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The race for the 2025-26 Dennis Farrell Big West Commissioner’s Cup has tightened after the completion of the winter sports of basketball and swimming and diving with a shuffle in the standings and the differential from first to second going from more than 58 points to single digits. 

Cal Poly remains in the driver’s seat heading into the spring with an average tally of 158.1 points after basketball. UC Irvine surged up two spots into second after taking home regular-season titles in both men’s and women’s basketball with an average of 149.6 points. The Anteaters women finished the year with a school record 26 wins and a trip to the WBIT. Meanwhile the UCI men went to consecutive NITs after finishing as Big West Championship runners-up. 

Holding steady in third is UC Davis (135.6), followed by the biggest mover of the winter after claiming both the men’s and women’s swimming & diving crowns, Hawai’i. The Rainbow Wahine and Warriors come in at 128.6 points to land in fourth after ending the fall in ninth. Along with top billing in the pool, the men’s basketball team claimed second-place points while a late-season hot streak propelled the women to a fourth-place showing. 

UC Santa Barbara finds itself in fifth after the winter with 123.7 points as Cal State Fullerton is right on their heels with 120.0 points. Women’s basketball co-regular season champion UC San Diego is up a spot to seventh with 110.0 points and CSUN also bumped up one place with 108.6 points. Rounding out the standings through winter competition are Long Beach State (98.6), UC Riverside (60.0) and Cal State Bakersfield (48.8). 

Showcasing the overall strength and parity of the season, the Anteaters, Aggies, ‘Bows, Titans, Tritons, Matadors and Highlanders all saw improvements to their averages as spring competition continues to progress. 

Six departments have claimed the Commissioner’s Cup since its inception 27 years ago. Recent history has seen back-to-back first-time winners in UC Irvine (2024-25) and Cal Poly (2023-24). UC Santa Barbara and Long Beach State each have 10 Cups to fill the trophy case. Cal State Fullerton has hoisted the trophy once and former member Pacific earned the first two Commissioner’s Cups. Two Cups were not awarded, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In determining a victor for the Dennis Farrell Big West Commissioner’s Cup, points are awarded based on either regular-season finish or Big West postseason results in all 21 conference-sponsored sports, and the member-institution with the highest average point total is declared the winner.   

Regular-season finish determines the designated point tallies in baseball, basketball, soccer, softball, tennis, indoor volleyball and water polo. In the sports of cross country, golf, track & field, beach volleyball and swimming and diving, the points are awarded based on finish at each respective Big West Championship. In the case of ties in all sports, points are awarded by combining points and dividing them equally among the tied teams.  

For the sport-by-sport breakdown and to view the history of the Dennis Farrell Big West Commissioner’s Cup, please visit bigwest.org/CommissionersCup.