Tuesday's Court Ruling Could Cost Cal a Lot of Money

Tuesday court ruling in favor of Oregon State and Washington State could mean the loss of millions of dollars in revenue for Cal and the other nine members of the Pac-12 that are departing the conference after the 2023-24 school year.

The legal fight is not over, as the 10 departing schools, led by Washington, are appealing the ruling by judge Gary Libey, who ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, Oregon State and Washington, in the dispute over which schools own the governing rights in the depleted Pac-12, or the Pac-2.

In short, Oregon State and Washington State were granted full control of the conference and how its revenue for the 2023-24 school year will be divided. Cal and Stanford will be members of the Atlantic Coast Conference next year. Oregon, Washington, UCLA and USC are joining the Big Ten in 2024-25. Utah, Colorado, Arizona and Arizona State will be in the Big 12 a year from now.

Jon Wilner of the San Jose Mercury-News provides a detailed explanation of what the ruling will mean, if it stands following the appeal, but here are some key excerpts:

As such, the two schools left behind in the realignment game can determine the fate of hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue and assets.

However, Libey agreed to stay his ruling through the remainder of the week to allow Washington to pursue an appeal.

It’s not over.

It could drag on for weeks, if not months.

But if the ruling is not overturned there are a number of ramifications. We will point out two of the many noted in Wilner’s article:

Perhaps the most significant result of Libey’s ruling (assuming, for a moment, that it holds through the appeal process) is what it means for next year:

It pushes the ‘Pac-2’ much closer to reality.

The Cougars and Beavers are contemplating whether to operate as a two-team conference for the 2024-25 sports season — and possibly the 2025-26 season, as well. It’s permitted under NCAA rules, but the practicality is complicated. And costly.

And the final point Wilner addresses is this: How gracious/reasonable will Oregon State and Washington State be in deciding how the revenue is shared with the other 10 schools:

Will WSU and OSU hoard the entirety of the $420 million in revenue due to the Pac-12 in 2023-24? Or will they adopt a magnanimous approach and share the cash with the outbound schools?

We aren’t sure they have a choice.

“The bylaws dictate reasonable treatment,” a source noted.

Defining “reasonable” will assuredly require more billable hours, but Libey made his opinion clear.

“The (preliminary injunction) is going to be modified to make sure the other 10 are still treated in a fair manner,” he said. “Nobody’s going to take advantage of somebody else.”

What this all means in terms of dollars and cents that will be lost by Cal and the other nine departing schools remains to be seen.

Oregon State president Jayathi Murthy and athletic director Scott Barnes issued a statement that suggests Oregon State and Washington State will be "reasonable" in doling out the revenue:

Here is their statement:

"We are pleased with the Court's decision today that Oregon State and Washington State constitute the only remaining members of the Pac-12 Conference Board. We look forward to charting a path forward for the Pac-12 that is in the best interest of the Conference and student-athletes. Our intentions are to make reasonable business decisions going forward while continuing to seek collaboration and consultation with the departing universities."

The statement of Washington State president Kirk Schulz and athletic director Pat Chun includes this paragraph:

"We have always been committed to protecting the best interests of the conference, our student-athletes, coaches and fans. Today's news allows Washington State University and Oregon State University to start that process as the controlling members of the Pac-12 Conference Board."

Cover photo by Darren Yamashita, USA TODAY Sports

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