Football

The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) sponsored football and crowned a champion every year from 1962 to 2012. Once considered one of the best conferences in college football, steady attrition from 1999 to 2012 forced the WAC to drop football after fifty-one years.[1]

On January 14, 2021, the WAC announced its intention to reinstate football as a conference-sponsored sport at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level, as well as the addition of five new members to the conference in all sports, including football.[2] The new members announced include: Abilene Christian University, Lamar University, Sam Houston State University, and Stephen F. Austin State University, all currently of the Southland Conference (SLC), along with Southern Utah University, currently of the Big Sky Conference. Original plans were for all new members to join in July 2022, but after the SLC expelled its departing members, the WAC moved the arrival of those four schools and the relaunch of football to July 2021. Southern Utah's entry remained on the 2022 schedule.[3] [4] The WAC football league also included Dixie State University (renamed Utah Tech University in 2022) and Tarleton State University, both of which played as FCS independents in 2020–21 after having moved from NCAA Division II to the WAC for non-football sports in July 2020. The conference also announced that it will most likely add another football-playing institution at a later date. The conference has been speculated to move back up to the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) in the future following the reestablishment of the football conference at the FCS level.[5]

On the same day, news broke that The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV), a non-football playing member of the conference, had committed to create an FCS football program by 2024.[6] At the time, the program would most likely have competed as part of the newly-reinstated WAC football conference.

For its first two planned seasons in 2021 and 2022, the relaunched WAC football league was branded as the ASUN–WAC (or WAC–ASUN) Challenge, with the WAC establishing a temporary football partnership with the ASUN Conference. The ASUN eventually started its own FCS football league in 2022. Under the partnership, three FCS programs that joined the ASUN in July 2021 played alongside current WAC members.[7] [8]

The ASUN–WAC partnership was renewed for the 2022 season after the start of FBS transitions by ASUN member Jacksonville State and WAC member Sam Houston rendered both ineligible for the FCS playoffs, also dropping both conferences below the 6 football members needed to qualify for an automatic berth in the FCS playoffs.[9] The WAC's playoff-eligible membership soon dropped further to 3, after Incarnate Word backed out of its planned move from the SLC to the WAC[10] and Lamar, which had announced it would leave the WAC in 2023 to return to the SLC, accelerated this move to 2022.[11]

The 2022 season proved to be the last for the WAC as a standalone football conference. On December 20, 2022, the ASUN and WAC jointly announced that they would fully merge their football conferences effective with the 2023 season under the tentative name of ASUN–WAC Football Conference. The ASUN is contributing Austin Peay, Central Arkansas, Eastern Kentucky, and North Alabama to the new league, with the WAC contributing Abilene Christian, Southern Utah, Stephen F. Austin, Tarleton, and Utah Tech. UTRGV, which put off the start of its football program to 2025, will join at that time. The merged conference will play a six-game schedule in 2023 before adopting a full round-robin in 2024.[12] [13]

Former members

The WAC has 29 former football-playing members.

Team First Year Last Year WAC Titles Current Primary Conference
Air Force Falcons198019983Mountain West
Arizona Wildcats196219772Pac-12
Big 12 (2024)
Arizona State Sun Devils196219777Pac-12
Big 12 (2024)
Boise State Broncos200120108Mountain West
BYU Cougars1962199819Big 12
Fresno State Bulldogs199220113Mountain West
Colorado State Rams196719983Mountain West
Hawaii Warriors197920114Mountain West
Idaho Vandals200520120Big Sky
Lamar Cardinals202120210Southland
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs200120122C-USA
UNLV Rebels199619980Mountain West
Nevada Wolf Pack200020112Mountain West
New Mexico Lobos196219982Mountain West
New Mexico State Aggies200520120C-USA
Rice Owls199620040The American
San Diego State Aztecs197819981Mountain West
San Jose State Spartans199620120Mountain West
SMU Mustangs199620040The American
ACC (2024)
TCU Horned Frogs199620002Big 12
UTEP Miners196720041C-USA
UTSA Roadrunners201220120The American
Texas State Bobcats201220120Sun Belt
Tulsa Golden Hurricane199620040
Utah Utes196219982Pac-12
Big 12 (2024)
Utah State Aggies200520121Mountain West
Wyoming Cowboys196219987Mountain West
Sam Houston State202120221C-USA
Stephen F. Austin202120231Southland

Current members

The WAC resumed play in the 2021 fall season with 9 members. Before the reinstatement of football was officially announced, media reports indicated that the WAC might add two more schools to join the conference for football.[14] On the same day that WAC confirmed the return of football, full conference member UTRGV announced that it would start an FCS football program no later than 2024. By the end of January 2021, three more schools were brought into WAC football for the 2021 fall season only. All are incoming members of the ASUN Conference, which plans to start an FCS football league in 2022.[15] The WAC–ASUN Challenge consists of the seven teams that are eligible for the FCS playoffs. Utah Tech and Tarleton are included in alliance scheduling, but because of their ongoing transitions from NCAA Division II to Division I are ineligible for the playoffs until the 2024 season. Games against these schools do not count in alliance standings, although games against full WAC members count in the separate WAC league table.[7] [8] Jacksonville State and Sam Houston State left the WAC for the 2023 season as they began transitioning to the FBS level as members of Conference USA. In 2023, the ASUN–WAC Challenge became the United Athletic Conference and became a full FCS conference. Stephen F. Austin and UT Rio Grande Valley left the WAC for the Southland Conference before the 2024 season, prior to UTRGV having their first ever season of college football.

Team Location Nickname Stadium Capacity Current Primary Conference Starting Year
Abilene ChristianAbilene, TXWildcatsAnthony Field at Wildcat Stadium12,000WAC2021
Central ArkansasConway, ARBearsEstes Stadium12,000ASUN2021
Eastern KentuckyRichmond, KYColonelsRoy Kidd Stadium20,000ASUN2021
Southern UtahCedar City, UTThunderbirdsEccles Coliseum8,500WAC2022
Tarleton StateStephenville, TXTexansMemorial Stadium17,000WAC2021
Utah TechTrailblazersGreater Zion Stadium10,000WAC2021

Conference championships

See also: United Athletic Conference.

By year

Season Champion Conference record
1962 2–1–1
1963 3–0
1964 3–1
3–1
3–1
1965 4–1
1966 5–0
1967 5–0
1968 6–1
1969 6–1
1970 7–0
1971 7–0
1972 5–1
1973 6–1
6–1
1974 6–0–1
1975 7–0
1976 6–1
6–1
1977 6–1
6–1
1978 5–1
1979 7–0
1980 6–1
1981 7–1
1982 7–1
1983 7–0
1984 8–0
1985 7–1
7–1
1986 7–1
1987 8–0
1988 8–0
1989 7–1
1990 7–1
1991 7–0–1
1992 6–2
6–2
6–2
1993 6–2
6–2
6–2
1994 7–1
1995 6–2
6–2
6–2
6–2
1996 8–0
1997 7–1
1998 7–1
1999 5–2
5–2
5–2
2000 7–1
7–1
2001 7–1
2002 8–0
2003 8–0
2004 8–0
2005 7–1
7–1
2006 8–0
2007 8–0
2008 8–0
2009 8–0
2010 7–1
7–1
7–1
2011 6–1
2012 6–0
2013–2020 Dropped football
2021 5–0
2022 3–1
3–1

By team

Team Championships
Total Outright Shared
BYU 19 13 6
Boise State 8 6 2
Arizona State 7 5 2
Wyoming 7 5 2
Hawaii 4 1 3
Colorado State 3 2 1
Air Force 3 1 2
Fresno State 3 0 3
Louisiana Tech 2 2 0
New Mexico 2 2 0
Arizona 2 0 2
Nevada 2 0 2
TCU 2 0 2
Utah 2 0 2
Sam Houston State 1 1 0
San Diego State 1 1 0
UTEP 1 0 1
Utah State 1 1 0
Abilene Christian 1 0 1
Stephen F. Austin 1 0 1

Championship game

See main article: WAC Championship Game.

Bowl games

The first bowl game appearance by a WAC team was at the 1964 Liberty Bowl, where Utah defeated West Virginia of the Southern Conference, 32–6.[16]

The WAC had conference tie-ins with various bowl games during its history, including:

Bowl Championship Series

The WAC champion received an automatic berth in one of the five Bowl Championship Series (BCS) bowl games if they were the highest ranked non-automatic qualifying conference champion and either of the following:

By qualifying under the first criterion above, Boise State landed a berth in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl, and Hawaii received a bid to play in the 2008 Sugar Bowl. In 2009, the Mountain West champion TCU Horned Frogs received the automatic BCS bid by finishing higher than Boise State in the final BCS rankings. However, Boise State received a BCS at-large bid and defeated TCU in the 2010 Fiesta Bowl. In three BCS bowl games, the WAC recorded two wins and one loss. In addition to those three teams that played in BCS bowls, four other WAC teams qualified for a BCS berth but were not selected to play in a BCS bowl game: TCU in 2000 and Boise State in 2004, 2008, and 2010.

BowlWACOpponent
Team ScoreTeam Score Conference
2007 Fiesta Bowl
  1. 9 Boise State
4342 Big 12
2008 Sugar Bowl10
  1. 4 Georgia
41 SEC
2010 Fiesta Bowl
  1. 6 Boise State
1710 Mountain West

Rivalries

Notable football rivalries involving WAC teams are listed below. Records are not limited to years that the WAC was active.

Teams Rivalry Years Games Series leader (W–L–T) Current win streak Ref.
1971–2010 40 Boise State (22–17–1) Boise State (12) [17]
1894–2018 109 New Mexico (71–33–5) New Mexico (1) [18]
1914–2018 96 UTEP (57–37–2) New Mexico State (2) [19]
1921–2018 82 Fresno State (42–37–3) Fresno State (2) [20]
1923–Present 95Sam Houston State (58–35–2) Sam Houston State (10) [21]
1922–2018 88 BYU (48–37–3) Utah State (2) [22]
1892–2015 113 Utah (79–30–4) Utah (2) [23]

Divisional alignment

Starting in 1996, the 16 conference members were divided info four pods, each with four teams. Two pods comprised the Pacific Division, and the other two pods were the Mountain Division. Pod one would always compete in Pacific, while pod four would always compete in Mountain. The other two pods were scheduled to swap divisions every two years, with the new alignment to take effect in even-numbered years. The pods and divisional alignment were discontinued after 1998.

Pod Teams Division
1996 1997 1998
1 bgcolor=lightbluePacific bgcolor=lightbluePacific bgcolor=lightbluePacific
2 bgcolor=lightbluePacific bgcolor=lightbluePacific bgcolor=lightgreenMountain
3 bgcolor=lightgreenMountain bgcolor=lightgreenMountain bgcolor=lightbluePacific
4 bgcolor=lightgreenMountain bgcolor=lightgreenMountain bgcolor=lightgreenMountain

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Western Athletic Conference considers becoming a non-football league. July 3, 2012.
  2. WAC Announces Expansion, Plans to Reinstate Football . Western Athletic Conference . January 14, 2021 . January 14, 2021.
  3. News: As WAC announces addition of 5 schools, Frisco-based Southland Conference left in no man's land . Sam . Blum . . January 14, 2021 . January 18, 2021.
  4. WAC Announces Expedited Entrance for Four Texas Institutions . Western Athletic Conference . January 21, 2021 . January 25, 2021.
  5. Web site: Deaver . Colin . Reports: WAC football to return in 2022, rise to FBS later in decade . KTSM.com . 14 January 2021.
  6. Web site: Jeyarajah . Shehan . UTRGV commits to add FCS football by 2024. . Dave Campbell's Texas Football . 14 January 2021.
  7. ASUN, WAC Conferences Announce Football Partnership for 2021 . ASUN Conference . February 23, 2021 . February 23, 2021.
  8. From the Commissioner's Desk: @ASUN_Football Update . ASUN Conference . February 23, 2021 . February 23, 2021.
  9. ASUN and WAC Renew Football Alliance . ASUN Conference . May 18, 2022 . May 19, 2022.
  10. University of the Incarnate Word Staying in the Southland Conference . Southland Conference . June 24, 2022 . June 24, 2022.
  11. Lamar University Prepares for Early Move to Southland Conference . Southland Conference . July 11, 2022 . July 12, 2022.
  12. @ASUN_Football and WAC Release 2023 Schedule . ASUN Conference . December 20, 2022 . December 22, 2022.
  13. ASUN And WAC Unveil 2023 Football Schedule . Western Athletic Conference . December 20, 2022 . December 22, 2022.
  14. News: Report: Two Utah schools in plans for return of WAC football in 2022 . Alex . Vejar . The Salt Lake Tribune . January 6, 2021.
  15. Web site: Report: Three schools to join WAC football for 2021 season only . Shehan . Jeyarajah . Dave Campbell's Texas Football . January 28, 2021 . January 30, 2021.
  16. Web site: 1964 Western Athletic Conference Year Summary . . March 8, 2019.
  17. Web site: Winsipedia - Idaho Vandals vs. Boise State Broncos football series history. Winsipedia.
  18. Web site: Winsipedia - New Mexico State Aggies vs. New Mexico Lobos football series history. Winsipedia.
  19. Web site: Winsipedia - New Mexico State Aggies vs. UTEP Miners football series history. Winsipedia.
  20. Web site: Winsipedia - San Jose State Spartans vs. Fresno State Bulldogs football series history. Winsipedia.
  21. News: COLLEGE FOOTBALL: NRG Stadium made permanent home of Battle of the Piney Woods.
  22. Web site: Winsipedia - Utah State Aggies vs. BYU Cougars football series history. Winsipedia.
  23. Web site: Winsipedia - Utah State Aggies vs. Utah Utes football series history. Winsipedia.