Post by mountaineer501 on Jul 19, 2008 5:43:55 GMT -5
By Mitch Vingle
Sports Editor
THERE'S A word that describes Tevita Finau's chances of playing for West Virginia University's football team this fall.
Bleak.
The junior college defensive end, a four-star recruit, was being counted on to make an immediate impact along the Mountaineers' front. But reading the words of Phoenix College offensive coordinator Mark Mejia won't please WVU fans.
"He hasn't [qualified] yet," Mejia said Thursday. "He has a test - language - through BYU he was supposed to take at Arizona State. But Arizona State won't let him take the test there because he's not enrolled as a student.
"So that's an issue, plus he needs an English class. And time is real short. I talked to Tevita and told him he needs to start doubling up. Camp is in two weeks.''
Mejia said Finau learned he could earn credits by taking the language class via a proctor or on the Brigham Young campus, a 15-hour drive. He was originally going the proctor route at Mesa College, then ASU.
"He signed up two weeks ago," Mejia said. "It's been frustrating for him. The people at ASU said BYU should have told him he had to be enrolled.''
Mejia knows Finau, and knows what kind of a hit WVU takes if the end isn't eligible.
"It would be huge," said the coach. "But right now Tevita is getting overwhelmed and frustrated.''
Mejia said if Finau doesn't make the grade, he'd probably return to Phoenix College and finish his degree. (Whether he plays another season there, said the coach, is up to Finau.) He could be in Morgantown for the second semester, but his eligibility at WVU would be cut from three years to two.
Sports Editor
THERE'S A word that describes Tevita Finau's chances of playing for West Virginia University's football team this fall.
Bleak.
The junior college defensive end, a four-star recruit, was being counted on to make an immediate impact along the Mountaineers' front. But reading the words of Phoenix College offensive coordinator Mark Mejia won't please WVU fans.
"He hasn't [qualified] yet," Mejia said Thursday. "He has a test - language - through BYU he was supposed to take at Arizona State. But Arizona State won't let him take the test there because he's not enrolled as a student.
"So that's an issue, plus he needs an English class. And time is real short. I talked to Tevita and told him he needs to start doubling up. Camp is in two weeks.''
Mejia said Finau learned he could earn credits by taking the language class via a proctor or on the Brigham Young campus, a 15-hour drive. He was originally going the proctor route at Mesa College, then ASU.
"He signed up two weeks ago," Mejia said. "It's been frustrating for him. The people at ASU said BYU should have told him he had to be enrolled.''
Mejia knows Finau, and knows what kind of a hit WVU takes if the end isn't eligible.
"It would be huge," said the coach. "But right now Tevita is getting overwhelmed and frustrated.''
Mejia said if Finau doesn't make the grade, he'd probably return to Phoenix College and finish his degree. (Whether he plays another season there, said the coach, is up to Finau.) He could be in Morgantown for the second semester, but his eligibility at WVU would be cut from three years to two.
