http://www.chronicle.duke.edu/vnews/display.v/ART/2003/10/06/3f81b9db56c1d

Alleva denies report that Boston College will soon accept invitation to join ACC
BREAKING NEWS

by Mike Corey
October 06, 2003

Duke Athletic Director Joe Alleva refuted a report that appeared in yesterday's New York Post that Boston College would accept an offer to join the ACC as its 12th member "within days."
"All that is speculation, nothing has been done in regard to Boston College and we are moving ahead with an 11-team league," Alleva wrote in an e-mail to The Chronicle Monday afternoon. "Things can change but nothing has happened to date."

ACC expansion developments have been frenzied in recent weeks, all because of a preliminary decision from the NCAA that the ACC's petition to have a conference championship game in football with an 11-member league had been rejected.

The ACC's hope for a title game, which would have taken place during the 2004-05 season, resulted from the conference's recent addition of Miami and Virginia Tech, which boosted the league's population from nine to 11 schools. Indeed, the ACC increased its size for the primary goal of having a conference championship in football, having originally sought Miami, Boston College and Syracuse. However, due to a plethora of disagreements and political and administrative maneuvering over the summer, the ACC's presidents were only able to invite two schools, Miami and Virginia Tech, current-Big East members that agreed to defect in July.

Then, a few weeks ago, speculation that the ACC had been actively pursuing football-independent Notre Dame to join the conference was confirmed by Alleva and Duke President Nan Keohane. However, Notre Dame- a member of the Big East in all sports but football-refused to give up its independent football status, and as a result, was promptly dropped from consideration as a 12th school in the ACC. The Fighting Irish were seen as a good option because of "their high-quality stature in both academics and athletics," according to Keohane.

Likewise, Boston College has a strong academic and athletic reputation, a lucrative combination for a conference that has suffered a barrage of criticism for its handling of expansion, and would greatly benefit from the addition of a well-rounded university such as Boston College. Other factors that are likely attractive for the ACC are Boston College's expansive market-the Boston metropolitan area is the nation's seventh largest at 5.8 million-particularly in terms of possible television dollars. Indeed, Boston would be the largest market in the ACC, with Atlanta (4.1 million), Miami (3.9 million) trailling.

_________________
The Bear may be dead but he still hates Tennessee. Roll Damn Tide

http://dailymail.com/news/Jack+Bogaczyk-20031006/

Jack Bogaczyk
October 06 2003
BC a better fit in new Big East

Jack Bogaczyk <jackb@dailymail.com>
Daily Mail columnist

TWO months ago in this space, I wrote that I thought Boston College would still become the ACC's 12th member.
Still do.

The ACC presidents are likely to have another conference call this week. The ACC athletic directors want a 12th school to finish the league's ham-handed expansion process.

BC has the Big East taking more headache powder. Snubbed once by the ACC, the only way the Eagles won't bolt is if they make the call to stay in the Big East. Miami, once carrying BC to the ACC altar, has been lobbying its new friends to make it right with BC.

ACC Commissioner John Swofford is likely to count up the votes before they vote -- it doesn't have to be kosher; this is big-time college athletics. If BC falls a vote short, the ACC could even change its bylaw on admission from three-fourths approval to two-thirds.

What's another few yolks on the face of the ACC?

Really, if this basketball-damaged league wants to add to its recent back-door offense, why not bring in Princeton?

Virginia, which held its nose and ushered rival Virginia Tech into the ACC through political pressure, will vote for BC because the Cavaliers single-handedly tore up the previous expansion script. Duke probably will go for another private-school peer in the ACC, too.

While the Big East moves ahead with its own expansion plans, the conference cannot get a commitment from BC's president, Rev. William Leahy. The BC chief has told his Big East presidential peers that he will not wait past next weekend for an ACC invite.

Gee, thanks Father. You're not doing blessings, now?

It's all about money, now. Soon, it will be much more expensive for BC to get out of coming to Morgantown, when the Big East ups the exit ante.

More than a few Big Easters want Commissioner Mike Tranghese to present an ultimatum on membership to BC. That's not going to happen.

Tranghese knows that a Big East with BC is better than one with South Florida or Central Florida. West Virginia, Syracuse, Pitt, Connecticut and Rutgers know it, too.

He's too savvy and classy (sometimes for his own good) on these matters. At least someone in these corporate-takeover shenanigans is trying to perform with as much integrity as possible.

In a return engagement for the Eagles, BC may join the ACC and Miami as a defendant in the lawsuit filed by the Big East Four against the Big East four-flushers.

The suit may be dismissed soon, and even if it isn't, it's only about money. These schools throw that around like the cheap talk that's marked the aforementioned dealings. The real damages are to the football reputation of the Big East.

BC could be a major force in a restructured Big East. In the ACC, the Eagles will be middle-of-the-pack at best in football and men's basketball.

I have said here before that Miami and Virginia Tech belong in the ACC. It's the right fit. BC belongs in the Big East, but it appears the Eagles are about to be smoked by the folks on Tobacco Road.

_________________
The Bear may be dead but he still hates Tennessee. Roll Damn Tide

http://www.syracuse.com/sports/poststandard/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/106552934268610.xml

Orange to Hokies: Just move on
SU players aren't sad to see Big East rivalry with Virginia Tech come to an end.

October 07, 2003

By Donnie Webb
Staff writer

R.J. Anderson tried with all his might to play nice. The Syracuse University quarterback evaded the first question like a fifth-year senior, declining to discuss critical comments he'd directed at Virginia Tech a few weeks ago.

But there's only so much nice that Anderson can play, especially before a game like this.

The Orangemen (3-1) meet the fourth-ranked Hokies (5-0) on Saturday in a Big East Conference football game at Blacksburg, Va. Kickoff is noon, and the contest will be televised by ESPN.

It will mark the final league meeting between the teams, now that Tech is headed to the Atlantic Coast Conference next season.

It will also end a series that has produced some of the more compelling games in Big East history.

The Orangemen lead the series 9-7 and have won two straight. Some consider SU's 50-42 victory in triple overtime last season as one of the greatest games played in the Carrier Dome.

There have been blowouts such as Tech's 62-0 pasting of Syracuse in 1999 and Syracuse's 52-21 win in 1996. The home team has won 10 of the last 12 games. The total point differential over 16 games is 32.

There was no evidence of melancholy over the end of the series on Monday. Syracuse

head coach Paul Pasqualoni acknowledged there have been a number of great games between the teams, so "I guess" the Orangemen and Hokies constituted a rivalry.

Guess? Pasqualoni, who conducted his shortest news conference of the season, said the Orangemen and the Big East will move ahead without the Hokies.

"There will be somebody else real good on our schedule we'll play," Pasqualoni said. "Next year, we add Florida State, so, you know, if it's not Virginia Tech, it will be somebody else."

Anderson, whoengineered Syracuse's 22-14 upset victory in Blacksburg two seasons ago, said the Orangemen aren't fixated on the fact that the Atlantic Coast Conference drop-kicked Syracuse and picked up Virginia Tech this summer.

Syracuse senior linebacker Rich Scanlon said the Orangemen talked a great deal in the summer and preseason about the ACC. He said the talk now is just about beating Virginia Tech.

"It is going to have no bearing on how we play this game or what our goals are," Scanlon said. "The bottom line is that seasons are measured in wins and losses, not what conference you are in. This is just a regular Big East game for us. It's a football game."

"We're going to play them in the Big East this year. It means more," Anderson said. "It's a Big East game. Other schools might be offended. I'm not. I mean, I'm not going to play against them next year."

_________________
The Bear may be dead but he still hates Tennessee. Roll Damn Tide

http://wvgazette.com/section/Sports/2003100738

Pruett can't predict conference shifts
By Doug Smock
Staff writer

HUNTINGTON — If you want an inside scoop on conference realignment, you might do better asking a late-night television psychic than Marshall coach Bob Pruett.

But Pruett will be as affected as anyone, so he can tell all you the latest news reports — the ones with all those anonymous sources — which foretell a 13-team Conference USA including both Marshall and Central Florida.

“Everything’s a guess,” Pruett said. “I’m purely working on a little information, a lot of putting two and two together and guessing. I’m just thinking out loud. There’s no direct knowledge.”

Pruett said Tuesday the entire issue is in a wait-and-see mode, with heavy emphasis on “wait.”

“Everybody wants it to get done yesterday,” Pruett said “But everything is waiting on the ACC, whether it’s going to take Boston College or do something else. That kind of got sped up a little bit because of the Notre Dame coming out and saying no, they’re not doing it.”

Much like the rest of the college sports world, Pruett has the Big East’s next move pegged: “It’s very widely accepted that they were going to take Cincinnati, Louisville, DePaul and Marquette, if the stars align. We checked with Miss Cleo and the stars will align. We might even get a football game out of it.”

The tricky part is: What happens if BC bolts the Big East? Pruett used that as a lobbying point.

“If that be the case, the Big East needs to bring in three,” Pruett said. “Do they get back to Conference USA, take a Marshall, a South Florida or a Central Florida? I don’t know if South Florida or Central Florida makes sense to the Big East people, because all that does is bring one of their fertile recruiting grounds into play and makes one of them equal to them.

“There’s some schools in the Big East that would like to have a superiority complex and they don’t want people in their recruiting area that are equal to them. So I don’t know if they’ll go that direction or not.”

In the meantime, Pruett did nothing to downplay a possible Thundering Herd move to Conference USA, which reportedly will also lose Saint Louis and Charlotte to the Atlantic 10.

“Certainly, I think there’s a tremendous amount of interest in Marshall in Conference USA. There’s interest on both sides,” he said. “From what I read ... they’re going to invite Rice, SMU, Tulsa, Central Florida and Marshall, which would put them at 13.”

This has piqued Pruett’s curiosity: “I don’t know what their thinking is. Why would they go to 13? I don’t know. Does that mean they think they would lose one or one might turn them down, or what? I’m not in those meetings.”

He wondered if the Mid-American Conference wouldn’t attempt an expansion. He pondered the Big East’s future. On the latter, he posed a legal dilemma.

“I don’t know how anybody can sue anybody,” he said. “I really don’t. I’m suing you for doing this and I’m going to do the same thing over here. So I don’t understand.”

Pruett does understand that the process will take longer than once expected.

“I think it’s a wait-and-see. At one time, I heard they wanted to do that by the first of November,” he said. “But now, everybody’s got to rechurn a little bit and see what the ACC’s going to do.”

_________________
The Bear may be dead but he still hates Tennessee. Roll Damn Tide

http://wvgazette.com/section/Sports/2003100740

Mitch Vingle

Meeting in Morgantown amounted to nothing

THE VIEWS from here:

The venom has been flowing. The fur, it’s been flying.
Over a simple and — from all accounts cordial — meeting.

Another dose of silliness over the prospect of a Marshall-WVU football game.

Here’s the deal, with input from officials from both schools.

A couple of weeks back, MU athletic director Bob Marcum learned of or decided to act on West Virginia’s previous football openings in 2004 and 2005.

“I called [WVU athletic director] Ed [Pastilong],’’ Marcum said. “I asked if I could come up and visit. He said yes, so I did. He told me, though, he had a lot in the works. He said there really was nothing there.’’

A contract between Virginia Tech and West Virginia was being drawn up.

“There was really nothing there,’’ Marcum said. “So once we got that out of the way, we visited about other things. ... There were no dates for us. So there was nothing to put forth.’’

Media squabbles, however, ensued. Charleston’s afternoon paper suggested MU put a two-games-at-Morgantown-with-no-return offer on the table. (“At the end of the day,’’ Pastilong said, “two games in Morgantown for ’04 and ’05 with no return to Huntington was not presented.’’) The Statewide Sportsline radio show reported MU offered a 3-for-1. Host Tony Caridi apparently attributed some of the info to WVU assistant AD Mike Parsons. Said Parsons participated in the meeting. (“If Mike was in there,’’ Marcum said, “he must have been invisible.’’) Parsons did not, in fact, participate.

The point, however, is nothing of significance happened. So why the hubbub?

“Bob came up,’’ Pastilong said. “He called and said, ‘Let’s visit a little.’ I was receptive, but said, ‘Bob, we’re almost past the 11th hour on a commitment [with Virginia Tech].’ He said, ‘Let’s talk anyway.’ Which we did.’’

After a few minutes spent on the possibility of a game, the two shot the breeze.

“If there would have been something in ’04 and ’05,’’ Marcum said, “we would have been accommodating.’’

“We left it as ‘Let’s see how the conference alignments unfold,’ ’’ said Pastilong. “If we someday have a chance to help both schools, we’ll sit back down again.’’

What should have happened, in my humble opinion, is a meeting of the minds over future possibilities. If WVU’s ’04 and ’05 schedules were filled, so be it. Move on. Try for something in 2008 and beyond.
I asked Marcum if he got any hint Pastilong wished to work on future games.

“No,’’ was the simple response.

There was also no hint, though, that Marcum broached the issue.

MU’s athletic director, by the way, thankfully injected some humor into the situation.
“[WVU president David] Hardesty said that ‘someday the stars will align,’ ’’ Marcum said of a possible contract. “I’m calling Miss Cleo.’’

Enough of that. The Gazette informed you the teams wouldn’t meet in ’04 and ’05. They are not.
You may remember that in last Friday’s Gazette, yours truly cornered Miami athletic director Paul Dee in South F-L-A. Dee said the Hurricanes would be interested in future contracts with West Virginia.
“Those are the types of games we have to take a good hard look at,’’ responded WVU’s Parsons.

The assistant AD said that at an appropriate time WVU will dial up the ’Canes.

“We have to protect our strength of schedule and provide TV with [Big East] inventory,’’ Parsons said. “We need BCS teams on our schedule to sell to ESPN and ABC.’’

Parsons warned, however, that his school “can’t overload’’ on Atlantic Coast Conference teams. The Mountaineers regularly play Maryland. Virginia Tech is back on the schedule. There’s the possibility of playing Miami.

The problem is, bowls with Big East-ACC ties — the Continental Tire and Gator — wouldn’t want rematches.

Quick recruiting shot. WVU has offered a scholarship to a teammate of Mortty Ivy, a 6-foot-2 athlete from Gateway High in Monroeville, Pa., who earlier committed to the Mountaineers.
The offer went to junior Justin King, a 6-0, 178-pound tailback.

“He’s a legitimate 4.2 [40-yard dash] kid,’’ said Gateway coach Terry Smith. “He’s quick. The best thing coming up in Western P.A.’’

Aside from WVU, Iowa, Penn State, Pitt and Boston College, among others, have offered King.

Back to Conference Realignment Land.
Which school would replace Boston College if the Eagles, as expected, fly to the ACC?

Sources conflict a bit. Some from Big East circles north of the Mountain State tell me Central Florida or South Florida. Others more adamantly say East Carolina would be No. 1, followed by Memphis.

For the record, Marcum said he has contacted Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese over the possibility of joining the league.
Don’t, however, bet on it happening.

Thought: Wouldn’t Temple be a good fit for the Mid-American Conference?
And finally . . .
You may remember that Sports Illustrated named Huntington the top sports city in West Virginia.

WVSPN.com voters beg to differ. According to the Internet site’s unscientific poll, Morgantown is tops (36 percent), followed by Wheeling (24), Parkersburg (22), Bluefield (5) and Charleston (4). Huntington is ranked seventh (2).

Which goes to show ... absolutely nothing.

Have a nice day.

_________________
The Bear may be dead but he still hates Tennessee. Roll Damn Tide

http://www.wvgazette.com/section/Sports/2003100738

Pruett can't predict conference shifts

By Doug Smock
Staff writer

HUNTINGTON — If you want an inside scoop on conference realignment, you might do better asking a late-night television psychic than Marshall coach Bob Pruett.

But Pruett will be as affected as anyone, so he can tell all you the latest news reports — the ones with all those anonymous sources — which foretell a 13-team Conference USA including both Marshall and Central Florida.

“Everything’s a guess,” Pruett said. “I’m purely working on a little information, a lot of putting two and two together and guessing. I’m just thinking out loud. There’s no direct knowledge.”

Pruett said Tuesday the entire issue is in a wait-and-see mode, with heavy emphasis on “wait.”

“Everybody wants it to get done yesterday,” Pruett said “But everything is waiting on the ACC, whether it’s going to take Boston College or do something else. That kind of got sped up a little bit because of the Notre Dame coming out and saying no, they’re not doing it.”

Much like the rest of the college sports world, Pruett has the Big East’s next move pegged: “It’s very widely accepted that they were going to take Cincinnati, Louisville, DePaul and Marquette, if the stars align. We checked with Miss Cleo and the stars will align. We might even get a football game out of it.”

The tricky part is: What happens if BC bolts the Big East? Pruett used that as a lobbying point.

“If that be the case, the Big East needs to bring in three,” Pruett said. “Do they get back to Conference USA, take a Marshall, a South Florida or a Central Florida? I don’t know if South Florida or Central Florida makes sense to the Big East people, because all that does is bring one of their fertile recruiting grounds into play and makes one of them equal to them.

“There’s some schools in the Big East that would like to have a superiority complex and they don’t want people in their recruiting area that are equal to them. So I don’t know if they’ll go that direction or not.”

In the meantime, Pruett did nothing to downplay a possible Thundering Herd move to Conference USA, which reportedly will also lose Saint Louis and Charlotte to the Atlantic 10.

“Certainly, I think there’s a tremendous amount of interest in Marshall in Conference USA. There’s interest on both sides,” he said. “From what I read ... they’re going to invite Rice, SMU, Tulsa, Central Florida and Marshall, which would put them at 13.”

This has piqued Pruett’s curiosity: “I don’t know what their thinking is. Why would they go to 13? I don’t know. Does that mean they think they would lose one or one might turn them down, or what? I’m not in those meetings.”

He wondered if the Mid-American Conference wouldn’t attempt an expansion. He pondered the Big East’s future. On the latter, he posed a legal dilemma.

“I don’t know how anybody can sue anybody,” he said. “I really don’t. I’m suing you for doing this and I’m going to do the same thing over here. So I don’t understand.”

Pruett does understand that the process will take longer than once expected.

“I think it’s a wait-and-see. At one time, I heard they wanted to do that by the first of November,” he said. “But now, everybody’s got to rechurn a little bit and see what the ACC’s going to do.”

_________________
The Bear may be dead but he still hates Tennessee. Roll Damn Tide

Interesting article that lists some of the biggest athletic endowments:

Huge endowment helps Stanford
No. 1 program has fund of $270 million
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/chronicle/archive/2003/10/28/SPGLM2KL7M1.DTL

Monday, March 22, 2004
An Early look at the Hot 100
By Bruce Feldman
ESPN The Magazine
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/columns/story?columnist=feldman_bruce&id=1765404