In a landmark decision on Tuesday, November 7,, Whitman County (Washington) judge Gary Libey has ruled that Oregon State University and Washington State University will be the sole board members of the Pac-12 Conference. The decision effectively ends any jurisdiction that the 10 exiting members, which includes the University of Oregon and the University of Washington, hold over the conference’s financial and scheduling decisions.
The ruling, which has further divided the two remaining Pac-12 schools from the departees, will likely define whether the group including Oregon and Washington are able to take any revenue from the conference’s 2023-24 sports. While Judge Libey emphasized that, “nobody is going to take advantage of anybody else” (as reported by On3 Sports), the decision will almost certainly be appealed in the Washington Supreme Court.
Oregon State and Washington State remain steadfast in their belief that they will maintain the Pac-12 in some form in 2024, but as power conferences across the nation have begun to announce next year’s football schedules, the historic Conference of Champions has fallen silent. If it sticks, Tuesday’s ruling has ensured that the Beavers and the Cougars will hold the power to negotiate media rights deals and scheduling — yet without a clear idea of what the year ahead holds for the two schools and any potential partners, they will find such negotiations near-impossible.
In an effort to delay the effects of the ruling, the departing schools — represented in court by the UW — issued a statement, in which they wrote, “We are disappointed with the decision and are immediately seeking review in the Washington Supreme Court and requesting to put on hold implementation of this decision. As members of the Pac-12, participating in ongoing and scheduled competitions, we are members of the board under the Pac-12 bylaws.”.
In a victory for the ten schools, the Washington courts agreed to stay the effects of the ruling on Thursday, November 16. As such, Oregon State and Washington State will not take control of the conference until a decision is reached in higher courts.
Then, on Tuesday, the Washington State Supreme Court agreed to continue the emergency motion in order to keep the two schools out of control. The effects of the initial ruling will continue to be stayed as the appeal is set in motion, which will see the University of Washington’s representatives continue to lead the case for the rest of the erstwhile conference.
While the appeal could go either way, the decision as it stands will leave Oregon without the ability to directly govern over the conference for the rest of the academic year — and possibly without profit from one of their best NCAA football seasons in recent history.
