University of Denver Spring 2026

to peer assessment. The average ranking for WCC institutions is 68th in the country, signi fi cantly higher than the Summit League’s average of 211. With DU currently ranked No. 117, the move places the University in the company of many peer institutions and aspirational research partners. Some institutions have found that moving to more prestigious conferences can boost USNWR rankings, in part because of increased national exposure. The combined academic and athletic bene fi ts led the Board of Trustees to give unanimous philanthropic support to the move, allowing the transition to be partially funded by some of the University’s most engaged leaders. Increased exposure is an immediate bene fi t for student-athletes and coaches. The WCC has an eight year, $920 million media rights deal with ESPN, which means games are streamed into millions of homes, as Berlo puts it, “where many of our students come from and student-athletes’ families live.” He added that, with ballooning college sports media deals and the addition of name, image, and likeness (NIL) opportunities for athletes, conference af fi liation is vital to the long-term success of an athletics department. A strong conference also empowers programs chasing regional and national success—something that can be seen in the conferences where other DU teams compete. Berlo got a taste of the new competition last fall, when the men’s soccer team traveled to Oregon to play the University of Portland in the second round of the NCAA tournament. “Their staff was like, ‘Hey, welcome to the venue. We’re excited you’re joining the conference, but we’re not cutting you any slack today,’” says Berlo with a laugh. And they didn’t—the Pioneers kept pace but ultimately lost in overtime. “Those are the types of competitive programs I’m excited to see our student-athletes go up against,” Berlo adds. “They’re teams we’re already facing on these national stages.” A big win for recruiting A stronger academic pro fi le, higher level of competition, and broader national exposure are critical—not just for current athletes and coaches but also for future Pioneers. In basketball, which is the WCC’s fl agship sport, the men’s conference tournament draws roughly three times the viewership of the Summit League tournament. Although Gonzaga, which has won 12 of the past 15 titles, is leaving for the Pac-12, there are several teams remaining who have made appearances in the NCAA tournament known as March Madness. The DU men’s basketball program saw marked improvement this past season under fi rst-year head

University of Denver Denver, CO Founded: 1864 Enrollment: 12,813 Nickname: Pioneers Colors: Crimson and gold

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UNIVERSITY OF DENVER MAGAZINE | SPRING 2026