In 2026, UC Davis will join the Mountain West Conference in several sports, including basketball, but not football, it announced Tuesday.
The Aggies will continue to play football in the Football Championship Subdivision as an affiliate member of the Big Sky.
“The addition of UC Davis further strengthens the Mountain West's trajectory as it continues to build its proven brand to elevate institutions and student-athletes,” Commissioner Gloria Nevarez said in a statement. “…I think UC Davis brings a lot of positives to the continued growth of the Mountain West.”
UC Davis will compete in all 16 Mountain West-sponsored sports and is expected to remain an affiliate member of the Big West in sports such as water polo and beach volleyball.
“We are grateful to the members of the Mountain West Conference for this incredible opportunity and for sharing our vision of academic and athletic excellence,” UC Davis athletics director Rocko DeLuca said in a statement. “Our campus leaders, students, Aggie alumni, fans, the Davis community and the greater Sacramento region recognize the unique spirit of UC Davis and carry Aggie Pride with them every day. They have invested their time , talent and resources in supporting our growth and success of our fall sports is a clear reflection of those efforts.”
This is the latest move for the new conference, which five of its oldest members (Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State) announced earlier this year that they were leaving to join. The Pac-12's rebuilding effort starting in 2026.
A move to the FBS level in football would not be possible without additional investment, a possibility DeLuca did not rule out.
The Aggies earned the No. 5 seed in the FCS playoffs and will play at No. 4 South Dakota on Saturday. After losing the season opener against Cal, Davis went 11-1 the rest of the way and finished second in the Big Sky Conference behind top-ranked Montana State.
“Our intention is to continue to close the gap between the Big Sky and Missouri Valley conferences,” DeLuca told ESPN. “Obviously, we had a good year this year, but there is some infrastructure and other things that some of those teams have on us that we have to continue to be competitive. And if we do that, depending on what the future holds with FBS in football “You never know what is possible.”
UC Davis' men's basketball team reached the NCAA Basketball Tournament as a No. 16 seed in 2017. Its women's basketball team reached the NCAA Tournament in 2019, 2022, and 2023, losing in the first round on all three occasions. .
