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  • BIG WEST HISTORY

      BIG WEST STAFF

    Commissioner
    Dennis Farrell

    Associate
    Commissioner

    Rob Halvaks

    Assistant
    Commissioner

    Jody McRoberts

    Assistant
    Commissioner

    Paula Smith

    Information
    Director

    Mike Daniels

    Assistant
    Information Director

    Mike Villamor


    Big West Conference
    2 Corporate Park
    Irvine, CA 92606
    Phone: (949) 261-2525
    Fax: (949) 261-2528

    The Big West Conference enters its thirty-first year of football welcoming a former member back to the league. After having three straight years of a six-team league, Arkansas State joins the conference as a football-only institution. The last change the conference saw was in 1996 when Boise State University, California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo, the University of Idaho, and the University of North Texas became part of the Big West family on July 1, and three of the new members - Boise State, Idaho and North Texas - joined New Mexico State, Nevada and Utah State in competition for the Big West football championship.

    The conference also enters its third year in partnership with the Humanitarian Bowl, which was created as a postseason home for the Big West champion. Played in Boise State’s Bronco Stadium, last year’s game saw the University of Idaho defeat heavily-favored Southern Mississippi, 42-35 in front of over 19,000 fans.

    The 1996 expansion, which stretched the conference's boundaries to include the states of Idaho and Texas, was indicative of the general direction taken over the last two decades by the previously all-California league.

    If birth certificates were given to conferences, the one issued to the then Pacific Coast Athletic Association would be dated July 1, 1969. However, the unofficial history of the conference pre-dates that point of time, extending back to 1967.

    Cal State Los Angeles, Fresno State, Long Beach State and San Diego State were members of the California Collegiate Athletic Association, long recognized as the nation's premier college circuit.

    That conference was classified college division, and therein lay a major source of dissatisfaction. Since 1963, the four institutions had captured 16 national titles. The number swelled to 21 if the mythical football championships were included.

    With no more territory to conquer at the college division, a step up to university ranks had to be considered.

    At the time, San Jose State, UC Santa Barbara and Pacific were members of the West Coast Athletic Conference but were enduring a strained relationship due to the limit of conference sports sponsored. That, plus the fact that national football figures UOP and SJSU were already competing as independents, led the schools to pursue a more broad-based conference alignment.

    Therefore, officials of the seven colleges and universities assembled as a body in May of 1969, tied up loose ends and less than two months later the PCAA was born.

    Direction in the early days of the conference came from such men as Dr. Stephen Goodspeed, vice-chancellor at UC Santa Barbara, the first president and chairman of the founders committee. J. Kenneth Fagans provided guidance as the league’s first commissioner. Jesse T. Hill, one of the nation’s most successful directors of athletics at USC, followed Fagans as the conference’s first full-time commissioner.

    SJSU was already labeled a university division school in all sports when the PCAA emerged. San Diego State and UOP were granted university division status in the summer of 1970 and the remaining conference members shed the college division by 1972.

    The conference’s 30 years have been characterized by expansion and change.

    The original PCAA lineup changed in the early years and by 1975, charter members UCSB and CSLA had dropped football and SDSU bolted the conference in football only. In 1974, Cal State Fullerton moved into the conference. By 1977, UC Irvine joined the Big West and UCSB was back in -- both as non-football playing institutions -- while Utah State became the first non-California member of the circuit, transforming the PCAA into a regional conference.

    Nevada-Las Vegas (1981) and New Mexico State (1984) soon followed suit, bringing the league’s membership to 10 universities.

    In the fall of 1983, the PCAA became the first western conference to incorporate women’s athletic programs into the conference. Charter women’s members UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara and UNLV competed in five championships.

    By the end of 1985, Pacific, Hawaii, Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State, San Diego State, Fresno State and San Jose State had joined the women’s conference. The PCAA upped its women’s sponsorship to eight championships.

    The PCAA began its 20th year of existence by changing its name to the Big West Conference. With the inclusion of the states of Utah, Nevada, and New Mexico into the loop, the term “Big West” more accurately represented the conference.

    The current decade has seen more changes, with last year's expansion the largest ever for the conference. Only three of the Big West's 12 full members -- Long Beach State, UC Santa Barbara and Pacific -- are charter members of the conference.

    In the 30-year history of the conference, numerous Big West football players have received national recognition. In addition, several Big West gridiron greats have been among the nation’s leaders in several statistical categories.

    Nevada’s Alex Van Dyke established a new NCAA mark with 1,854 receiving yards in 1995. In addition, he set a new standard for career receiving per game average at 141.0 yards per game. Van Dyke was the nation’s leading receiver in 1995, averaging 11.7 catches per game.

    UNLV’s Randy Gatewood established new NCAA marks in receptions and receiving yards in 1994. Gatewood caught 23 passes for 363 yards against Idaho to break two long-standing NCAA marks.

    Quarterbacks have made their marks in the Big West. Mike Maxwell of Nevada led the nation in total offense in 1994 and 1995, averaging 318.0 yards and 402.6 yards per game, respectively. It marked the third consecutive season a quarterback from Nevada led the nation in total offense. Chris Vargas did it in 1993, averaging 393.8 yards per game. The two Nevada QBs join a long list of Big West players who are among the NCAA’s career leaders in total offense, including SJSU’s Mike Perez, LBSU’s Doug Gaynor, USU’s Brent Snyder, UNLV’s Randall Cunningham and LBSU’s Todd Dillon.

    In 1986, Kevin Sweeney of Fresno State became the all-time NCAA passing (career yards) leader. That same season, Long Beach State receiver Mark Templeton set the NCAA record for career receptions. Both records have since been broken.

    Three times the league has had the nation’s leading rusher. In 1978, Cal State Fullerton’s Obie Graves led all Division I-A ball carriers with 1,789 yards. In 1987, Ickey Woods of UNLV shuffled his way to an NCAA high 1,658 yards. LeShon Johnson of Northern Illinois recorded the fourth-highest single-season rushing total ever in 1993, gaining 1,976 yards. Johnson, who also led the nation in all-purpose yardage, was a unanimous first-team All-America selection.

    In 1991, Pacific quarterback Troy Kopp led the nation with 37 touchdown passes. Fellow Tiger Ryan Benjamin led the nation in all-purpose yardage in both 1991 (249.6 avg.) and 1992 (236.1) and set the NCAA career standard at 237.8 avg. Pacific’s Aaron Turner ended his career (1989-92) as the most prolific receiver in NCAA history, establishing career records for receptions (266), yards (4,345) and touchdowns (43). This past season, Nevada wide receiver Geoff Noisy eclipsed Turner’s mark and becamse the NCAA’s all-time leading receiver with 295 career receptions.

    The Big West has produced its share of NFL standouts. Four times the league has given the NFL its Rookie of the Year -- SDSU's Dennis Shaw (1970), LBSU’s Terry Metcalf (1973) UNLV's Ickey Woods (1988) and SJSU’s Johnny Johnson (1990). In 1980, former San Diego State star Brian Sipe was named the NFL’s Player of the Year. In 1988, Randall Cunningham (UNLV) was honored with the Maxwell Club’s Bert Bell Award for NFL MVP.

    All-Pros to come out of the Big West include SJSU's defensive stars Carl Ekern, Kim Bokamper, Cody Jones and Louis Wright; and SDSU’s Isaac Curtis, Willie Buchanon and Monte Jackson. Others include Dave Chapple (UCSB), Henry Ellard (FSU), Mike Horan (LBSU), Rulon Jones (USU), and Mike Merriweather (UOP).

    Big West football teams are 13-9-1 in bowl games, including a 10-6 mark vs. the MAC in California Bowl and Las Vegas Bowl contests.

    The Big West Conference has made numerous strides in intercollegiate athletics. In 1990, UNLV captured the national championship in men’s basketball.

    In baseball, Cal State Fullerton claimed its third national title in 1995 by going undefeated in the Regionals and College World Series. The Titans, who also won NCAA crowns in 1979 and 1984, became the first No. 1 seed in CWS history to capture the title. In addition, college baseball's Player of the Year has come from the Big West three times (Tim Wallach, Phil Nevin and Mark Kotsay, all of Cal State Fullerton).

    In women’s volleyball, the Big West has won NCAA crowns six times, including the 1998 title, which Long Beach State claimed after becoming the first team in NCAA history to go undefeated for an entire season. The conference is also regarded as a powerhouse in softball and is well represented nationally in its full lineup of 18 sports (10 women and eight men).

    The Big West Conference office, which is located in Irvine, California, is headed by eighth-year commissioner Dennis Farrell. He is a 19-year veteran of the Big West office, having served in various capacities as an assistant/associate commissioner since joining the conference in 1980. Farrell is the fourth full-time commissioner in the history of the conference (Jesse T. Hill, Lew Cryer, James Haney and Dennis Farrell).

    BIG WEST MEMBERSHIP
    Arkansas State* 1993-95, 99
    Boise State 1996-
    Cal Poly 1996-
    Cal State Fullerton 1975-
    Cal State Los Angeles 1969-74
    Fresno State 1969-92
    Long Beach State 1969-
    Louisiana Tech* 1993-95
    New Mexico State 1984-
    Northern Illinois* 1993-95
    San Diego State 1969-78
    San Jose State 1969-96
     
    Southwestern Louisiana* 1993-95
    UC Irvine 1978-
    UC Santa Barbara 1969-74, 77-
    Idaho 1996-
    UNLV 1982-96
    Nevada 1992-
    North Texas 1996-
    Pacific 1972-
    Utah State 1978-

    Bold = current conference member
    * = football only

    FOOTBALL MEMBERSHIP
    (by length)
    Pacific 27 years
    Fresno State 23 years
    Long Beach State 23 years
    Utah State 21 years
    Cal State Fullerton 18 years
    New Mexico State 15 years
    UNLV 14 years
    Nevada 7 years
    San Diego State 7 years
     
    Arkansas State 3 years
    Boise State 3 years
    Idaho 3 years
    North Texas 3 years
    Cal State Los Angeles 3 years
    Louisiana Tech 3 years
    Northern Illinois 3 years
    Southwestern Louisiana 3 years
    UC Santa Barbara 3 years