After nine years in Sun Belt, UT-Arlington to rejoin Western Athletic Conference

UT-Arlington is going back to the Western Athletic Conference.

UTA spent one season in the WAC in 2012-13 as it transitioned from the Southland Conference to the Sun Belt Conference. Now it’s headed back to the WAC.

”We are thrilled to join the Western Athletic Conference and help bolster a league that shares a similar strategic vision, is in the best interest of our student-athletes and enhances the university’s profile,” UTA athletic director Jim Baker said in a news release. “The WAC’s short- and long-term objectives, goals and overall mission run parallel to UTA’s, and we envision this move being advantageous for all parties.”

UTA is expected to join the WAC on July 1 and begin playing in the league next fall. It will be the 15th member of the WAC and eighth school based in Texas, joining Abilene Christian, Lamar, Sam Houston, Stephen F. Austin, Tarleton State, UT-Rio Grande Valley and Incarnate Word.

UTA was a charter member of the Southland Conference when it formed in 1963 and stayed in that league before moving to the WAC in 2012-13. It has spent the last nine years in the Sun Belt.

The WAC was formed in 1962.

“UTA will be a great addition to the league,” WAC commissioner Brian Thornton said in a statement. “During this process, it became clear that this partnership would be mutually beneficial. UTA brings a stellar academic reputation and commitment to excelling athletically.”

UTA is the fourth-largest university in the state with a global enrollment of 47,093.