The big news, I suppose, is that Charles Sims is enrolled at WVU today and is able to participate with the football program. The Mountaineers have been working out for an hour or so every Tuesday and Thursday for the past several weeks. Tomorrow would figure to be the first chance for Sims to get to know his new teammates, but a few we talked to today were well aware of him and what his arrival may mean.
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I’ll never forget that. I swear Bob Bowlsby was mentally boarding a jet as he inched to the right.
Anyhow, WVU joined the Big 12 a year ago today to conclude what I still maintain is the quirkiest story I’ve covered … and I want you to stop and think about that for a moment.
I’ve seen and covered things that transcend journalism school or starting out as an agate clerk for night shifts on school nights in high school. That episode — “Welcome to the Big 12! Sike! OK, welcome to the Big 12! — was truly surreal. Not a Fiesta Bowl romp or a Final Four run or an ugly lawsuit, but distinguished all the same.
Still, here you are, a year later. And what a year this has been. I’m off to interview some football players, but in the meantime, what do you say we share our lasting memories and experiences, good or bad, from the first year in the Big 12?
WVU did today what we’ve thought for about a year not that WVU would do: Gold Golf was reintroduced as a varsity sport, thus giving the Mountaineers 18 sports.
“I am pleased to announce that men’s golf will be returning as an intercollegiate sport at West Virginia University,” Luck says. “Golf had a strong tradition on this campus, and its statewide popularity makes it a perfect addition to our department. A lot of thought, time and effort went into this decision as far as cost, travel and infrastructure goes, and I believe the strong tradition and history of Big 12 golf will only enhance our chances of building a championship program.
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Welcome to the Friday Feedback, which is fiddling with the dials on its stereo and tilting the antennae, trying to get that signal just right. The apparent argle bargle earlier this week got me thinking, maybe because I was subconsciously guilty of wanting it to be more than it was, or because I realize a similar, albeit more civilized conclusion may be nearing.
What if this is the end for the lengthy and mutually beneficial relationship between West Virginia Radio Corp. and WVU? Because it might be. There is no contract in place between the two. Do you honestly think WVU wants to re-up now? Do you want to see that?
There’s also a call for an injunction that would delay the Tier 3 contract and/or disqualify IMG College. WVU would, in essence, be starting anew. That’s time consuming.
This lawsuit is lingering and every day brings us closer to the start of the season. We still have time, a long time, in fact, to resolve this. But what if it isn’t dismissed? What if there is no settlement? What if there’s a countersuit brought by private parties who believe they were defamed by the original suit or some other component of this campaign?
WVU could be nearing a season without WVRC or IMG (or whatever company wins the contract). Gone are eight WVRC stations, powerful ones with lofty reach throughout the state. That’s a loss for the people. You would like to think WVU had some foresight, like, you know, us, and realized a lawsuit was imminent once Team Raese lawyered up months back. There are still about three dozen non-WVRC stations that are or were Mountaineer Sports Net football affiliates that are under contract or were before and could be brought back in again without much effort. Could WVU find eight more? Probably. Would they be the same quality? Probably not.
And quality matters. The production is as important as the reach because it’s a good product. There’s also the matter of personnel. There may be changes to that roster, be it pregame or postgame or possibly even in-game (that’s a little complicated to explain, but it’s not impossible).
People really like those shows and those people, but some are property of WVRC, which means you might have to live with new programs and new personalities as part of the game broadcast. It’s the difference between the MetroNews pregame show and, say, the Tier 4 pregame show. You don’t want that, right?
WVRC could do live shows, like Statewide Sportsline, as an example, on site on its stations, but since there might not be a relationship with WVU, it would be without game broadcasts and thus might not have your attention.
It’s quite a web and how much you’re affected depends really on how much you rely on the radio, or radio websites, for your entertainment and information. Just about everything is available on the television, so perhaps you don’t care, especially if you live far away, but the state and its most immediate following relies a lot on the radio.
We knew there would be changes when the multimedia rights company took over, but I wonder if we ever wondered what it might be like in limbo, which seems as though it could be just around the corner.
So WVU could still have a list of affiliates as large or larger before. They won’t be as powerful and might lack the width needed to reach the same audience, bit it might have to suffice. It might be the only choice.
That doesn’t solve all the problems, though. A contract with West Virginia Radio Corp. means more than stations and on-air talent, and both could be casualties because WVU might not be able or willing to contract West Virginia Radio Corp. employees. It’s about production and familiarity with the audience, and no matter the elements to this dispute, that company does a job WVU likes and peers respect.
The most critical concern for you and for WVU ought not to be in the quantity of stations and the audience, but the quality of the product.
Onto the Feedback. As always, comments appear as posted. In other words, consider the consequences of your actions.
And again, sorry for the bugs yesterday. Still working on the problem with the comments. The typing problem is fixed. Also, today is June 28. It’s the last day of the fiscal year. Monday starts the new year. This is when you’d witness change, like not renewing contracts or assigning employees to new roles. I’d like to tell you more, honest, but I’ve been effectively, though permissibly, stonewalled. Just a heads up in case something happens.
FakeBobHuggins said:
Apologies accepted, Mike. In the meantime, tell us about your #FirstTimeontheMilegroundRoundabout
It was strange. There was some traffic and thus some down time for me, but by the time I got going again, Morgantown had joined Star City, the city planner had resigned, Jim Clements had taken a job at Clemson and I had WiFi in every arena and stadium.
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That’s a … weight … of WVU’s shoulders. Dana Holgorsen targeted his weight room for improvements pretty much the first time he saw it. Now on the job more than two years, he’s finally seeing a vision approach fruition.
And apologies for the bugs today. I’m losing posts, can only type so much and have had to retrieve and approve comments for today’s posts and other posts this week. Working on an explanation.
Neat little angle here by Jeremy Fowler which reveals the Big 12 has some sleeper studs lurking before the 2013 season. West Virginia has one who, according to an anonymous contributor, “can be a star” for the Mountaineers.
Before you click, though, let me ask you a question. Consider the parameters as described by Mr. Fowler: “someone that isn’t a star yet, or might never be, but made enough of an impact for that coach to point them out.”
Who do you think that player is?
Recruiting heated up last week and appeased worriers who wondered when West Virginia would rise up and meet or exceed Kansas’ five-person class for 2014. Well, five players pledged, four to the 2014 class and one to the 2015 class, and the Mountaineers and Kansas State can say their six-player class is finally bigger than every one in the Big 12 but the one found at Kansas.
Huzzah!
What we’re finding out about recruiting in this Big 12 is that comparing and competing within the walls of the conference isn’t that big of a deal.
“To be 100 percent honest we don’t lock horns with Big 12 schools on recruiting a whole lot,” Dorchester said. “On some guys, yes, but not real often do we go head-to-head when it comes down to us and another Big 12 school. We’re probably unique in a lot of ways where we don’t recruit a whole lot against the other teams in our conference.”
What’s most interesting, and what gets Dorchester going, is how the Mountaineers are better armed now to combat some negative recruiting and to leverage themselves against some regional foes than they were before.
Let’s be honest. A kid growing up in this generation, he thinks Cincinnati is a relevant program in the scheme of college football just because they had a good couple of years,” Dorchester said. “They don’t understand what teams are actually good, whereas Oklahoma and Texas, those names resonate with people. In the Big East, what school resonated with people in a historical perspective?
“Syracuse and Pitt claim those national titles, but no one we’re recruiting was alive for them. So it’s definitely helped us because the one thing we’re trying to push to our kids is that you’re more than just a regional star. You’re going to get national exposure. We’re a coast-to-coast conference in a lot of ways.”
Before everyone gets fired up about this, let’s pour some water on it.
It came to my attention this morning, and apparently it was on the radio, too, that West Virginia Radio Corp. was pulling equipment out of its radio booth at Mountaineer Field.
Imagine the implications, right?
Well, it turns out that WVU is set to begin a redesign project to create more room on the second floor of the press box. The radio booth is on that second floor. WVU says it requested that West Virginia Radio Corp., as well as all other occupants on the second floor, move their stuff.
Also, if you see someone taking down Mountaineer Sports Network signs, please pause. There are a few that need a little maintenance. Now, if you see someone spray painting “4 Life” on a MSN sign, do alert authorities.
Even I’ll admit there’s nothing especially flashy to this story.
The MAC’s annual giving fund will be up once again, this time about $1 million above last year’s record $14.5 million figure. There are about 800 fewer donors to that fund, but that’s pretty close to the regular number, one that spikes in a year after a BCS bowl or a Final Four appearance or something stimulating and then settles when things come back to Earth.
When all the funds from all the donors are added up and recorded sometime next month, the MAC will report less than last year’s $23.5 million, but that figure last year was inflated by separate donations totaling $5.5 million that didn’t happen this year.
So, all in all, not a disastrous year despite sub-optimal seasons for football and men’s basketball and some pretty negative publicity aimed at and earned by the athletic department.
What did strike me was how aware Matt Borman, the executive director of the MAC, is of everything around him and how seemingly and purposefully unaffected he is by it all.
“We haven’t had a lot of good things to talk to donors about this year,” said Borman, who’s been at WVU since 2008 and who was promoted full-time to his current position in August.
Honest, blunt, inevitable. I think the common perception of the MAC is that it has a singular focus and doesn’t realize or deal with the reality experienced by many donors or prospective donors.
But that’s not true.
This is something Borman and his staff deal with every day. They can’t hide from it so they deal with it as best as the day allows.
“I think the best way I can address that is to say we have gone through some challenges in the past few months with some questions our donors might have had for us in regard to some things going on publicly,” Borman said. “The way we addressed them on a daily basis – and we have addressed them on a daily basis – is to be honest and to communicate with the donors as much as we can.
“They have questions about what’s going on and we do not dodge them. We answer them, but we trust what the individual leadership positions at this university are doing and we’re making sure our donors trust them. And that’s based on the relationships we’ve built with them.”
Per a lawsuit filed today, Mike Kerin believes he was fired two years ago because he was old.
It’s a tough thing to claim and prove, but it can be tough to defend against, too. The people whose shoulders I’ve tapped on say such cases are especially subjective, but one point kept appearing throughout conversations.
Kerin was, let’s agree, ousted during the coaching transition. He claims he was replaced by a younger man who didn’t fit the requirements of the job. That younger man would be Alex Hammond, who was hired first as recruiting coordinator and who did that job as Kerin worked out the string. Hammond was later promoted to director of football operations. Hammond’s background, impressive as it no doubt is, is devoid of any experience relevant to his position.
That’s going to be an interesting point to manipulate or to defend because Kerin might be able to leverage youth and inexperience and the appearance of putting a guy in one position to eventually push him into another. And WVU could just say, “We wanted to do something a little different that we also thought would be beneficial. So what?”
Will that happen? Who knows? And, given the climate, I suppose I should also ask “Who cares?”
But given that this is the second lawsuit levied against WVU, that those come on top of the entire multimedia rights mess and the financial concerns and that there is thick smoke emanating from two other sources right now that might make this even crazier, here’s a deeper question to consider: Is this rut worse than the winter/spring/summer of 2008?
