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Show Monday ' July 14, 2008 UVU finds a home in the Great West Conference affiliation: the next step www.wolverfnegreen.cwn Matt Beaudin | Sports editor UVU Athletic Department Athletic Director Mike Jacobsen announced Thursday that UVU will join the Great West Conference. Great West Conference extends invitation to UVU Jacobsen said. "The Great West Conference is such a great opportunity for our student athletes. The opportunity to play for conference chamIn a press conference held in the McKay pionships, to receive academic honors, and to Center on Thursday afternoon, UVU Director of make all-conference teams is something they Athletics Mike Jacobsen announced that UVU deserve." would be joining the Great West Conference. One of the biggest problems UVU has enThe announcement marks just how far the ath- ' countered in its short Division I life span has letic program has come since competing at the been scheduling. junior college level six years ago. "Scheduling has become really hard," JacobAlong with six other schools, UVU will en- sen said. "Much of that is our own problem begage in a full complement of competition as a cause we've been successful." member of the Great West in the 2009-10 seaAfter enjoying a fair amount of success son. After four years as a football-only confer- with radar-blip wins over nationally respected ence, the Great West has decided to expand to programs including wins over Arizona State in include a minimum of six schools and an addi- baseball and basketball among others, schools tional 14 sports. have had reservations about scheduling a lesserThe schools that have thus far accepted the known school with upset potential. invitation are Houston Baptist University, New As a member of the Great West Conference, Jersey Institute of Technology, the University UVU will have an easier time filling its schedule of North Dakota, University of South Dakota, while competing for conference championships, the University of Texas Pan-American and Utah and will have more opportunity to qualify for Valley University, with invitations to other in- NCAA postseason tournaments as well. stitutions still on the table. Utah Valley will enter its final year of NCAA "This is a great day for Utah Valley Uni- provisional status this coming season and should versity and a great day for our community," be accepted as an official member of the NCAA Matt Beaudin Sports editor Great West Member Institution Logo Sheet Houston Baptist PMS 287 (Blue) PMS 1655 (Orange) Hew JmrMy Institute of Technology PMS 1795 (Red) PMS 2768 (Navy) North Dakota PMS 347 (Sioux Green) PMS 186 (Sioux Red) UTPA South Dakota Texas - Pan American Utah Valley PMS 200 (Red) PMS 422 (Gray) PMS 349 (Green) PMS 166 (Orange) PMS 350 (Green) PMS 458 (Gold) PMS 677 (Metallic Gray) Cal Poly (Football Only) PMS 343 (Green) PMS 460 (Gold) Process Black AGGIES UC Davis Southern Utah (Football Only) (Football Only) PMS 295 (Blue) PMS 132 or 872 (GoH) PMS Cool Gray 4 PMS 185 (Red) Process Black Great Wast PMS 200 (Red) PMS 280 (Blue) the following year when its conference play will formally begin. • In addition to an improved schedule, UVU hopes to benefit in the recruiting battle with the added exposure of being affiliated with a conference. Athletes who used to have reservations about attending a university without a conference will now have the opportunity to compete in the Great West. As far as an automatic bid to play in postseason tournaments, the Great West is still several years away from consideration. However, an at-large bid is within reach and theoretically could be attainable if a member of the conference was to have a breakout season. The added validity of being a conference champion should bring with it the attention and respect needed to help members of the Great West become noticed on a national scale. "With this new announcement today, we extend an invitation to the entire community to rally behind the Wolverines," said Utah Valley Vice President for Student Affairs Cory Duckworth. "We think the Great West Conference is going to be a tremendous opportunity." For those familiar with UVU, it's hard to believe just how far it has come. Less than a-decade ago, UVU was a junior college competing against teams from Snow College, Dixie State and CEU. Not being satisfied with JUCO status, the powers that be decided to make the transition to compete at the Division I level and eventually join the NCAA. For a junior college to make the transformation is a tough process, and there are usually many hang ups along the way. Most schools making the switch choose to spend a few years competing at the Division II level. The fact that UVU went straight to D-I is impressive enough, but include victories over schools from the Pac-10, WAC and Mountain West, and it's down right amazing. Joining the Great West is a superb first step for the Wolverines, but it'll hardly be a stepping-stone on the path to bigger and better things. UVU signed a three-year contract to stay in the Great West and has every intention of honoring its commitment However, as opportunities present themselves, Director of Athletics Mike Jacobsen is keeping his options open. "We're still doing something almost every day with the different western conferences to make sure they remain aware of us," Jacobsen said. "We're taking it one year at a time, and we're excited to be a part of it." When you consider where UVU was just a few years ago, it's expected that Utah Valley will continue to evolve athletically. Is it that far-fetched to believe the Wolverines could land themselves in a more illustrious conference in a few years? Maybe UVU isn't quite at the level of B YU or Utah, but for those who have seen the strides Utah Valley has made in the last few years, it's fantastic to be a part of a university that isn't afraid to move forward and continually improve itself. |