Oregon State, Washington State move forward with future plans after wins in court

Days after their wins in court, Oregon State and Washington State — the two remaining members of the Pac-12 — are moving forward with their future plans.

The schools have re-engaged with Mountain West officials over a two-year football scheduling alliance with the league in an agreement that could serve as the first step in a long-term partnership or even a merger, sources told Yahoo Sports.

Mountain West officials made calls Wednesday to further discuss details. More meetings are scheduled for Thursday, including a meeting of league presidents to give Commissioner Gloria Nevarez permission to move forward with negotiations.

The two sides — the Pac-2 and Mountain West — are believed to be close to reaching an agreement on terms, but the deal has not been completed and may not be finalized for several days. However, models of a potential scheduling alliance have been developed and disseminated to the community over the past two months, as Nevarez and her staff have prepared for this possibility. Yahoo Sports reported on the proposals in a story last month.

Although several scheduling models exist, the most likely is the so-called “7+1” format in which Mountain West teams play seven conference games — not eight — plus one game against Washington State or Oregon State. They will rotate the game against OSU or WSU back and forth over the course of two years.

Games against OSU and WSU are not expected to count toward the league standings. The two Pac-12 members will not be eligible for the MWC tournament and will compete as semi-independents under the Pac-12 banner.

Mountain West schools that have non-conference games previously scheduled against one of the two schools will also play the other during the same season. For example, San Diego State has games scheduled against Washington State, at home in 2024 and on the road in 2025. In the model, the Aztecs would likely play Oregon State in both years as well.

Three other schools will play two games against the Pac-12 duo in a season because they have previously scheduled matchups, including Boise State (Oregon State, 2024), Fresno State (Oregon State, 2025) and San Jose State (Washington State, 2024).

The agreement, which is expected to include a lucrative financial package for Mountain West members, includes a long-term commitment to the conference with the goal of full integration after this biennium. Part of the agreement includes a fine that could be imposed on Oregon State and Washington State if the two programs attempt to acquire only a portion of MWC schools in the future.

As for broadcast rights, Mountain West home games against OSU and WSU will be broadcast regularly through MWC TV partners Fox and CBS Sports Network. The league expects to receive additional media rights revenues from those games to be distributed across the conference.

Oregon State and Washington State will likely negotiate separate broadcast agreements with those networks and possibly others to televise their home games. The Pac-12’s television deal with ESPN and Fox expires after this school year.

Right now, the scheduling alliance is football only. Oregon State and Washington State are in discussions with other leagues to create affiliate memberships for their other sports.

On Tuesday, the two schools scored a victory when a Washington District Court issued a preliminary injunction against the 10 schools leaving the Pac-12. The ruling gives Ohio State University and WSU full management authority over the league and its assets worth more than $400 million this year. The ruling has been postponed for now while the exiting Pac-12 schools file an appeal.

The decision means the Cougars and Beavers may soon have access to millions of dollars in Pac-12 revenue from television contracts, Rose Bowl and NCAA basketball championship units. This revenue is usually distributed to each school starting with the tuition fees in December. Each school is entitled to approximately $35-40 million.

The money could help both schools pave their futures, including arranging such a deal with the Mountain West. The two entities — the Pac-2 and the Mountain West — have intermittently engaged in discussions about their future together. This includes merging the Mountain West schools with the two to compete under the Pac-12 brand – a way to preserve the league. Although strange and unlikely, the relegation model has been discussed among some administrators as well.

In a move to retain Pac-12 assets — the league is slated to have more than $100 million in future assets — Washington State and Oregon State are preparing to serve as a two-school conference for at least the next year and possibly two. They are using the NCAA’s two-year grace period. Conferences below the eight-member minimum are allowed two years to return to the eight-member mark before they are no longer recognized as a conference.

In the short term, Oregon State and Washington State need to complete their football schedules for 2024 and possibly 2025. The arrangement with the Mountain West provides them with seven opponents each year. The two programs have already scheduled three non-conference games — some against MWC teams — and may opt for other games, including continuing their in-state rivalry series with Washington and Oregon. However, the Oregon-OSU and Washington-WSU games are not guaranteed to go ahead.

Change in the Pac-12 has led to changes in the sport’s postseason.

At their meeting last Thursday, FBS commissioners recommended changing the expanded College Football Playoff format, agreeing on a model that gives automatic playoffs to the five highest-ranked conference champions and at-large spots to the next seven highest-ranked teams — a step from a 6+6 model to a 5+7 model. The change must be approved by unanimous approval by the Board of Chief Commissioners.

The commissioners also instituted a policy requiring a conference to have eight members in order for its champion to be eligible for an automatic qualifying spot. Several CFP officials told Yahoo Sports that the policy does not require presidential approval.

Such a policy change removes Oregon State and Washington State from an automatic bid to the playoffs to win the Pac-2 division. They will only be eligible for a senior berth.