Intercollegiate Athletics (ICA) became an independent department on July 1, 1962, when it ceased to be a subdivision of the Associated Students of the University of Washington. Athletics had been part of the Associated Students since 1901, but had also been the shared responsibility of a series of individual faculty, student associations, and committees. One of the first faculty members in charge of athletics was Charles Vander Veer, who was appointed professor of Physical Culture and Hygiene and Director of Gymnasium in the mid-1890s. About the same time that Vander Veer was appointed, students formed the Athletic Association and the Women's Athletic Association. Then in 1899 athletic competition came under the domain of the newly established Student Assembly. The responsibilities of both the athletic associations and the Student Assembly were taken over in 1901 by the Associated Students, the assembly's successor. The Associated Students formed an athletics committee, which was subordinate to the Associated Students' Executive Committee. The Associated Students' 1901 constitution also stipulated that managers for the different sports would be elected by the general membership of the Associated Students. In 1903, however, the University faculty established the position of General Manager of Athletics. This position was to be filled by election from a list of nominees controlled by the faculty and alumni. Alumni had already been serving on the Associated Students' Executive Committee and in 1905 when the Executive Committee became the Board of Control, faculty members also began serving on the Board. Athletics thus became a shared responsibility of students, faculty and alumni.

The 1890s and early 1900s saw several developments in the University's young athletic endeavors. 1892 was the year of the first official football game (against the Seattle Athletic Club), the year that purple and gold were chosen as the school colors, and the year the University had its first official coaching staff. By the mid-1890s, a gymnasium was built and the Department of Physical Culture and Hygiene had been established with the hiring of Charles Vander Veer. Vander Veer took particular interest in developing the track team and under his guidance plans were made for the construction of a track at Denny Field. In 1901, the U.W. Amateur Rowing Association was chartered and a group of Seattle businessmen supplied the money to purchase three racing shells. In 1902 the U.W. hired its first paid rowing coach, James Knight. Benjamin Franklin Roller succeeded Vander Veer as Director of Physical Culture from 1904 to 1906 and was instrumental in the University's purchase of the largest wrestling mat on the west coast. In 1909, David Hall was chosen as the first head basketball coach. In 1917 Hiram Conibear, who had been hired at the U.W. as a football trainer and track coach, became crew coach. He developed a new stroke and shell that helped make the U.W. a formidable regatta opponent. In the 1920s, U.W. athletes, previously known as the Sun Dodgers, became the Huskies.

Early athletic managers included J. Arthur Younger, Claude J. Hunt, Darwin Meisnest, Earl F. Campbell, Charles Frankland, Ray L. Eckmann and Carl V. Kilgore. The Intercollegiate Athletics administrative files begin with managers Roland E. Belshaw (1942-43), Alvin M. Ulbrickson (1943-45), and Harvey Cassill (1945-56). The position of Manager of Athletics was retitled Director of Athletics during Cassill's administration in the late 1940s. George Briggs served as Director of Athletics from 1956 until 1960, when he resigned and was replaced by Jim Owens, who had already been head football coach since January 1957. Owens continued in both capacities until 1969 when he gave up the directorship and continued as head football coach until resigning in 1974. Owens was succeeded by Joseph Kearney (1969-75), who was named Director of Sports Programs (the new but temporary name of the department). Kearney was followed by Mike Lude (1976-1990) and Barbara Hedges in 1991.

Before Jim Owens, who held the position longer than any of his predecessors, U.W.'s head football coaches included William Goodwin (1892-93), C. Cobb (1894), Ralph Nichols (1895-1896), Carl Clemens (1897), A. Jeffs (1899), J. Savre Dodge (1900), Jack Wright (1901), James Knight (1902-1904), Oliver Cutts (1905), Victor Place (1906-1907), Gilmour Dobie (1908-1916, Dobie also served as head baseball coach in 1915), Claude Hunt (1917, 1919—competition was halted in 1918 because of WWI), Leonard Allison (1920), Enoch Bagshaw (1921-1929), James Phelan (1930-1941) Ralph Welch (1942-1947), Howard Odell (1948-1952), John Cherberg (1953-55), and Darrell Royal (1956).

Various sports played on an intercollegiate basis at the University of Washington have been given major or minor status and have enjoyed increasing or failing popularity at different times in the University's history. In addition to the two most dominant sports of football and basketball, sports in which U.W. athletes have participated on an intercollegiate basis have included baseball, boxing, crew, cross country, fencing, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, riflery, skiing, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, track, volleyball and wrestling.

Baseball was played at the U.W. as early as 1878, but was not officially considered an intercollegiate sport until the 1890s. Wrestling was established as an intercollegiate sport at U.W. in 1908, the same year that the U.W. first participated in an intercollegiate tennis tournament. Ice Hockey was named a minor sport in 1920, the same year that the University's golf course was completed. A formal golf team was organized in 1923. Ice Hockey disappeared from the athletic program in 1924 but was reintroduced in 1935 [only to be dropped again later]. Boxing was adopted as a minor sport in 1921, with the first intercollegiate match being held against the University of British Columbia in 1924. In 1926, the U.W. dropped wrestling and gave boxing intercollegiate status. The U.W. competed in intercollegiate fencing with a team formed in 1929 and recognized fencing as an intercollegiate sport at the U.W. in 1933, but fencing was discontinued when the U.S. entered World War II. Also in 1933, the U.W. recognized its first swimming team, even though there had been competitive activity as early as 1904. Swimming was awarded major sport status in 1939. Skiing was awarded minor sport status in 1935 and became a major sport in 1947. During 1955-56 school year gymnastics became a minor sport and achieved major sport status in 1960. Soccer was given minor sport status in 1962 and water polo received minor status in 1968.

Two of the better known names in the U.W.'s athletic history are Clarence S. "Hec" Edmundson and Dorsett V. "Tubby" Graves. Edmundson was appointed head track and field coach in 1919 and did not retire until 1954, having led the track team to three Pacific Coast Conference Championships, seven Northern Division Conference Championships, and numerous other distinctions. Edmundson is also a legendary figure in U.W. basketball, which he coached from 1921 to 1947. Along with Graves, Edmundson founded an annual high school state basketball tournament. In 1948, the University of Washington Pavilion was renamed the Clarence S. "Hec" Edmundson Pavilion. Graves served as baseball coach from 1923 to 1946, also serving 25 years during the same period as assistant football coach. In 1946 Graves quit coaching to become the Assistant Director of Athletics. After Graves' death, the new intercollegiate athletics building was named in his honor.

ICA has been a member of several interstate athletic organizations. The U.W. joined the National Collegiate Athletic Association in the early 1900s. The U.W. also participated in the Pacific Coast Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and its series of successors, the Athletic Association of Western Universities, the Pac-8 Conference, and the Pac-10 Conference.