Today, in a move rumored for the last few weeks, Gonzaga officially announced its move to the remodeled Pac-12 Conference, effective July 1, 2026.
The addition gives the Pac-12 a storied basketball program. The Bulldogs have been a perennial NCAA Tournament team since 1999. It also ends years of speculation that the Bulldogs will depart the West Coast Conference for a larger conference.
Gonzaga is the Pac-12’s eighth member. It does not count as the league’s eighth full-time member, as it doesn’t have a football program. The Pac-12 still needs to add another member to reach minimum conference thresholds. Gonzaga will join San Diego State, Colorado State, Utah State, Fresno State, Boise State, Washington State and Oregon State in the reimagined Pac-12.
With a move like this, there are a lot of questions. And we are here to provide you with further insight on how it will affect the WCC and mid-major hoops.
How does it impact the WCC?
Although Gonzaga officially joined the conference in 1979, things didn’t really begin to heat up for the program until legendary college hoops coach Mark Few arrived in 1999. From there, the team has qualified for the NCAA Tournament 25 straight times while winning the WCC Tournament 19 times during that frame.
So how does it impact the WCC? Gonzaga’s departure causes the conference to lose its top program and yearly favorite to capture the NCAA Tournament automatic bid. With Saint Mary’s likely to remain, it makes them the top program in the conference. This also opens the door for promising programs like Santa Clara and San Francisco to take the next step in the coming years.
The most concerning thing about the move is the possibility of the conference no longer being a two-bid league. In the years of the trio of BYU, Saint Mary’s and Gonzaga, Quadrant 1 wins were more abundant. With two of those teams out, it will be interesting to see if the conference can continue sending multiple teams to the Big Dance.
How does it impact mid-major basketball?
Gonzaga has consistently sought an opportunity to jump into a high-major conference. The Bulldogs are the premier mid-major program with a proven track record of beating high-major teams.
The Bulldogs hope the reimagined Pac-12 develops into a high-major conference on and off the court. Time will tell if the Pac-12 can receive the exposure and financial dollars in media rights like other Power Four conferences.
Many in the mid-major community knew it was only a matter of time before Gonzaga moved on from the WCC. The Bulldogs have sought to lose the mid-major label and be a true high-major program. And with that, it doesn’t significantly affect the outlook of mid-major basketball. It will remain as exciting as before, with surprise teams and tournament upsets associated with the typical mid-major program, while Gonzaga figures to remain one of the sports premier programs even in its new conference.
