Left behind in the realignment game and scrambling to secure their futures, Washington State and Oregon State won a momentous victory in court Friday that gives the Pac-12’s two remaining schools control of the conference’s governing board.
The Washington Supreme Court denied a request by the 10 outgoing schools to review a lower court’s preliminary injunction that has established WSU and OSU as the only members of the board.
“We are pleased with the Washington Supreme Court’s decision today,” Beavers president Jayathi Murthy and Cougars president Kirk Schulz said in a joint statement.
“We look forward to continuing our work of charting a path forward for the conference that is in the best interest of student-athletes and our wider university communities.”
The Supreme Court’s decision lifted a stay on the injunction that had been in place for weeks, thereby clearing the way for the Cougars and Beavers to control the distribution of assets and revenue and determine a plan to handle liabilities.
The court ordered:
“That both motions for discretionary review are denied. Because the motions for discretionary review are denied, it is not necessary to consider whether to retain or transfer the motions pursuant to RAP 4.2. The stay previously imposed by the Commissioner is hereby lifted.”
The outbound schools did not issue a statement following the ruling — a possible indication that they were taken by surprise.
What happens next is not immediately clear.
The departing 10 could agree to a settlement after months of failed mediation. Perhaps one of the schools outside of Washington will pursue legal action in its own jurisdiction. During a court hearing in November, the defense raised the issue of dissolving the conference. Might that be a desperation move to regain leverage?
There is more to play out, for sure, as the process enters its fourth month.
The lawsuit began in September, following the collapse of the conference, and gained some clarity in November when a Whitman County (Wash.) Superior Court judge ruled in favor of the Cougars and Beavers.
Gary Libey, whose courtroom is an hour’s drive from the WSU campus, granted a preliminary injunction that declared the two schools the sole members of the board.
But two weeks later, the Washington Supreme Court commissioner in Olympia stayed the injunction. That decision meant the board could only conduct business if all 12 schools agreed.
There have been two recent examples, albeit with different outcomes:
— Several weeks ago, the board unanimously allowed WSU and OSU to enter into a scheduling partnership with the Mountain West for the 2024 football season. The money used to secure the agreement will come from Pac-12 revenue generated after the defendants leave the conference.
— Last week, the Beavers and Cougars prevented the conference from making its traditional mid-year revenue distribution to the campuses. The distribution would have amounted to $5 million per school, but OSU and WSU rejected the move based on financial concerns.
Specifically, the two schools wanted full agreement on a plan to handle the future liabilities expected from court cases against the Pac-12 and the NCAA.
WSU and OSU are bound by the framework of the preliminary injunction to include the other 10 schools in board meetings, although only the Cougars and Beavers will have voting rights.
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