Gonzaga officially joins the Pac-12 as new era begins

It's been known for well over a year, but on Wednesday it became official: the Gonzaga Bulldogs are members of the Pac-12 Conference.

July 1, 2026, is the start of a new academic year and the official rebirth of the Pac-12, a conference on the brink of elimination that managed to survive with just two original members, in Oregon State and Washington State.

OSU and WSU worked quickly to ensure the conference would not fold, and they were able to resurrect the 108-year-old league by grabbing Boise State, San Diego State, Utah State, Colorado State, and Fresno State from the Mountain West, Texas State from the Sun Belt, and Gonzaga from the West Coast Conference.

This represents Gonzaga's foray into a football conference, although the basketball should be highly competitive as well. There are still plenty of details to come regarding the Pac-12's media rights deal and conference tournament structure, but it is clear this move will help keep the Zags competitive in the new NIL era of college athletics.

What it means for Gonzaga basketball

Gonzaga Bulldogs head coach Mark Few. | Photo by Erik Smith

While it's not the old 'conference of champions' which featured elite basketball programs like UCLA and Arizona - not to mention big-name brands like Oregon, USC, Stanford, and in-state rival Washington - this new-look Pac-12 is still a nice step up for Gonzaga.

San Diego State and Utah State, in particular, are both consistently excellent basketball programs with huge, dedicated fan bases, and GU's history against SDSU makes them a de facto rival in place of Saint Mary's.

Boise State is coached by longtime Gonzaga assistant Leon Rice, and the two programs have not played each other since Rice took over back in 2010 - giving this regional matchup an added flair for 2026-27.

While neither OSU or WSU was a major threat in the WCC, Gonzaga did boost the rivalry against both teams with those matchups - and a new head coach in Corvallis, Justin Joyner, could ignite things even more in the new league.

While new matchups against bigger schools are nice, the most notable change for Gonzaga will be on the financial side. Specific figures are not known regarding the Pac-12's media rights deal - which includes CBS, The CW, USA Network, and a direct-to-consumer package via Pac-12 Enterprises - but even low-end estimates of $8M annually dwarf what Gonzaga was earning in the WCC.

Plus, added exposure on linear networks will further grow Gonzaga's brand recognition, and a stronger conference without as many weak teams at the bottom will help GU's strength of schedule when it comes time for the NCAA Tournament.

Other benefits

Gonzaga women's basketball head coach Lisa Fortier. | Gonzaga Bulldogs On SI

Gonzaga is not just joining the Pac-12 in men's basketball, of course, as they are taking every sport into the new league. This move is a big benefit for coach Lisa Fortier on the women's side as well, with San Diego State, Colorado State, and Oregon State all representing quality WBB programs that make this conference far stronger than the notoriously weak WCC.

This move will benefit Gonzaga's resurgent baseball program as well, particularly with the rich history and recent dominance of the Oregon State Beavers. SDSU and Texas State were both quality programs last season as well, and the team added an affiliate member in Dallas Baptist - who has a strong history on the diamond.

Gonzaga's historic run under coach Mark Few, combined with strong leadership from the University and a willingness to invest in athletics, has led to an incredible, seemingly impossible result for this small, Jesuit institution in Spokane, WA, and 2026-27 will be a fun year of celebration for Gonzaga in this new chapter that is now, officially, underway.

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