Can UC Regents Force UCLA to Pay Cal?

The big question this week is whether the UCLA can be forced to finance Cal to some degree because of the Bruins' planned departure to the Big Ten

The 2024 departure of USC and UCLA from the Pac-12 to the Big Ten has led to countless stories of possible Pac-12 merger, expansion or extinction, but it also has led to several possibilities that were not even considered on the day of the departure announcement.

One prominent such report directly affects Cal, and involves whether UCLA has any obligation to its UC system sister school and whether the Bruins can be forced to share the wealth with Cal.

There are nine University of California campuses – four in Northern California and five in southern California. But Cal and UCLA are the flagship campuses of the UC system and are the only two that have Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) programs. It came as a surprise to many that UCLA was willing to leave the conference and leave Cal behind without consultation.

California Gavin Newsom was one of the surprised people, particularly in terms of the secrecy in which UCLA negotiated its move to the Big Ten. Apparently prodded by Governor Newsom, who is an ex-officio UC Regents member, the Regents reportedly are exploring whether UCLA can be coerced into sharing some of its wealth with Cal.

San Jose Mercury-News reporter Jon Wilner, who is well informed regarding Pac-12 happenings, noted this in a Saturday (July 23) story:

Multiple sources believe the regents will explore forcing the Bruins to subsidize Cal’s athletic department, which stands to lose millions annually in Pac-12 distributions because of the loss of the Los Angeles market.

The details of a power move by the regents are unanswerable at this point, including how the money would be redirected.

We aren’t sure they can touch Big Ten revenue; instead, they might have to hit UCLA’s state allocations

Three questions arise:

--Do the UC Regents have the authority to force UCLA to make financial payments to Cal based on the Bruins’ increased revenue?

I would guess they don’t, but that's just a guess.

--Do the UC Regents have the requisite power to persuade UCLA to make financial payments to Cal?

Hard to say. Refusal to provide Cal with some financial support may not help UCLA's public image, but is that enough of a motive?

--Do the UC Regents have legal recourse in its efforts to coerce UCLA into subsiding Cal's athletic department?

Now we're out of my bailiwick.

The other part to all this is the involvement of Cal Chancellor Carol Christ and Golden Bears athletic director Jim Knowlton, and how much influence they can or want to have.

Perhaps it is just coincidence, but on Friday (July 22), Governor Newsom appointed four new members to the UC Regents:

SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the appointments of Elaine E. Batchlor, Carmen Chu, Ana Matosantos and Mark Robinson to the University of California Board of Regents, and the appointments of Leslie Gilbert-Lurie and Jose Antonio Vargas to the California State University Board of Trustees.

Two of the four appointees have direct connections to Cal, which adds intrigue although it’s anyone’s guess whether this will have any impact on the Regents’ efforts with UCLA.

In any case, we can now see why UCLA completed its negotiations with the Big Ten in secret. Had the Bruins been transparent in their intentions, it presumably would have involved serious discussions with Cal and/or the UC Regents that would have dragged on for much longer than the Big Ten (and possibly USC) was willing to wait.

However, it seems evident that Cal, with 28 varsity sports, will have to make some difficult choices about its athletic department if the Pac-12 is reduced to 10 schools in 2024 with no significant changes in the conference’s structure or Cal's athletic plan.

It appears that is what the UC Regents are trying to rectify.

Cal and UCLA have played each other in football every year since 1933 and have been in the same conference every year since 1928.

Cover photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea, USA TODAY Sports

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