Canzano: A check-in with the judge who saved the Pac-12
Gary Libey should throw out the first pitch of the OSU-WSU game.
Judge Gary Libey and his wife, Trudy, just got back from their first trip to Europe. They took one of those Viking cruises — Barcelona to Venice. In a few months, he told me on Friday, they’ll take another cruise in the Panama Canal.
Oregon State and Washington State are playing in an NCAA Tournament baseball game at the Eugene Regional on Friday. It’s a big deal. A “Pac-2” postseason matchup. And if there were true justice, the retired judge who sat on the bench in Whitman County Superior Court in late 2023 would throw out the first pitch.
What saved the Pac-12?
Guts. Grit. A 108-year-old brand. Two land-grant universities that refused to go away, for sure. Some high-priced lawyers. The presidents and athletic directors at WSU and OSU, of course. And a conference commissioner, Teresa Gould, who wouldn’t quit.
If you and I are spitballing this debate and having this conversation on the lido deck of a Viking cruise ship, I’d argue that Libey played a pivotal part. Maybe THE biggest role. They shouldn’t stop with him throwing out a ceremonial pitch. Gary and Trudy should never have to pay for a ticket to a Pac-12 sporting event.