Remember last year when we first heard about the proposed idea to sell beer at WVU sporting events? This is like that, and potentially bigger: Oliver Luck told me earlier this afternoon that WVU will send out a RFP for its Tier 3 rights before the end of the month.

The immediate and obvious implication is the whole MSNSportsNet model and the affiliation with Metro News/West Virginia Radio could change. This does not mean it will change. In fact, both can exist in a new model — and that assumes there is one, though I assume there will be one.

Let me scramble for a bit to get a story together, but your Tier 3 rights include all of the athletic deparment’s broadcasting and marketing inventory that don’t go to the conference as part of Tier 1 and Tier 2 rights.

Tier 3 would include television rights select football (ie, Norfolk State) and men’s basketball games (ie, Tennessee Tech) and just about all of the other sports, as well as the radio rights for football and men’s basketball games and all sorts of signage sold at event sites.

Consider the RFP mining for a huge source of revenue.

Many of you here are well-versed on the topic and can pinch hit for the time being. Dare I say this is a day many have been waiting for in recent years?