THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, December 7, 1994 TAG: 9412070564
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM ROBINSON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 99 lines
Three schools say they are leaving the Metro Conference. Virginia Tech isn't one of them. Yet.
Vast uncertainty clouds the fate of the Metro and Virginia Tech's affiliation just a month from the NCAA convention. That's no official deadline, but most college and Metro officials agree that many answers will be reached by the conference or soon after.
The questions include:
Will the planned departure of Metro-bellwether Louisville, Southern Mississippi and Tulane to an as-yet unnamed conference for 1995-96 mean curtains for the Metro, which still would include Tech, Virginia Commonwealth, North Carolina-Charlotte and South Florida?
Is it every school for itself, where those four remaining schools also find new homes - such as the Atlantic 10 or Colonial Athletic Association - at the expense of about $1 million each of Metro money? Or do they merge as one into another conference and take that money with them?
Do the four stay together as a league for at least one year, pocket the money and then move on, or do they try to lure other schools and forge a new future as the Metro?
Will the whole mess wind up in court?
Now, those questions and others are answered the same way. ``Maybe.''
``There are a lot of conversations going on,'' said Ralph McFillen, commissioner of the Metro Conference. ``There are huge financial incentives to stay together, though, which is what I anticipate. No one is sure exactly what will take place.''
If Tech athletic director Dave Braine knows, he's not telling.
``We have said that if at all possible we'd like to remain together,'' Braine said. ``At the same time, you have to look out for No. 1 also.''
That means Braine has talked with at least the Atlantic 10, Colonial and Southeastern Conference, even the Big East again, which spurned Tech last winter.
Getting into the Big East for all sports - the Hokies play Big East football - is Tech's goal, which Braine has never hidden. That league still isn't interested, and the Southeastern isn't knocking down his door.
But Braine feels Tech could land in the Atlantic 10 or Colonial, should a new home be needed.
``We do not have an offer from anybody,'' Braine said. ``But the Colonial or A-10, I feel comfortable that we could become a member in either one of those two conferences. All the dialogue has been very positive.''
Atlantic 10 commissioner Linda Bruno did not return phone calls seeking comment, though a member of the league's membership committee confirmed talks with Virginia Tech. But Colonial commissioner Tom Yeager said his league would welcome Tech or any of the remaining Metro schools.
``There is unqualified interest in Virginia Tech,'' Yeager said. ``There's no question if the president called and said he'd like to talk, we'd be there in a heartbeat.''
Hanging over everything is possible legal action by the Metro to keep the three schools from leaving until '96. But if it comes off, the league that Louisville, Tulane and Southern Mississippi want to join will include Houston from the Southwest Conference and Alabama-Birmingham, Memphis, Saint Louis, Marquette and Cincinnati from the Great Midwest.
DePaul, from the Great Midwest, has also been invited but has not accepted.
Dayton is the only Great Midwest member not invited, but is being wooed by the Atlantic 10. Meanwhile, UNC-Charlotte, VCU and South Florida once expected to be invited to the new league, but now that appears doubtful. Sources said only Tech and UNC-Charlotte have had promising talks with the Atlantic 10.
Meanwhile, Tech was not invited, but wouldn't have considered it anyway because of its Big East football tie. The new league will play lesser-caliber football than the Big East.
``Our priority has always been the Big East,'' said Braine, who said positioning Tech for that day is his motivation. ``If we have to go to another conference before the Big East, we will go with that condition.''
Despite the real logistical headaches of scheduling for next year and the negative impact conference questions could have on recruiting, a reason for the four remaining Metro schools to stay together is money.
If three leave - and they have yet to officially notify the Metro of their intentions - they each must pay the conference $500,000, according to the Metro's constitution.
The four survivors, then, would split $1.5 million. In addition, there is more than $1 million in revenue from the Metro's NCAA basketball tournament pool that would be distributed four ways next year.
However, under NCAA qualification rules, a four-team Metro would not have an automatic bid to the NCAA basketball tournament next season because it would not have at least three members with five years of membership - only Tech has been in five years. That could make it hard to attract new members.
Tech's options, should it choose to leave the Metro now? The Colonial might better fit the school's non-revenue sports because of the proximity of its other members, including Old Dominion, Richmond, James Madison and William and Mary.
But because of the greater TV exposure in larger markets such as Philadelphia (Temple and St. Joseph's), Pittsburgh (Duquesne) and Cincinnati (Xavier), not to mention two meetings a season with nationally ranked Massachusetts, men's basketball coach Bill Foster and women's coach Carol Alfano have said they would prefer the Atlantic 10.
That's assuming the Metro dissolves, which, like most everything else, is still anybody's guess. by CNB