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I would like to personally applaud WAC Commissioner Jeff Hurd for helping to secure the long-term stability of the WAC. The expansion of the WAC, particularly in Texas, will serve to strengthen our institution and our region. The strength of the conference gives us great stability for our athletic programs and provides UTRGV Athletics opportunities for growth. The visibility of our athletic teams as they compete around the state will allow our sphere of influence to grow, enhancing our recruiting efforts as we look to bring the best and the brightest students to UTRGV.
UTRGV President Guy Bailey
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We are excited to say to the student-athletes, coaches, staff, alumni and supporters of Abilene Christian, Lamar, Sam Houston, Stephen F. Austin and Southern Utah, "Welcome to the WAC." The visions and values of these institutions’ athletic departments align well with our own. This is a significant realignment that creates a strong future for our conference. The WAC and UTRGV won big with today’s announcement, and we are thrilled to be part of such a strong conference with a very bright future.
UTRGV Vice President and Director of Athletics Chasse Conque |
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We are extremely excited over the addition of five more universities to the WAC. Each of these schools are renowned for their successful athletic programs and facilities. The four baseball programs added to the league are led by outstanding coaches and staff with great traditions. This moves the WAC into the next level of being one of the top tier conferences in the nation.
UTRGV Baseball Head Coach Derek Matlock
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I think it’s a good thing. Adding those schools from Texas will make it better for us in terms of travel, but it’ll also be a fun thing. We have a lot of Texas guys on our team, as do the new Texas schools, and we all know their players, so it’ll make for good, competitive games.
UTRGV Baseball Student-Athlete Ricky Gerik Jr. (Waco, Texas) |
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I’m excited to have all these Texas teams come in. I think it helps us tremendously with recruiting. We were the only team from the WAC in Texas for a long time and this year one of two. Half of our student-athletes are from Texas, and now their families will have more chances to see them play. Playing all of these Texas opponents helps to expand our recruiting base as well. The great teams that are coming in just made this conference even better and more competitive from top to bottom. The WAC is back!
UTRGV Men’s Basketball Head Coach Lew Hill |
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These are some exciting times for those of us in the WAC and for those joining the WAC. The addition of these schools really makes the WAC stronger and I am excited to see what is in store for the WAC in the future. The bar certainly has been raised and this move makes all of us stronger. Having four more Texas school in the WAC with us will help our department in all facets, from recruiting to traveling and even student-athlete experience. We have had some pretty good competition with some of these schools and I look forward to building on those in the future. The WAC definitely got stronger today.
UTRGV Women’s Basketball Head Coach Lane Lord |
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I’m excited about the added competition because it increases the depth of the conference from top to bottom. We’re looking forward to competing against these new teams and I’m excited to welcome them to the WAC.
UTRGV Men’s Golf Head Coach Philip Tate |
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I think with these new teams coming in, it will bring more attention to the WAC and just make us stronger. As players, we will become motivated and more competitive than ever.
UTRGV Men’s Golf Student-Athlete Andres Cortez (La Feria, Texas) |
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We couldn’t be more excited about the expansion. This move will add to the notoriety for UTRGV both as a university and as an athletic program. We are excited to compete and create history with these institutions in the future. We welcome them with open arms and look at the WAC as a strong contender on a national scale in collegiate golf championships for years to come.
-UTRGV Women’s Golf Head Coach Bryan Novoa |
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I am excited to have these new schools join our conference because they will increase both the level of competitiveness and make our conference better nationally. With the addition to these schools, the WAC will have a strong reputation in Texas!
UTRGV Women’s Golf Student-Athlete Samantha Garza |
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We are excited about the conference expansion! Adding additional members, particularly those in Texas, to an already strong conference will only continue to push the WAC on a national scale.
UTRGV Men’s Soccer Head Coach Bryheem Hancock |
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The expansion of the WAC is an exciting time for both players and coaches. It not only raises the profile of the league, but also introduces teams that will immediately compete for titles in nearly every sport, something that will be very exciting for our fans.
UTRGV Women’s Soccer Head Coach Glad Bugariu |
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Abilene Christian and Lamar have each won their conference regular season or tournament in recent history. Both programs will be welcome additions to the WAC in men’s tennis.
UTRGV Men’s Tennis Head Coach Dann Nelson |
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This is awesome. It’s definitely going to help us with our travel schedule. Whenever we have WAC play, we compete in clusters hosted by different institutions. Now half of the men’s tennis teams in the WAC will be based in Texas, giving us an advantage.
UTRGV Men’s Tennis Student-Athlete Zane Kohrs (Dallas, Texas) |
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The addition of four schools in the state of Texas greatly enhances the student-athlete experience with increased competition against strong athletic programs requiring less travel for family and friends to attend games. I am really looking forward to battling against the new competition and thank you to all of those involved in adding value to the WAC.
UTRGV Women’s Tennis Head Coach West Nott |
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As a former WAC football athlete at Tulsa in the early 2000’s, this is very exciting to see a resurgence and new energy within the conference. These schools are also nationally recognized and competitive track and cross country programs. I’m excited to see how this expansion will raise the standard of competition as well as the reputation of the WAC for years to come.
UTRGV Track & Field/Cross Country head coach Darren Flowers |
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I think it’s super exciting for UTRGV to be in an expanded WAC. It gives us stability. The teams that are joining give us a footprint in the state of Texas that I think can move us in a direction that’s very beneficial for our university, especially when it comes to recruiting. Locally, people will see the names of teams that they identify with a little more, and I think that’s going to increase the excitement in the community. We’re going to be way more visible throughout the state while developing rivalries with these new Texas opponents. We’ve seen what the South Texas Showdown, presented by Navy Army Community Credit Union, has done for our rivalry with Corpus Christi. Now we’ll have that opportunity with five other schools in WAC play every year.
UTRGV Volleyball Head Coach Todd Lowery |
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I think the expansion of the WAC and the addition of all these schools will have a great impact on UTRGV. I’m a Texas-native and played a lot of those Southland schools while I was at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. It will make us a more powerful conference overall. Playing that many more Texas teams changes recruiting for us too. Out of high school, I chose to stay in Texas because I wanted my family to be able to make it to my games to see me play. I think we’ll be able to attract more talent from our home state for that very reason.
UTRGV Volleyball Student-Athlete Mackenzie Coates (Buda, Texas) |
