{"slug": "the-return-of-the-pac-12-how-oregon-state-and-washington-state-stuck-together", "title": "The return of the Pac-12: How Oregon State and Washington State stuck together and saved the conference", "summary": "Oregon State and Washington State chose to rebuild the Pac-12 conference rather than join the Mountain West, preserving their athletic programs and the conference's legacy. Their decision to stick together and reconstruct the Pac-12 ensures continued competition and stability for both universities.", "body_md": "**Getting your**\n\n[Trinity Audio](//trinityaudio.ai)player ready...The Cougars and Beavers could have joined the Mountain West. Instead, they stuck together and rebuilt their home.\n\nAlready have an account\n\n[Log In](https://www.mercurynews.com/login?&returnUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.mercurynews.com%2F2026%2F06%2F29%2Fpac-12-return-july-1-inside-story-rebuild-wsu-osu-gould-barnes-chun%2F)\nThis article is only available to subscribers\n\nOffer valid for non-subscribers only", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-return-of-the-pac-12-how-oregon-state-and-washington-state-stuck-together", "canonical_source": "https://www.mercurynews.com/2026/06/29/pac-12-return-july-1-inside-story-rebuild-wsu-osu-gould-barnes-chun/", "published_at": "2026-06-29 16:00:33+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-06-29 16:22:08.329786+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["ai-policy"], "entities": ["Oregon State", "Washington State", "Pac-12", "Mountain West"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-return-of-the-pac-12-how-oregon-state-and-washington-state-stuck-together", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-return-of-the-pac-12-how-oregon-state-and-washington-state-stuck-together.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-return-of-the-pac-12-how-oregon-state-and-washington-state-stuck-together.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/the-return-of-the-pac-12-how-oregon-state-and-washington-state-stuck-together.jsonld"}}