Apr. 1—BROOKINGS — The South Dakota State wrestling program is saying goodbye to the Big 12 conference and joining the Pac-12.
The Jackrabbits spent a decade as affiliate members of the Big 12, starting in 2015 when the Big 12 added the six schools that had made up the Western Wrestling Conference. Three of those former WWC teams will join SDSU in making the move — North Dakota State, Northern Colorado and Air Force. Northern Illinois has already been announced as a fifth affiliate member of Pac-12 wrestling.
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The move goes into effect for the 2026-27 season. The addition of those five brings the Pac-12’s wrestling membership to nine and lowers the Big 12’s numbers to nine. Oregon State, Cal State Bakersfield, Little Rock and Cal Poly make up the rest of the Pac-12. Conferences require a minimum of six members to retain NCAA automatic qualification for its annual league champions.
The move will be seen by some as a step down, as the Jackrabbits are leaving a conference that included wrestling powers such as Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Iowa State, as well as Arizona State, Missouri, West Virginia and Northern Iowa.
However, given that SDSU routinely schedules duals against powerful Big Ten programs there’s no reason to think they can’t still schedule their former Big 12 peers for non-conference action.
SDSU coach Damion Hahn cited the opportunity to host a conference championship as one of the reasons to make the move. The Big 12 tournament is annually held in Tulsa.
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“We are extremely excited about the opportunity to join the Pac-12 conference as an official member in the sport of wrestling,” said head coach Damion Hahn. “The opportunities it gives our student-athletes to compete at a high level, while continuing to strengthen the Pac-12 conference, are special. The ability to host a conference championship, compete against top teams during the regular season, and chase individual goals is what our wrestlers come to South Dakota State University for. We are thrilled to be a part of strengthening the Pac-12 conference in the sport of wrestling. Excitement and big things are on the horizon for the Pac-12.”
