Mountain West Conference
| Mountain West Conference | |
|---|---|
| 150px Mountain West Conference | |
| Data | |
| Established | 1999 |
| Members | 9 |
| Sports fielded | 14 |
| Region | Western United States |
| States | 7 - California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming |
| Headquarters | Colorado Springs, Colorado |
| Locations | |
 | |
The Mountain West Conference (or MWC), the youngest of the college athletic conferences affiliated with the NCAA’s Division I FBS (I-A), officially began operations in July 1999. Geographically, the MWC covers a broad expanse of the western United States, with member institutions located in California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming. Craig Thompson has served as Commissioner of the MWC since its founding in 1999.
Charter members included Air Force, BYU, Colorado State, New Mexico, San Diego State, UNLV, Utah, and Wyoming. Prior to forming the Mountain West Conference, seven of the eight charter members had been longtime members of the Western Athletic Conference; half were WAC charter members at its formation in 1962 - UNLV had only joined the WAC in 1996.
The WAC expanded from 10 to 16 universities in 1996, absorbing three teams from the defunct Southwest Conference (Rice, SMU, and TCU), adding two from the from the Big West (San Jose State and UNLV), and Tulsa from the Missouri Valley. After three football seasons, most of the pre-expansion members decided the that the new WAC was oversized, and departed to form the Mountain West Conference. The MWC added a ninth team in 2005: TCU, also a former WAC member, joined after four seasons in Conference USA.
A lesser known "Mountain West Athletic Conference" existed from 1982-88, sponsoring championships for women’s sports at Big Sky Conference institutions. The Big Sky absorbed the MWAC in 1988, forming one league for both men's and women's competition.
Members
| Institution | Nickname | Location | Affiliation | Enrollment | Year Joined |
| United States Air Force Academy | Falcons | Colorado Springs, Colorado | Public/Federal | 4,000 | 1999 |
| Brigham Young University | Cougars | Provo, Utah | Private/LDS (Mormon) | 32,400 | 1999 |
| Colorado State University | Rams | Fort Collins, Colorado | Public/State (Colorado State University system) |
26,418 | 1999 |
| University of New Mexico | Lobos | Albuquerque, New Mexico | Public/State | 24,092 | 1999 |
| San Diego State University | Aztecs | San Diego, California | Public/State (California State University system) |
34,500 | 1999 |
| Texas Christian University | Horned Frogs | Fort Worth, Texas | Private/Christian (Disciples of Christ) | 8,749 | 2005 |
| University of Nevada, Las Vegas | Rebels | Las Vegas, Nevada | Public/State (Nevada System of Higher Education) |
31,000 | 1999 |
| University of Utah | Utes | Salt Lake City, Utah | Public/State (Utah System of Higher Education) |
29,192 | 1999 |
| University of Wyoming | Cowboys | Laramie, Wyoming | Public/State | 13,162 | 1999 |
Sports
The MWC sponsors championships in baseball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's golf, skiing, women's soccer, swimming and diving, men's and women's tennis, women's volleyball, football, softball,indoor and outdoor track and cross country. Many of its member schools participate in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation for sports not sponsored by the Mountain West Conference.
Two MWC schools have unique affiliations in men's soccer. San Diego State competes as a member of the Pacific-10 Conference. BYU has completely abandoned the collegiate competitive structure in that sport, opting instead to field a semi-professional team in the USL Premier Development League (see BYU Cougars soccer).
Television network
- See main article at MountainWest Sports Network
History
Launched on September 1, 2006 by the Mountain West Conference (MWC) and College Sports TV (CSTV), The Mtn. – the MountainWest Sports Network – (pronounced “The Mountain”) is the first network dedicated solely to a college athletic conference. In 2006, the MWC elected to discontinue affiliation with ESPN, due to a poor contract offer. ESPN wanted the MWC to play games on unfavorable nights/times (Tuesdays and Wednesdays), and with an offer for less money. Instead, most MWC athletics are televised on The Mtn., owned jointly by CSTV and Comcast, and operated by Comcast SportsNet. The Mtn. is the first network devoted to a specific college conference. The Mtn. has carriage agreements with numerous cable companies and is on its way to being thoroughly distributed. Many MWC games are also carried on nationally distributed sports networks CSTV, owned by CBS, and Versus, owned by Comcast. To date, satellite companies have opted not to carry The Mtn., leading to consumer frustration, but carriage negotiations between satellite companies and the Mtn. are ongoing.
On June 1, 2007 BYU and the University of Utah Presidents issued a joint press release that they "retained a sports broadcasting attorney to explore all possible options in improving the distribution of athletic broadcasts to their fans". [1]
On June 5, 2007 the MWC Board "reaffirmed its unanimous support of the league's television model and its commitment to working collectively as a unified group", and its Directors unanimously voted to join BYU and Utah to retain the attorney they had hired.[2]
In an interview with KUTV, President Michael K. Young of Utah stated that "Every [MWC member] knows...President Samuelson and I have been clear about this for the last year and a half that it is absolutely essential that we get on satellite to make our games available to our fans. Anything short of that is unacceptable." He then added that "We are passionately committed to our having our football games being on TV this year."[3]
The Mountain West Conference got its wish when on February 22, 2008 DirecTV announced that it will launch The Mtn. Sports Network on a nationwide basis no later then September 1st, 2008. The Mtn. - MountainWest Sports Network To Launch Nationwide on DirecTV
Programming
The Mtn. provides coverage of MWC athletics across multiple sports including football, men's and women's basketball, and men's and women's Olympic sports. In its first school year of coverage, The Mtn. broadcast 30 football games, 75 men’s basketball games, and 25 women’s basketball games. In addition to live game coverage, fans get an array of news, features, and analysis about their favorite MWC teams and players. The Mtn.'s anchors and reporters provide viewers with pre-game, halftime, and post-game coverage, and weekly and seasonal analysis and wrap-ups. The Mtn. also takes fans behind the scenes with coverage of the latest stats, press conferences, coaching developments and more.
Distribution
The Mtn. is currently available in eight of the nine MWC markets, and the following 17 providers offer The Mtn. DirecTV will start offering The Mtn nationwide on September 1st, 2008:
- CABLE
- All West Communications (Utah, Wyoming)
- Bresnan (Colorado, Utah, Wyoming)
- Baja Broadband (Colorado(expected Sept. 20 2007), Nevada, Utah)
- Cable ONE (Idaho, New Mexico)
- CentraCom Cable TV (Utah)
- Comcast (Colorado, New Mexico, Utah)
- Cox (California, Nevada)
- Independent Cable Systems of Idaho (Idaho)
- Manti Tele Communications Company (Utah)
- MSTARmetro (Utah)
- Project Mutual Telephone (Idaho)
- Provo Cable (Utah)
- Rural Telephone Company (Idaho)
- Saratoga Cable (Utah)
- Silver Star Communications (Wyoming)
- Spanish Fork Community Network (Utah)
- Sweetwater Cable Television (Wyoming)
- TCT (Wyoming)
- OTHER
- Comcast.net (highlights only)
- DirecTV (Starting September 1, 2008)
Conference Champions
Men's Championship Winners
| Football | Men's Basketball | Baseball | Cross Country | Golf | Swimming & Diving | Tennis | Track & Field (Outdoors) | Indoor Track | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999-2000 | BYU CSU Utah |
Regular Season UNLV/Utah Tournament UNLV |
Regular Season New Mexico Tournament SDSU |
BYU | UNLV | BYU | Regular Season SDSU Tournament New Mexico |
BYU | BYU |
| 2000-2001 | CSU | Regular Season BYU/Utah/Wyoming Tournament BYU |
Regular Season and Tournament BYU |
BYU | BYU | BYU | Regular Season SDSU Tournament BYU |
BYU | BYU |
| 2001-2002 | BYU | Regular Season Wyoming Tournament SDSU |
Regular Season SDSU Tournament BYU |
BYU | UNLV | BYU | Regular Season and Tournament SDSU |
BYU | CSU |
| 2002-2003 | CSU | Regular Season BYU/Utah Tournament CSU |
Regular Season and Tournament UNLV |
BYU | New Mexico | BYU | Regular Season and Tournament SDSU |
BYU | BYU |
| 2003-2004 | Utah | Regular Season Air Force Tournament Utah |
Regular Season SDSU Tournament UNLV |
Air Force | New Mexico | BYU | Regular Season and Tournament New Mexico |
BYU | BYU |
| 2004-2005 | Utah | Regular Season Utah Tournament New Mexico |
Regular Season and Tournament UNLV |
BYU | New Mexico | UNLV | Regular Season and Tournament SDSU |
BYU | BYU |
| 2005-2006 | TCU | Regular Season and Tournament SDSU |
Regular Season and Tournament TCU |
BYU | New Mexico | UNLV | Regular Season SDSU Tournament TCU |
BYU | BYU |
| 2006-2007 | BYU | Regular Season BYU Tournament UNLV |
Regular Season and Tournament TCU |
BYU | BYU | UNLV BYU |
Regular Season SDSU Tournament UNLV |
BYU | BYU |
| 2007-2008 | BYU | Regular Season BYU Tournament TBD |
BYU | BYU |
Source:[4]
Women's Championship Winners
| Women's Basketball | Softball | Soccer | Volleyball | Cross Country | Golf | Swimming & Diving | Tennis | Track & Field (Outdoors) | Indoor Track | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999-2000 | Regular Season and Tournament Utah |
Regular Season and Tournament Utah |
Regular Season SDSU Tournament BYU |
Regular Season BYU Tournament CSU |
BYU | New Mexico | BYU | Regular Season SDSU Tournament UNLV |
BYU | BYU |
| 2000-2001 | Regular Season Utah Tournament CSU |
Regular Season and Tournament BYU |
Regular Season and Tournament BYU |
Regular Season CSU Tournament BYU |
BYU | New Mexico | BYU | Regular Season and Tournament BYU |
BYU | BYU |
| 2001-2002 | Regular Season CSU Tournament BYU |
Regular Season SDSU Tournament Utah |
Regular Season and Tournament BYU |
Regular Season CSU Tournament Utah |
BYU | New Mexico | BYU | Regular Season SDSU Tournament UNLV |
BYU | BYU |
| 2002-2003 | Regular Season Utah Tournament New Mexico |
Regular Season SDSU Tournament CSU |
Regular Season and Tournament BYU |
Regular Season CSU Tournament Utah |
BYU | New Mexico | BYU | Regular Season UNLV Tournament SDSU |
BYU | BYU |
| 2003-2004 | Regular Season Utah Tournament New Mexico |
Regular Season CSU Tournament Utah |
Regular Season Utah Tournament BYU |
Regular Season and Tournament CSU |
BYU | UNLV | BYU | Regular Season New Mexico Tournament BYU |
BYU | BYU |
| 2004-2005 | Regular Season and Tournament New Mexico |
Regular Season and Tournament BYU |
Regular Season UNLV Tournament Utah |
Regular Season and Tournament CSU |
BYU | UNLV | UNLV | Regular Season and Tournament BYU |
BYU | BYU |
| 2005-2006 | Regular Season BYU Tournament Utah |
Regular Season SDSU Tournament Utah |
Regular Season Utah Tournament UNLV |
Regular Season BYU Tournament Utah |
BYU | UNLV | Utah | Regular Season and Tournament TCU |
BYU | CSU |
| 2006-2007 | Regular Season BYU Tournament New Mexico |
BYU | Regular Season Utah Tournament UNLV |
Regular Season Utah Tournament CSU |
BYU | TCU | Regular Season Utah Tournament BYU |
Regular Season BYU and TCU Tournament BYU |
BYU | BYU |
| 2007-2008 | Regular Season Utah |
Regular Season UNLV Tournament BYU |
Regular Season CSU Tournament UNLV |
CSU | BYU |
Source:[4]
Football Rivalries
Conference
| Schools | First Meeting |
Game | Trophy | Winner (Last Meeting) | |
| Utah | BYU | 1896 | The Holy War | Beehive Boot | BYU |
| Colorado State | Wyoming | 1899 | Border War | Bronze Boot | Colorado State |
| Wyoming | BYU | 1922 | BYU | ||
| New Mexico | Utah | 1938 | The Bowl | Utah | |
| Air Force | Colorado State | 1980 | Ram-Falcon Trophy | Air Force | |
Non-Conference
| Schools | First Meeting |
Game | Trophy | Reigning Champion (Last Meeting) |
Next Meeting | |
| Air Force | Army & Navy | 1972 | Commander in Chief's Trophy | Navy (2007) | 2008 | |
| Utah | Utah State | 1892 | Battle of the Brothers | Beehive Boot | Utah (2007) | 2008 |
| Colorado State | Colorado | 1893 | Rocky Mountain Showdown | Centennial Cup | Colorado (2007) | 2008 |
| New Mexico | New Mexico State | 1894 | Battle of I-25 | Rio Grande Rivalry | New Mexico (2007) | 2008 |
| New Mexico | Arizona | 1908 | Kit Carson Rifle | New Mexico (2007) | 2008 | |
| TCU | SMU | 1915 | Battle for the Iron Skillet | Iron Skillet | TCU (2007) | 2008 |
| New Mexico | UTEP | 1919 | Rio Grande Championship | UTEP (2007) | 2010 | |
| BYU | Hawaiʻi | 1930 | BYU (2002) | |||
| BYU | Utah State | 1922 | Battle for the old Wagon Wheel | Wagon Wheel | BYU (2006) | 2008 |
| Wyoming | Hawaiʻi | 1978 | Paniolo Trophy | Wyoming (1997) | ||
| San Diego State | San Jose State | 1935 | San Jose State (2006) | 2008 | ||
| UNLV | Nevada | 1969 | Battle for Nevada | Fremont Cannon | Nevada (2007) | 2008 |
Postseason Records
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Conference Facilities
| School | Football Stadia | Capacity | Basketball Arenas | Capacity | Baseball Stadia | Capacity |
| Air Force | Falcon Stadium | 52,123 | Clune Arena | 5,939 | Falcon Baseball Field | 1,000 |
| BYU | LaVell Edwards Stadium | 64,045 | Marriott Center | 22,700 | Larry H. Miller Field | 2,300 |
| Colorado State | Hughes Stadium | 35,000 | Moby Arena | 8,745 | No baseball team | |
| New Mexico | University Stadium | 42,000 | University Arena (The Pit) | 18,018 | Isotopes Park | 11,124 |
| San Diego State | Qualcomm Stadium | 71,294 | Cox Arena | 12,414 | Tony Gwynn Stadium | 3,000 |
| TCU | Amon G. Carter Stadium | 46,083 | Daniel-Meyer Coliseum | 7,200 | Lupton Stadium | 3,500 |
| UNLV | Sam Boyd Stadium | 40,000 | Thomas & Mack Center (men) Cox Pavilion (women) |
18,776 2,472 |
Earl Wilson Stadium | 3,000 |
| Utah | Rice-Eccles Stadium | 45,017 | Jon M. Huntsman Center | 15,000 | Franklin Covey Field | 15,500 |
| Wyoming | War Memorial Stadium | 33,500 | Arena-Auditorium | 15,028 | No baseball team | |
See also
References
- ^ "BYU and Utah hire attorney regarding the .mtn debacle" (HTML). byu.edu. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
- ^ "MWC Board address TV distribution" (HTML). themwc.cstv.com. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
- ^ "Utah President Michael K. Young: no distribution on satellite this year is unacceptable" (HTML). kutv.com. Retrieved 2007-06-19.
- ^ a b Mountain West Conference Championships
External links
| Full members |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Football associate | ||
| Women's soccer associate | ||
| Baseball & women's swimming associate |
| |
| Championships & awards | ||
| History | ||