Big 12 officials were in Morgantown Tuesday to join West Virginia University officials in a press conference to officially announce WVU joining the Big 12. During the ceremony, WVU President Jim Clements was presented with a Big 12 hat and the admissions agreement by Big 12 interim commissioner Chuck Neinas. In turn, Neinas was presented with a Mountaineer statue by Clements and the student body also presented him with a shirt and made him an honorary “Mountaineer Maniac”.

It will take four years before WVU receives a full payout of revenue from the conference, as it steps each year beginning at 50%, 67%, 85% then a full payout the fourth year. Athletic Director Oliver Luck stated the 50% payout is more than than a full payout from the Big East. Clements went on to thank other parts of the program for being present such as the Pride of West Virginia Marching Band and the WVU cheerleaders. He also made points about the University’s growth compared to others that are facing budget cuts. WVU is set to officially join the Big 12 on July 1, 2012. However, they are currently involved in a lawsuit to end their relationship with the Big East much earlier than the 27-month required notice.

It’s truly a good time to be a Mountaineer and to see the school moving forward in a big way rather than going down with “a sinking ship”, as former head coach Don Nehlen was recently quoted.

West Virginia University filed a lawsuit this week against the Big East to force them to let WVU exit the Big East and join the Big 12 well ahead of the contractual 27-month waiting period. It’s all about leverage and how bad the Big East wants the money versus keeping them on board for the duration. It is likely that West Virginia will end up paying some amount in addition to the standard exit fee to get the Big East to allow them to exit early. The reason? No one wants to force someone to be somewhere they do not want to be. It’s not quite the same, but it is similar to when a professional athlete demand a trade–get rid of the bad apple to avoid negative publicity.

In my opinion, the University needs to resolve the conflict quickly to avoid obvious distractions. It would be interesting to see the contractual language to get an understanding of the Big East’s obligations and how they match up to WVU’s claims they breached the contract. It would only make sense from a contractual standpoint the Big East would be held to certain standards and upkeep of the conference. At the surface it would certainly appear that has not happened considering the mass exodus of most every reputable football school. Only time will tell how this will play out and whether WVU will be able to make the transition sooner than later, but one thing is for sure–the Big East will want money and WVU wants out. It has the makings of a quick agreement for cash above and beyond the exit fee. My prediction? WVU will pay an additional $2 Million to speed up the process.


The author owns WVShop.com, a WVU Store, which sells WVU apparel gifts, accessories and tailgate gear. Some of their best selling items are the WVU hats.