(08-03-2015 12:44 AM)polkhigh Wrote: (08-02-2015 11:56 PM)He1nousOne Wrote: (08-02-2015 11:51 PM)polkhigh Wrote: Nebraska needs to trade WVU spots in B1G or Notre Dame go all in with the addition of WVU in ACC. Big 12 has great football programs but I think WVU jumps ship first chance they get.
What?
As in Nebraska back to Big 12 (where they belong) and WVU in B1G playing Maryland, Penn State, and Rutgers again and Ohio State just next door. Or WVU and former Big East affiliate Notre Dame become full members of the ACC making it a 16 team conference and reunite with former Big East members Boston College, Syracuse, Pitt, Virginia Tech, Louisville, and Miami. The rest off the ACC is pretty much old conference mates from the old Southern days..... seriously "What?"... When WVU fans talk among each other we all like the Big 12 but it isn't a good fit.
With Maryland in the ACC, WVa had no chance in Hell of getting in to the ACC because MD always hated them and viewed them as an existential threat all the way back to 1952. They would play them for the crowd, but not allow them in the conference.
This quote from Luck is well beyond what I ever thought he would say:
"While Luck is aware of the options he had at his disposal, he’s also aware that there are those out there that still believe another conference that was a better geographic fit was a very real opportunity. Luck may not have said it, but I will. It was the Big 12 or it would have been the American Athletic Conference. To think there was something better is foolish, particularly those who still want to believe that the ACC was actually an option or that other conferences were just waiting for us so they could pounce at the right time.
It wasn’t the case. Luck said as much.
“I think it’s accurate to say the ACC was never an option and all you have to do is go back and look at
the history of the ACC and WVU’s history with the Southern Conference. The ACC changed its membership four or five times and never was WVU in the discussion and never invited,” said Luck. “ … When the most recent discussions were taking place, there was zero opportunity with the ACC – none.”
For those too young to remember the Southern Conference that formed in 1921 was what became the SEC and ACC. After the SEC 13 left in 1933 because 23 teams were too much, the remaining SoCon schools invited a number of "little buddies" after UVa left the conference in 1936, aggrieved over UNC's cheating.
The conference was stable until 1950 when the smaller schools were able to get West Virginia into the SoCon.
An immediate fight over bowl games occurred and the defacto ACC Commissioner - VT's president, ruled no bowl games. MD had a top 5 program at the time, Duke still had a top 20 program, and Clemson and UNC were used to going to the Rose, Orange, Cotton, and Sugar Bowl.
All this is happening while MD is playing for the mythical national championship at the time. Md orchestrated the pullout in 1953 with Clemson, Duke and South Carolina. Once those four agreed, they contacted UNC and NC State and both had no choice but to go with them, because the nearest SEC schools UGA, GT, and Tennessee were nearly 12 hours away by train.
UNC and NC State wanted WF, who joined the SoCon in 1937, as WF was them located near those two 15 miles northeast of Raleigh, not Winston Salem, and had a better football stadium than NC State.
Animosity toward VT was high, but VT was somewhat under the gun because of a football scandal at William and Mary so he could be forgiven by some of the schools. Virginia elected officials were putting pressure on VT due to what was happening at W&M, so VT felt they had to set an example.
Animosity toward WVa was high because they voted for the ban after just getting into the conference.
MD talked UVa into rejoining the group and they were the first expansion - making a total of 8 and they were immediately able to vote. UNC then made a motion to "forgive" and invite VT but the motion died 4-4 - MD, UVa, Clemson, and SC being against. UVa did not want in-state competition.
UNC's Chancellor then made a motion to add West Virginia and the motion died for lack of a second.
Now keep in mind that getting to Blacksburg or Morgantown in the winter, back in the 1950's was no picnic as both were on the other side of the Blue Ridge.
When the ACC was smaller in number, it only took as few as two schools to keep a new school blackballed. Between MD and UVa, WVa had no chance in Hell.
At the present number - 15 - it takes 4 votes to blackball. UVa has not changed it's stance on WVa seeing them as competition for athletes that can't get enrolled at UVa. Duke, WF, and GT have qualms about WVa's admissions standards. (Yes we know UNC is hypocritical in all this but for now just ignore that).
Here are the current issues between WVa and the ACC as a whole that are new due to expansion politics:
WVa will never be the 16th ACC school, because that 16th school has to be an approved ND playing partner (meaning ND wants them) substantial enough for ND to play more ACC games.
VT, Pitt, UVa, and Louisville are all present across the DMA's in Kentucky, DC, Va, Western Pa, and part of West Virginia due to the odd shape of WVa. Other than the Charleston DMA, ACC schools have a place in the other WVa DMA's. They now add very little to the ACC "footprint".
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Luck speaks the truth about West Virginia conference realignment options
