REPORTING ON college athletics has been boiled to this:
On Thursday morning, I read, via the Internet, a report that said the Big East Conference would issue invitations to Central Florida and Memphis as early as next week. An Orlando television station, WKMG, cited multiple sources.
I made a call to Big East associate commissioner John Paquette, who said his office was "officially denying the Orlando report.''
Knowing, though, the Internet was all, well, atwitter over the report, I approached Gazette managing editor Robert Byers about placing a story - the denial - on our website.
"The story has to do with the Internet world,'' I told Byers, "not the real world.''
We do try, though, to look out for our peeps in every way possible. So the denial was posted.
Here's another:
The Orlando Sentinel site said the Big East expansion "issue will be discussed [Thursday] during a teleconference by league officials.''
"No,'' said West Virginia University athletic director Ed Pastilong, "a conference call did not take place.''
"No, we didn't have one,'' said Big East director of communications Rachel Margolis.
So that's what's not happening. What is happening: A lot - and not much.
The feeling from here, after talking to sources, is Central Florida and Memphis might be positioned to step in if the Big East loses members. ("Might'' being a key word.) But I also get the feeling current league members aren't thrilled at the thought. The Big East would appear even more Conference USA-ish.
Paquette, however, would only say his office never "comments or speculates in public about specific schools. What we'll do is continue to talk to our member institutions.''
(He said, by the way, that last line was an exclusive to Gazette readers. To other outlets, he'd simply uncorked the first sentence. And you wondered why we're America's Paper.)
Oh, and those supposed talks about the Big East football schools splitting from the so-called basketball-only schools?
"The 16 [Big East schools] have been very solid,'' Pastilong said. "I don't foresee us splitting. I see us continuing [as one league].''
REPORTING ON college athletics has been boiled to this:
On Thursday morning, I read, via the Internet, a report that said the Big East Conference would issue invitations to Central Florida and Memphis as early as next week. An Orlando television station, WKMG, cited multiple sources.
I made a call to Big East associate commissioner John Paquette, who said his office was "officially denying the Orlando report.''
Knowing, though, the Internet was all, well, atwitter over the report, I approached Gazette managing editor Robert Byers about placing a story - the denial - on our website.
"The story has to do with the Internet world,'' I told Byers, "not the real world.''
We do try, though, to look out for our peeps in every way possible. So the denial was posted.
Here's another:
The Orlando Sentinel site said the Big East expansion "issue will be discussed [Thursday] during a teleconference by league officials.''
"No,'' said West Virginia University athletic director Ed Pastilong, "a conference call did not take place.''
"No, we didn't have one,'' said Big East director of communications Rachel Margolis.
So that's what's not happening. What is happening: A lot - and not much.
The feeling from here, after talking to sources, is Central Florida and Memphis might be positioned to step in if the Big East loses members. ("Might'' being a key word.) But I also get the feeling current league members aren't thrilled at the thought. The Big East would appear even more Conference USA-ish.
Paquette, however, would only say his office never "comments or speculates in public about specific schools. What we'll do is continue to talk to our member institutions.''
(He said, by the way, that last line was an exclusive to Gazette readers. To other outlets, he'd simply uncorked the first sentence. And you wondered why we're America's Paper.)
Oh, and those supposed talks about the Big East football schools splitting from the so-called basketball-only schools?
"The 16 [Big East schools] have been very solid,'' Pastilong said. "I don't foresee us splitting. I see us continuing [as one league].''
Others, off the record, agree. "There have been no overtures [to split],'' one source said. "Our basketball has a lot of value.''
As for ex-NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue, enlisted by the Big East to help, word is he's been concentrating on the television issues. He's led two conference calls with member schools, and he's apparently trying to accomplish what Big 12 commissioner Dan Beebe did to save his conference.
In case you forgot, Beebe said no new TV deals have been struck for this league, but he had "extremely strong verification, based on our analysis with our consultants and others, and media companies themselves, that we are in a tremendous position to execute future agreements that will put our member institutions on par with any in the country."
The Big East, which, apparently, negotiated its last contract at a bad time, is last among the six BCS conferences in TV money. The Big East's TV contract is around $35-40 million. That's about $20 million behind the fifth-place Pac-10. That's $200 million behind the Big Ten.
So he's apparently working on that, as well as the possibility of a Big East network.
nnAnd finally . . .
There have been many rumors tossed around concerning WVU's supposed self-reported NCAA violations within the football program.
A Huntington paper said last weekend WVU has reported to the NCAA that two staff members in non-coaching roles - Dale Wolfley and Pat Kirkland - were performing coaching duties.
There have been many questions. Some say that investigation has just started. Others say it was investigated when the NCAA last visited in regard to the Rich Rodriguez blowback. Incoming athletic director Oliver Luck said he's "aware of the issue,'' but didn't have any details.
One source said he's "a little concerned'' about the situation, but didn't seem overly so. On the record, no WVU representative is speaking.
What I did receive was this e-mail from WVU assistant AD for communications Mike Fragale after sending an inquiry to compliance man Patrick Hairston:
"There is nothing new to report on with the NCAA investigation, and nothing new to comment on."
So there you have it. For what it's worth.
Have a nice weekend.
Reach Mitch Vingle at 304-348-4827, mitchvin...@wvgazette.com or follow him at http://twitter.com/MitchVingle.
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