Western Football Conference (United States)
 |
| Association | NCAA |
|---|---|
| Division | II |
| Region | Pacific coast |
The Western Football Conference was an NCAA Division II scholarship-awarding football conference that existed from 1982 to 1993.
Among its member schools were (from 1982–1992 unless otherwise noted):
- Santa Clara
- Cal Poly SLO
- Cal State Northridge
- Cal Lutheran (1985–1989)
- Sacramento State (1985–1992)
- Southern Utah (1986–1992)
- Portland State
- Cal Poly Pomona (1982)
Its founding, and only commissioner was Vic Buccola who had been the athletic director at Cal Poly from 1973 to 1981. He then became a founder and commissioner of American West Conference.
The WFC folded in part because of a new NCAA rule that prohibited member institutions who competed at the Division I (D-I) level in other sports from competing at the Division II (D-II) level in football. Of the eight member schools:
- Four (Cal Poly SLO, Sacramento State, Southern Utah, and Portland State) are currently members of the Division I FCS Big Sky Conference.
- One (California Lutheran) is a member of the Division III Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC).
- And three have dropped football as a varsity sport - Cal Poly Pomona in 1983, Santa Clara in 1993, and Cal State Northridge in 2001 (following a brief stint in the Big Sky). In all other sports, Cal Poly Pomona is currently a member of the Division II California Collegiate Athletic Association, Santa Clara is a member of the Division I West Coast Conference, and Cal State Northridge is a member of the Division I Big West Conference.
The WFC Scholar Athlete of the Year Award was named for Santa Clara's coach Pat Malley. Its recipients include:
- 1987: Tracy Morris Downs, M.D.—Cal Lutheran