OSU, WSU: Leaving schools should not run Pac-12

Kyle Bonagura, ESPN

• Staff WriterOct 25, 2023, 05:55 PM ET Close Covers the Pac-12.
• Signed up with ESPN in 2014.
• Participated In Washington State University.In the most recent filing in Oregon State and

  Washington State’s suit against the Pac-12 and commissioner George Kliavkoff, the two schools presented several exhibitions gotten during discovery that establish the conference removed UCLA, USC and Colorado from its board after the schools announced they were leaving for the Big Ten and Huge 12. The schools argued that application of the bylaws ought to also use to

  the conference’s 7 other leaving schools.”Today Oregon State and Washington State asked the court to validate the departing schools lost their Board seats following their notifications of withdrawal from the conference,”OSU and WSU said in a joint statement on Wednesday.”The evidence we have actually revealed thus far in discovery extremely reveals this follows the position that the conference and the departing members themselves had used up till simply weeks before Oregon State and Washington State were required to file our lawsuits.”Editor’s Picks

1 Related On Sept. 9, WSU and OSU submitted a problem for breach of laws in Whitman County (Wash.) Superior Court and looked for an emergency short-lived restraining order to protect what the schools viewed as an “imminent and existential risk” to the future of the conference. The TRO demand was given Sept. 27, which avoided any board meetings to be called.OSU and WSU had issues that if a board conference were held– and consisted of the 10 departing schools– those schools might force a vote to take action damaging to the future of the conference. A hearing for an initial injunction is set for Nov. 14, at which point the court will likely determine who has ballot rights on the Pac-12 board.The two remaining schools have argued from the start that as quickly as the leaving schools revealed they were joining other conferences– UCLA, USC, Oregon and Washington to the Big 10; Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah to the Big 12; and Cal and Stanford to the ACC– they no longer can make choices about the future of the conference.During discovery, it was revealed that after UCLA and USC announced they were leaving for the Big Ten, the Pac-12 composed to them to say, in part, that it”would have been a direct dispute and contrary to the very best interests of the Pac-12 membership as an entire, to allow [USC and UCLA] to participate in”board discussions, according to the filing.OSU and WSU argued,”The truth that eight extra schools have withdrawn considering that USC and UCLA does not

remove this dispute or somehow alter the significance of the Laws. Indeed, that’direct dispute ‘now contaminates all 10 departing schools, who are dedicated to rivals and have no reward to invest in the Pac-12’s future.Several other examples were introduced.In September 2022, a”briefing book” about the board of directors was distributed to conference board members. In the “Introduction to the Pac-12 Board of Directors”section, it listed representatives from 10 schools and did not consist of anybody from UCLA or USC.Five months later, the Pac-12 issued a declaration associated to the continuous media rights settlements that was associated as a”Joint statement from the 10 Pac-12 Conference Board Members.”Emails records show there was unanimous approval from the 10 member schools to release the statement as drafted.In separate lawsuits earlier this year– when UCLA and USC were the only schools that had announced they were leaving– Kliavkoff submitted 2 sworn statements that both schools were no longer members of the Pac-12 board.Another display, a memo drafted by a high-ranking Pac-12 official, shows that after Colorado also announced its intents to leave the conference, the Pac-12 board– then made up of 9 schools– was”considering seeking significant financial damages against our departing

members that could result in extra circulations to the remaining 9 universities.”Previously this month, Washington filed a motion to step in, seeking to join the claim and declare a dismissal.”UW has a considerable stake in opposing WSU and OSU’s claims and preventing the Court from giving the relief requested,”the movement states.” Real, UW is leaving the Conference after the 2023-24 scholastic year. But, in the meantime, UW remains a member

of the Conference, and board involvement and voting power impacts the experience of UW’s sports groups and student-athletes for the 2023-24 scholastic year along with UW’s bargained-for legal rights and financial interest.”OSU and WSU kept in mind that as the Pac-12 board convened for more than a year without UCLA and USC, it was chaired by University of Washington president Ana Marie Cauce.”The Conference and departing schools can not now redefine the Bylaws and stroll back their previous positions due to the fact that more schools have decided to depart and their prior positions no longer match them, “OSU and WSU argued.The OSU/WSU joint statement added:”The Pac-12 can not continue to be

paralyzed at such a critical time. We did not produce or seek these scenarios, but OSU and WSU will continue to take whatever actions are essential to secure our universities, make sure accountability and openness, safeguard student-athletes and the Pac-12 Conference, while protecting our choices moving forward. The future of the Pac-12 ought to be decided by the schools that stay, not those that leave.” It is unclear what will occur with OSU and WSU’s conference affiliations next year. On Sept. 21, presidents and ADs from both schools stated they were hoping to have explanation within a month about the Pac-12’s staying assets– an essential factor in choosing whether to try to restore the Pac-12 or look for membership somewhere else. Most likely, they will likewise have to wait until after the hearing on Nov. 14, before making any authorities decisions.