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Post by cviller on Oct 5, 2007 9:25:51 GMT -5
By Mitch Vingle
Sports Editor
If West Virginia’s football team is seeking motivation for Saturday’s game with Syracuse — and, really, the rest of the season — it needs only to study the bowl situation.
Unless the Mountaineers get on a major roll as we near the second half of the season, they’re destined for the Brut Sun Bowl. Or the Meineke Car Care Bowl.
Unfortunately for a team with such great preseason expectations, one that started the season with not one but two Heisman Trophy candidates, that’s the situation because of the Big East’s weak bowl bargaining position a couple years ago.
Back in July of 2005, the league had to bow and take its punishment for losing key schools and for the poor play of those remaining. Since then, we all know, the conference has muscled up. But the league is stuck in its second of a four-year setup.
When contacted Thursday, Gator Bowl president Rick Catlett said it’s a long shot his group would take West Virginia. The Mountaineers played there last year. More importantly, however, is the complex agreement between the Gator, Sun, Big East, Notre Dame, ACC and Pac-10.
In a nutshell, the Gator takes a Big East school or Notre Dame twice in the four-year period. It takes Big 12 teams in the other two. The Brut Sun takes either a Big East team or Notre Dame in the other years. The odds are the more prestigious Gator won’t take a Big East school for the second year in a row and shut itself out of landing Notre Dame in the next two.
Catlett, as one would expect, said his group “will look at all our options.’’ He said the Big East would certainly be examined. He also said much would depend on the Bowl Championship Series matchups. If two Big 12 teams land BCS bids, the Gator would pick behind the Cotton and Holiday bowls. If just one goes, the Gator gets second pick one year and after the Cotton and before the Holiday the next.
It’s a mess. But the point is, West Virginia needs to make itself so attractive, even with the one loss, that it either earns a BCS bowl or seriously separates itself from Big 12 teams like the Texas-Oklahoma loser, Nebraska, Kansas State, etc., in order to return to the Gator. Which will be difficult.
“It would be hard for us to take West Virginia again,” Catlett said. “But we’ve done it before.’’
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Post by joemountaineer on Oct 5, 2007 11:21:54 GMT -5
Why are we worried about Bowls when the team just needs to focus on winning. We controlled our own destiny to some point before, now it's time to just play ball and see what happens.
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Post by mountaineerinpa on Oct 5, 2007 11:56:30 GMT -5
Yeah I agree with you we cant worry about which bowls are interested in us or where we are going just yet. Maybe by the end of Oct. we should start to wonder.
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Post by wvumaryjane on Oct 5, 2007 16:23:25 GMT -5
The one thing I am gonna say about this article that has habitually PISSED me off is the whole Big East OR Notre Lame issue..
I mean Notre Lame is is cock blocking us as far as adding another football school because they are Big EAST Basketball and we already have too many basketball programs.. and THEN they get to steal a bowl from the Big East..
Its twice as unfair!
I hope Notre Lame loses out.. OK they can beat Boston College in 2 weeks so BC will drop in the polls for OUR benefit.. but they can lose all the way out the rest of the way and they may FINALLY slink off into the obsurity that they deserve..
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Post by mountaineerinpa on Oct 5, 2007 16:48:44 GMT -5
You are right MJ, I hadnt thought about it with them in the conference as a basketball team.
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Post by joemountaineer on Oct 5, 2007 18:06:36 GMT -5
Can't argue the Notre Shame points MJ, the whole thing sucks but the Big East was forced to sign this deal in order to preserve any auto BCS bid for the conference champion. It is a crock but I am enjoying the hell out of watching Notre Lame and NBC and some of these others who bought into this fascade of greatness fall on their faces. Notre Dame is at least another season from being respectable. The Big East was fighting for survival when this bowl crap was done. Hopefully now the BE has enough respect in order to have a little more bargaining power the next time these discussions come up. Meantime, I'll enjoy watching the not-so-fighting Irish struggle to a 1 or 2 win season this year and maybe 6 wins next year.
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Post by wvumaryjane on Oct 5, 2007 18:43:21 GMT -5
Joe,
Great points! I understand the rationalle about trying to preserve an auto bid for the BCS game after the Big East was vandalized by the ACC.
How many years are we contractually obligated to this agreement?
I really believe the Big East is a Credible BCS conference now..
Maybe Notle Lame can leach off the ACC or the big 12 in future years or be forced to JOIN a conference.
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Post by rainman on Oct 5, 2007 18:44:36 GMT -5
I hope that win total doesnt go past 5 next year so they wont be bowl eligible then either, screw them anyway using the security of the Big East except in football. I always felt that they should be all in or all out (of the Big East)
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Post by mountaineerinpa on Oct 5, 2007 18:52:02 GMT -5
I hope that win total doesnt go past 5 next year so they wont be bowl eligible then either, screw them anyway using the security of the Big East except in football. I always felt that they should be all in or all out (of the Big East) You are right about the win total only reaching 5. I guess we will have to listen to ESPN and all th talking heads STILL talking about them giving them press and air time that hey dont deserve. I think its 09 the BCS is up for renewal(not sure about this) and ND to over rule BE teams. |
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Post by joemountaineer on Oct 6, 2007 17:20:55 GMT -5
My understanding of the agreement is we are midway through a five year contract. Something like that. Notre Lame has leached off the Big East for a while now. I wish the commisioner would just get some nads and say hey, your in or your out. They definitley do NOT add anything to the basketball league, they are respectable yes, but the league wouldn't be hurt if they were to be out of it. Notre Shame lives off it's history and prestige, despite the fact that they have basically sucked ass in football for a few years now, and they haven't been world beaters in b-ball either. It irks the hell out of me as well. I really hope the football conference keeps gaining in prestige and in two years when these contracts are up for renewal we dictate the terms this go round. WVU has been victimized enough over the ND in over a NE team when eligble thing for far too long.
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