Utah
UVU getting involved in conference realignment
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.
Utah
Here’s who will lead Utah Valley University as its next president
Jon Anderson will be charged with moving the Orem school forward following the death of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk on campus last year.
(Bethany Baker | The Salt Lake Tribune) Incoming UVU President Jon Anderson poses for a photo with his family after an event announcing his selection at Utah Valley University in Orem on Friday, July 17, 2026.
Utah
Beaver County residents set up thousands of sandbags ahead of flashfloods
BEAVER COUNTY, Utah — A massive community effort is underway as volunteers and Beaver County crews distribute thousands of sandbags to protect homes from the potential path of floodwaters.
After the Cottonwood Fires, residents have been waiting for weeks for relief to come in the form of rain, though officials now warn it may come all at once with an increased risk of flooding and debris flow.
Emergency Service Director Les Whitney believes that the fire has left plenty of debris to bring trouble for residents.
“We got a lot of water. We’re bringing debris with it, so tree branches, tree limbs, logs, lots of different size firewood, and that’s all in the creeks. We’re worried about that plugging up our bridges and stuff, so we have heavy equipment and excavators located in strategic places so that we can keep those bridges open,” said Whitney.
An estimated 140 homes and condominiums were spared from the flames, but remain in the paths of floodwaters.
Residents can also pick up sandbags at the Beaver County Sheriff’s Office or at the Beaver County Rodeo Fairgrounds.
Utah
Utah man arrested again for allegedly abusing dog twice in three months
EAGLE MOUNTAIN — An Eagle Mountain man currently on pretrial release in 4th District Court who is accused of abusing his dog has been arrested again for allegedly punching the same animal.
Keith Reaves Davis, 43, was booked into the Utah County Jail on Wednesday for investigation of aggravated cruelty to an animal.
Utah County sheriff’s deputies were called Wednesday afternoon to a grocery store on a report that a man was beating his dog after it had gotten off its leash and was stopped by a bystander, according to a police booking affidavit.
“I reviewed security camera footage from the grocery store, and an individual matching the description of the suspect was seen holding the dog in the air by one paw and repeatedly striking the dog on the right hind leg area. I observed the male strike the dog several times before dropping the dog from approximately 1-2 feet. The strikes appeared to be as hard as the male could hit,” the arresting deputy wrote in the affidavit. “The dog did not cry out or whimper as if the dog was accustomed to the abuse.”
When questioned, Davis “admitted to striking the dog because it was not behaving,” the affidavit states.
An animal control officer who responded to the scene to take custody of the dog noted it was the same dog he had taken from Davis exactly three months earlier during another animal abuse investigation.
In that case, Davis was charged in 4th District Court with aggravated cruelty to an animal, a class A misdemeanor; and public intoxication, a class C misdemeanor, after deputies received a tip from a neighbor that a dog was being abused at Davis’ home, according to charging documents. When questioned, Davis “acknowledged hitting his dog as punishment,” the charges state.
Deputies also reviewed videos that the neighbor had filmed. The neighbor told investigators “there was blood from the dog on the ground of the garage and (the neighbor) can hear the dog screaming as if it’s being hurt. Deputies got the videos from the (neighbor) and you can hear very loudly the dog screaming and crying with a lot of loud banging noises. In one of the videos, you can hear the dog sounding like it is being choked by a collar and is grasping for air,” a police booking affidavit states.
Davis’ next court hearing in the April case is scheduled for July 28.
In their latest booking report, sheriff’s deputies note that they “believe further harm will be inflicted on this dog if it is released back to the male a second time,” and have recommended the dog not be returned to Davis.
The Key Takeaways for this article were generated with the assistance of large language models and reviewed by our editorial team. The article, itself, is solely human-written.
-
Nebraska1 minute agoNebraska DHHS evaluating USDA guidelines that could limit food access for undocumented immigrants
-
Nevada7 minutes agoNevada secures $30 million from generic drugmaker in nationwide antitrust case
-
New Hampshire13 minutes agoAntique And Vintage Market | Yard Sales | Farmers Markets | Music | More: The Portsmouth Patch Weekender
-
New Jersey19 minutes agoMeteorite that crashed into New Jersey home contains building blocks of life, astronomers say
-
New Mexico25 minutes agoCrews battling tank battery fire in Lea County
-
North Carolina31 minutes agoSBI IT volunteers pack 5,200 meals, 1,300 food bags for North Carolina families
-
North Dakota37 minutes agoClyde Oster
-
Ohio43 minutes agoHumane agents removing chickens from Youngstown property