Conference realignment has reared itself again in Utah. This time, it is Utah Valley University that is on the move.

The Big West Conference announced Wednesday morning that the Wolverines will officially join the conference in 2026-27, leaving behind the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). UVU will join the Big West as a full member. It is a reunion of sorts, as UVU was a member of the Big West from 1978 to 2005.

“We are thrilled to welcome Utah Valley University to The Big West,” Big West commissioner Dan Butterly said in a statement. “UVU brings a tradition of competitive excellence and a rapidly growing athletic program that aligns perfectly with our membership and vision for the future. Their addition expands our geographic footprint into a vibrant and strategically significant region, while elevating the level of competition across the board. We look forward to the energy and excitement the Wolverines will bring to The Big West.”

UVU, which sponsors 14 Division 1 sports, will compete in the Big West in:

• Baseball.
• Men’s basketball.
• Women’s basketball.
• Men’s cross country.
• Women’s cross country.
• Men’s golf.
• Women’s golf.
• Men’s soccer.
• Women’s soccer.
• Softball.
• Men’s track and field.
• Women’s track & field.
• Women’s volleyball.

Wrestling will continue to be a part of the Big 12 conference.

“Utah Valley University is proud to be part of The Big West. This marks an important milestone for the university, our 47,000 students, 125,000 alumni, and nearly 400 student-athletes,” UVU president Dr. Astrid S. Tuminez said in a statement “We look forward to competing and growing in a new and dynamic environment, and learning from our peers in The Big West.”

Added UVU athletic director Dr. Jared Sumsion: “The Big West is an outstanding conference with a proud history of success at the highest levels of Division I competition. We are excited to take on this new challenge and appreciate The Big West’s confidence in our university and athletic program.”

The addition of UVU brings Big West membership up to 11. UVU rejoining the league can be traced back directly to the decisions of Texas and Oklahoma to leave the Big 12 for the SEC.

Here’s the turn of the events that led to UVU’s return to the Big West:

• Texas and Oklahoma leave the Big 12 for the SEC.
• USC and UCLA leave the Pac-12 for the Big Ten.
• BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF join the Big 12 (the latter three defecting from the American Athletic Conference).
• Oregon and Washington leave the Pac-12 and join the Big Ten.
• Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah leave the Pac-12 and join the Big 12.
• Cal and Stanford leave the Pac-12 and join the ACC.
• Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State announce that they are leaving the Mountain West Conference to remake the Pac-12 alongside Oregon State and Washington State.
• The Mountain West adds Hawaii and UC-Davis (previously Big West Conference schools) as full-time members in wake of defections to the Pac-12.
• UVU joins the Big West.

Following a full tank to secure the best odds in the NBA Draft Lottery, the Utah Jazz still ended up with the fifth overall pick.

Despite finishing with only 17 wins, which was the lowest in the NBA, the Jazz still fell short of the first overall pick. The league changed the lottery system in 2019, and ever since then, the worst regular season team has failed to win the lottery.

Regardless, the Jazz hold a top-5 pick and an opportunity to bring in elite talent to a roster that desperately needs it. Utah was banking on winning the Cooper Flagg sweepstakes all season, but they may have to fixate on one of Flagg’s teammates instead.

A new report from NBA draft analyst Krysten Peek for Hoops HQ suggests the Jazz, along with the Charlotte Hornets, are interested in Kon Knueppel with their first-round pick.

“Teams like the Utah Jazz (No. 5) and Charlotte Hornets (No. 4) are showing interest in the versatile guard (Kon Knueppel) and like his ability to seamlessly slide in alongside a star, ball-dominant player like Cooper Flagg and still find ways to positively impact the game,” Peek wrote.

Knueppel was a sharpshooter at Duke and connected on 40.6% of his tries from three-point land in his freshman season. In 39 games started, Knueppel averaged 14.4 points, four rebounds, 2.7 assists, and one steal.

Standing at 6-foot-7, Knueppel has the height to translate to the professional level as a shooting guard. He showed out in the biggest moments and averaged an insane 55.6% from three in the NCAA tournament in March.

As of now, the Jazz are employing Collin Sexton as the go-to shooting guard. If they want to bring in a better shooter, Knueppel could be the answer if the Hornets pass on him.

As Peek mentioned in her report, the Jazz are interested in how Knueppel played alongside a star player in Flagg. If the Jazz want to complement Lauri Markkanen with another offensive threat, Knueppel would 100% be the guy for the job.

Markkanen has been involved in plenty of trade rumors over the past few years, but he signed a long-term deal to stay in Utah last summer. Drafting Knueppel might convince Markkanen that the team is headed in the right direction and keep him planted in Salt Lake City for a few more years.

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ELKO, Nev. — A Louisiana man who jumped onto a train heading to Utah died after falling off it early Monday, Nevada authorities say.

About 4:35 a.m., Elko Central Dispatch answered a call from a woman who stated she feared her friend had fallen off the train, according to Elko County’s Sheriff’s Office.

The woman informed emergency responders that she and her friend, identified as James “Ivy” Woods, 24, from Shreveport, Louisiana, had jumped illegally onto a train near Elko, according to the sheriff’s office. She told deputies that she fell asleep shortly after jumping onto the train. When she awoke, she did not see Woods and called the police.

Sheriff’s deputies and Union Pacific Railroad staff began searching the area where someone may have fallen off the train. A Union Pacific Railroad employee found Woods’ body near Wells, a little more than 45 miles northeast of Elko, about two hours after the initial call.

Authorities say it appeared that Woods was hit by the train as he fell off, sustaining fatal injuries. It wasn’t immediately clear what caused him to fall off the train.