West Coast Conference
The West Coast Conference (WCC) is a college sports conference (group of sports teams that play against each other) in the western United States. There are many sports in the conference. The conference does not have football, and only one of its current members has a football team.
The WCC began in 1952 when five schools in and around the San Francisco Bay Area formed the California Basketball Association. The league was then called the West Coast Athletic Conference from 1956 to 1989.
All 10 of its current members were founded by churches. Eight of the colleges are Catholic schools. Only the University of the Pacific, which was started by Methodists, no longer gets money from a church.
Members
[change | change source]Current
[change | change source]The WCC currently has 10 members, all located in West Coast states. Gonzaga will leave in 2026 for the Pac-12 Conference.
| School | Location | Founded | Type | Nickname | Joined WCC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gonzaga University | Spokane, Washington | 1881 | Private Jesuit | Bulldogs | 1979 |
| Loyola Marymount University | Los Angeles, California | 1870 | Private Jesuit/Marymount/St. Joseph | Lions | 1955 |
| University of the Pacific | Stockton, California | 1851 | Private (Methodist)[a] | Tigers | 1952, 2013[b] |
| Pepperdine University | Malibu, California[c] | 1937 | Private Churches of Christ | Waves | 1955 |
| University of Portland | Portland, Oregon | 1901 | Private Congregation of Holy Cross | Pilots | 1976 |
| Saint Mary's College of California | Moraga, California | 1863 | Private De La Salle Brothers | Gaels | 1952 |
| University of San Diego | San Diego, California | 1949 | Private Diocesan Catholic | Toreros | 1979 |
| University of San Francisco | San Francisco, California | 1855 | Private Jesuit | Dons | 1952 |
| Santa Clara University | Santa Clara, California | 1851 | Private Jesuit | Broncos | 1952 |
| Seattle University | Seattle, Washington | 1891 | Private Jesuit | Redhawks | 1971, 2025[d] |
Future
[change | change source]Two schools will join the WCC in the near future, one in 2026 and the other in 2027.
| School | Location | Founded | Type | Nickname | Joining WCC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Denver | Denver, Colorado | 1864 | Private Nonsectarian[e] | Pioneers | 2026 |
| University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego) | La Jolla, California[f] | 1960 | Public University of California | Tritons | 2027 |
- ↑ Pacific remains affiliated with the United Methodist Church, but has received no financial support from the church since 1969.
- ↑ Pacific left the conference in 1971 and came back in 2013.
- ↑ Pepperdine's campus has a Malibu mailing address, but is outside the city limits in unincorporated Los Angeles County.
- ↑ Seattle had been a WCC member from 1971 to 1980.
- ↑ While founded and originally run by Methodists, Denver has been nonsectarian since its founding.
- ↑ La Jolla is a San Diego neighborhood with its own post office.
Associate members
[change | change source]The WCC has eight "associate members". Five play one sport in the conference, and one plays two sports. All are full members of other Division I conferences except Augusta, an NCAA Division II member that fields Division I teams in men's and women's golf. The others are Oregon State and Washington State, which were left behind by the collapse of the Pac-12 Conference in 2024. They are housing most of their sports in the WCC through the 2025–26 school year. After that time, the Pac-12 will resume play with seven new members, among them current WCC member Gonzaga.
Current
[change | change source]| School | Location | Founded | Type | Joined | Sport(s) | Current main conference | Nickname |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States Air Force Academy (Air Force) | USAF Academy, Colorado | 1954 | Federal | 2023 | Men's water polo | Mountain West | Falcons |
| Augusta University | Augusta, Georgia | 1828 | Public | 2025 | Men's and women's golf | Peach Belt (NCAA Division II) | Jaguars |
| California Baptist University | Riverside, California | 1950 | Private (Baptist) | 2023 | Men's water polo | WAC (Big West in 2026) | Lancers |
| Creighton University | Omaha, Nebraska | 1878 | Private Jesuit | 2010 | Women's rowing | Big East | Bluejays |
| Oregon State University | Corvallis, Oregon | 1868 | Public | 2024 | Multiple | Pac-12 | Beavers |
| California State University, Sacramento (Sacramento State) | Sacramento, California | 1947 | Public | 2024 | Women's rowing | Big Sky (Big West in 2026) | Hornets |
| San Jose State University | San Jose, California | 1857 | Public (CSU) | 2023 | Men's water polo | Mountain West | Spartans |
| Washington State University | Pullman, Washington | 1880 | Public | 2024 | Multiple | Pac-12 | Cougars |
References
[change | change source]- "West Coast Conference". wccsports.com. Retrieved 2014-06-10.