11 04 25 DU's VP of Athletics Josh Berlo discusses joining West Coast Conference

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Gina Gondek, David Cale, and Keenan Dixon here on Colorado's
Morning News. It's the University of Denver will be joining
the West Coast Conference next July nine. Do you sports
teams will be moving from the Summit League to the WCC,
giving the conference ten schools joining us On the KWA
Common Spirit Health hotline is do you use Athletic Director?

(00:21):
It's Josh Burlough. Josh, thank you so much for your time.

Speaker 2 (00:23):
This morning, Our pleasure, Good morning.

Speaker 1 (00:25):
Hey, tell us a little bit about the excitement and
exposure that you expect this could bring to DU now
moving to the West Coast Conference.

Speaker 2 (00:33):
A tremendous buzz here on campus with Friday's announcement. The
Summit League has been a fantastic home for a dozen
plus years, but we really are affiliated with the West.
It's where our students come from, on our alumni reside,
and our future students are located. And to be in
those markets with really high quality academic private institutions that

(00:55):
look a lot like us and have a championship pedigree,
it feels like a nat fulfit, is what I've called it,
and it just really does feel that way.

Speaker 3 (01:03):
Josh, how does it work where some sports are staying
in the Summit League and some are moving to the
West Coast Conference. I think most how has that decided
and what are the ramifications of that?

Speaker 2 (01:15):
Yeah, you know, it really is a smooth transition. The
sports that are staying in their respective conferences. Hockey, gymnastics,
the lacrosse is skiing the West Coast Conference and the
sponsored those sports, and those sports are in some really
strong conferences. So we're very fortunate that it was a
perfect fit. It was the puzzle pieces came together well,

(01:36):
and our sport portfolio works really well for the West
Coast Conference and their championship hosting profile works well for US.

Speaker 4 (01:46):
Josh, having worked for two years in the Summit League,
I always kind of had this thought in the back
of my mind, Well, the University of Denver seems like
a perfect fit for the WCC and kind of that
style of players that are recruited, especially on the basketball
You kind of look at the roster makeup and things
like that. But now you're going to this new conference

(02:06):
and you have an opportunity to kind of really establish
yourself as one of those programs that could develop and grow.
We've seen Saint Mary's do it out West. We've seen
San Francisco have a ton of success. How do you
guys build to that level, especially on the basketball court,
and how the basketball seasons underway?

Speaker 2 (02:25):
Yeah, no question, we got underway last night, which was exciting.
And you know, I think if you look at all
the programs, all of our varsity programs had so much
national success, and so many of them. Basketball is a
place we just haven't quite cracked the code, and being
in the West Coast Conference will unlock some recruiting opportunities
that we haven't had in the past. Of course, it's

(02:47):
going to be a challenge competitively with the strength and
quality of those programs historically, but we have a proof
of concept here and we're embracing that challenge. You know,
We've got some work to do, and that's behind the
scenes and making sure that the program is supported a
level that they can compete. Some facility efforts that are
already underway in fundraising and all of the pieces to

(03:07):
help your programs be successful. But really it's about following
the blueprint that we've had here at DU and so
many of our sports that have been so successful. I
believe in the last decade We've got five different programs
go to final or frozen four. So leaning into the
advantages that our programs have our incredible campus, are amazing city,
and the academic quality and the opportunity to be a

(03:29):
student athlete at a pretty special place that supports all
of our programs in a way to empower them to
reach their potential.

Speaker 1 (03:35):
Josh, you mentioned some of the facility improvements or some
of the upgrades that could be seen peeling back the
curtain a little bit, what could those look like as
a result of this conference moves.

Speaker 2 (03:45):
Yeah, it's exciting times. The Richie Center, it was ahead
of its time in the late nineties, but we're knocking
on a quarter century. So we've been working on it
piece by piece with some renovations Internally. One of the
things we did announces that we'll be replacing the seed
at Hamilton Gymnasium and also getting Magnus Arena ready for
basketball again as ticket demand would dictate. So you'll start

(04:08):
to see some refreshes, particularly in and around the Hamilton space.
We just put in a video board at at our
soccer stadium about two weeks ago, so continuing to refresh.
Really what was a visionary complex at the time and
taking it into the next quarter century.

Speaker 4 (04:25):
Josh, how much of this move was sort of dictated
by the volatility in college sports and finding a secure
spot that doesn't really have a ton of movement in
the WCC. I mean, we know Gonzaga is leaving the conference,
but other than that, there's not a ton of other movement. Meanwhile,
the Summit League has had a lot of issues with
trying to retain some schools. I know there's been some

(04:46):
discussions about North Dakota State and South Dakota State potentially
going FBS and maybe leaving the conference altogether, you know,
just to make sure that you guys still have those
automatic qualifiers and spots to get into to national tournaments.
How important was that for this move?

Speaker 2 (05:03):
You know, I think despite some of the I would
say constant conference alignment we've seen in the last five
to seven years, the West Coast Conference has been a
goal of du dating back to the late nineties when
the department was elevated Division one. And I've heard from
five or six of my predecessors that had worked on it,
and we've got some historical knowledge here with board members

(05:26):
and senior leaders who know that this has been an
objective for a long time, so I would say that
was really the piece of it. This has been believed
to be again the natural fit for DU for many
decades and the opportunity presented itself to make that transition.
And to your initial point, it has been one of
the most if not the most stable non football conference

(05:48):
out there, many of the members dating back to most
of the members dating back to the fifties and the seventies,
so it's certainly on the upside. Peach. We were quite
comfortable in the Summit League, but there's no question that
as you look look at non football conferences, the West
Coast is as strong as they get.

Speaker 3 (06:05):
DEU Athletic director Josh Burlow Josh, best of luck with
the change, and thanks so much for coming on with.

Speaker 2 (06:11):
Us this morning. Thank you have a great day.