Report: Oregon State, Washington State 'inching closer' to football scheduling 'alliance' with Mountain West

This is the last season of the Pac-12 as it has been known. With that, the two schools getting left behind amid realignment, Oregon State and Washington State, have needed to make a plan for the future. Now, it seems like they have some kind of plan.

According to a report by Ross Dellenger, Oregon State and Washington State are inching closer to a scheduling alliance with the Mountain West Conference. Under the model, Mountain West teams would play seven conference games a season and one game against either the Beavers or the Cougars.

The Mountain West presidents are set to meet Thursday to discuss the proposal. At that meeting, it’s expected that the proposal would be approved. 

In the case that a Mountain West school has a non-conference game scheduled against one of the two remaining Pac-12 schools, they’ll play the other as well. It is a football-only agreement.

Notably, this does not appear to be a conference merger. It’s a scheduling agreement. So, neither Oregon State nor Washington State would be eligible for the Mountain West Championship Game. That’s important because of the College Football Playoff. As the rules stand now, both schools would therefore only be eligible for the Playoff as an at-large.

For the two Pac-12 schools getting left behind in conference realignment, this is huge. Scheduling 11 non-conference games in a season is a practical impossibility. So, this agreement is going to make it possible to put a full schedule together in the upcoming seasons, especially given how far in advance non-conference games are typically scheduled. 

There are also several benefits to this agreement from the Mountain West’s perspective. The first is a financial penalty if Oregon State and Washington State try to poach a current Mountain West member for the Pac-12. After that, there is set to be a financial package for the Mountain West to distribute. The exact amount is unclear, but it has been described as “lucrative.”

The Mountain West is expecting a boost to its media rights thanks to this agreement and

In total, this scheduling agreement is for two seasons. After that, a long-term commitment and possible conference merger are seen as likely to happen. Oregon State and Washington State, meanwhile, are expected to negotiate new media rights.

Oregon State, Washington State had a recent court win

Oregon State and Washington State got a recent court win against the departing Pac-12 schools. On Tuesday, a Whitman County, Washington superior court judge Gary Libey ruled that Oregon State and Washington State have sole authority over the league moving forward.

The ruling gives the two schools control moving forward, in a conference that won’t break up until the summer of 2024. Notably, that puts the two schools in charge of roughly $400 million in assets.

“I grew up where conduct spoke louder than words,” Libey said.

The remaining Pac-12 schools have already filed an appeal of the ruling. So, it will be interesting to see if this win holds up amid the appeals process.