The Broncos have won three NCAA national championships. The men's cross country team won the NCAA title in 1964 and 1965. WMU finished as national runners up in 1955 for baseball and 1958 for men's cross country. WMU won a National Championship in Division I hockey in 2025.
The facilities include Waldo Stadium (football), University Arena (men's and women's basketball, volleyball), Lawson Arena (hockey), Hyames Field (baseball), Ebert Field (softball), Sorensen Courts/West Hills Athletic Club (men's and women's tennis), and Kanley Track (women's track and field). The soccer teams compete at the WMU Soccer Complex located near the Parkview Campus.
WMU athletic teams were once known as the Hilltoppers, a reference to the school's location on top of Prospect Hill, but changed their nickname in 1939 to the Broncos to avoid confusion with teams of other schools such as the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers.[2]John Gill, an assistant coach on the football team who later served as head coach, coined the new athletic nickname after approval for the name change was granted by the school's athletic board. In 2011, WMU commissioned artist Revere La Noue to create a 6,500-square-foot building wrap representing the Broncos for the 2011 ArtPrize competition. WMU president John Dunn has said that the work, "Epic Broncos", captures the "history and pride of being a Bronco".[3]
Varsity sports
A member of the West Division of the Mid-American Conference, Western Michigan sponsors teams in 6 men's and 9 women's NCAA sanctioned sports.[4]
Western Michigan is a member of the Mid-American Conference
Broncos baseball coach Billy Gernon conducts a pitching change during a 2014 game against Michigan State
The baseball team has represented WMU since its first season in 1911, compiling an overall record of 1,822–1349–23 (.574) through 2012.[5] They have appeared in the College World Series six times, most recently in 1963. In the 1955 College World Series, WMU finished as the NCAA runner-up, losing to Wake Forest 7–6 in the championship game.[5]
The Western Michigan Broncos football team represents Western Michigan University (WMU) in NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) competition. Based in Kalamazoo, Michigan, the team competes in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) and has been a member since 1948. The Broncos were established in 1906 and have developed a strong regional presence over the decades. They have claimed a total of four MAC championships—in 1966, 1976, 1988, and most recently in 2016 under head coach P.J. Fleck. Waldo Stadium, their home since 1939, has been the site of many memorable games and is known for its rowdy student section and intimate atmosphere.
Western Michigan's most historic season came in 2016 when the team completed a perfect 13–0 regular season, winning the MAC Championship and earning a spot in the Cotton Bowl Classic—one of the prestigious New Year’s Six bowl games. This marked the Broncos' first-ever appearance in a New Year’s Six bowl and brought national attention to the program. Although they fell to Wisconsin 24–16, the season is widely regarded as the pinnacle of Western Michigan football history. That year, P.J. Fleck's "Row the Boat" mantra became a symbol of the team’s unity and resilience, solidifying the 2016 Broncos as one of the greatest squads in MAC history.
Western Michigan celebrates first-ever National title.
The Western Michigan Broncos men's ice hockey team, founded in 1973, represents Western Michigan University in NCAA Division I play and has grown into one of the nation's respected programs. Originally a member of the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA), the Broncos claimed their first CCHA Tournament Championship in 1986, earning their inaugural NCAA Tournament appearance. Now competing in the powerhouse National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC), Western Michigan has made several NCAA Tournament appearances over the years, including a resurgence in the 2010s and 2020s under strong leadership. The pinnacle of the program's history came in 2025, when the Broncos captured their first NCAA National Championship defeating Boston University 6-2, a landmark achievement that cemented their status among college hockey’s elite.
The Broncos moved men's soccer to the Missouri Valley Conference in 2023, following the MAC discontinuing sponsorship of men's soccer after the 2022 season.
Soccer (women's)
On November 9, 2013, Western Michigan women's soccer team won the Mid-American Conference tournament championship and a trip to the NCAA tournament. The MAC Championship is the second for the program, coming 10 years from the first one in 2003.
The volleyball team has been competing at Western Michigan University since 1965. In that span, the team has won 10 MAC regular season championships (1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 2000, 2008 and 2023) and 7 MAC tournament championships (1982, 1987, 1988, 1989, 2000, 2014 and 2023). Through the 2022 season, WMU's all-time overall record is 1064–778–9 (.577) and conference record is 426–222 (.657).
The Broncos are coached by Colleen Munson. In her eighteen years at WMU, she has compiled a 349–220 (.613) record.
WMU won the MAC regular season championship the first eight seasons it was in existence without losing a match, compiling an 86–0 record.
In 2013, the Broncos went undefeated in the league (18–0) and went on to win the tournament championship. They defeated No.7 seeded Auburn in the first round of the 2023 NCAA Division I women's volleyball tournament and will take on No. 2 Louisville.
The men's cross country team won the NCAA Division I Championship in 1964 and 1965,[7] and finished as national runners up in 1958. While the men's cross country and track program isn't currently active, as it was a casualty of cost cutting measures by then President Judith Bailey in the 2003-04 school year,[8] their accomplishments are recognized, and the 1964 and 1965 teams were inducted into the university's athletic hall of fame.[9] The university did consider reinstating the men's program in 2009, after then President John Dunn agreed to offer a proposal to the Board of Trustees, pending a first year financial commitment of $300,000 and a willingness to support the program on a recurring basis through contributions and estate planning. One of the co-signers, and leading vocal proponents of the proposal, was former Broncos track coach George Dales, who coached the 1964, and 1965 national championship teams, the 1958 runner up team, and also lead the Broncos to a collective 9 MAC Championships from 1953 until his retirement from coaching in 1970. It was stated in November 2009, by then acting athletics director Kathy Beauregard, that even if the potential financial goals were met and further, the program was given approval by the Board of Trustees after a meeting with administration in December of that year, it would not be able to be reinstated by the 2010-11 school year.[8] The school ended up not going through with the initiative as of 2025. Dales died in 2017, at the age of 96.[10]
The women's gymnastics team won the MAC Championship in 1986, 1987, 2006, 2013 and 2024.[11] The team was Co-Champions with Central Michigan University after tying scores in 2013.[12]
In October 2007, the women's track and field sprint medley relay was ranked #1 in the NCAA by Track and Field News.[13]
The men's tennis team has won both the MAC Championship and regular season championship a record 26 times, with their last MAC Championship coming in 2022 and first being in 1950.[14] In 1999, the format of the MAC Men's Tennis Championship changed as the Mid-American Conference introduced East and West divisions. A new tournament was introduced switching from a Championship competition based around a cumulative school's score of won matches of individual players singles and doubles games; to a best of 4 games, single-elimination match tournament with rostered teams, with consolation matches to determine lower rankings. In first year of the new tournament, after besting the University of Toledo team in the First Round, and surpassing the team from Miami University, which hosted the tournament, in the Semifinal match; the Broncos beat the team from Ball State University in the inaugural Championship match, 4 games to 2. This performance won the Broncos their first MAC Men's Tennis Championship since 1981, and the first under the new tournament format for any member school of the MAC. Since 1999, they have won 14 MAC Championships, more than any other school in the Mid-American Conference.[14]
Awards
For the 2010–11 season, WMU was awarded the Cartwright Award, given to one MAC program each season for excellence in academics, athletics and citizenship.[15] For the season, WMU won the Jacoby Trophy (most successful women's program) and finished second for the Reese Trophy (most successful men's program).[15]
Regular season championships (11): 2013–14 (West Division) • 2012–13 (West Division) • 2010–11 (West Division) • 2008–09 (West Division) • 2007–08 (West Division) • 2004–05 (West Division) • 2003–04 (West Division) • 1997–98 (West Division) • 1980–81 • 1975–76 • 1951–52
Tournament (2): 2014 • 2004
Basketball (Women's)(3)
Regular season championship (1): 1999–2000 (West Division)
Although the sport of synchronized skating is not an official NCAA sport Western Michigan is home to an internationally competitive synchronized skating team, who have medaled at competitions around the world. The Bronco's synchronized skating program consists of a senior team, which competes internationally as well as a collegiate level team which is competitive among the top university and collegiate teams from around the United States. The team lost their athletic funding and Varsity status along with Men's Cross Country and Track & Field in the 2003–2004 competitive season, and became a Club sport.
Rugby
Founded in 1990, Western Michigan plays college rugby in the Mid-American Conference of Division 1AA.[16] The Broncos reached the MAC semifinals in 2014.[17] Recently, the men's rugby team qualified for the D1AA XV's Fall Playoff Nationals in 2017 [18] and 2018.[19] The Broncos play their home matches at Versluis Dickinson park in Kalamazoo, and are led by head coach Mark Allen.
Championships
United States Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association (USCSSA) Championships
Snowboard Team (Combined Men's and Women's)
2005
American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) Division 2 Championships
Ice Hockey (Men's)
1996
National Intercollegiate Flying Association (NIFA) National Championships
↑ Plummer, William; Floyd, Larry C. (2013). A Series Of Their Own: History Of The Women's College World Series. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States: Turnkey Communications Inc. ISBN978-0-9893007-0-4.
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