THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, February 7, 1995 TAG: 9502070438
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM ROBINSON, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 99 lines
If college basketball did not wallow in a bottomless well of newsprint, television money and fan hysteria, the choice of Virginia Tech's next athletic conference affiliation probably would not be a mystery.
Now that Virginia Tech's tenure in the Metro Conference has only a few months left, the Colonial Athletic Association has offered the Hokies its hand. So has the Atlantic 10, and a published report over the weekend said the league is poised to accept Virginia Tech, Dayton and LaSalle.
However, a good portion of those who coach nonrevenue sports at Virginia Tech would be more pleased to accept the CAA's offer.
The CAA's proximity to Blacksburg, its number of automatic NCAA playoff bids and the quality of its nonrevenue programs are enviable, all seemingly better than those of the Atlantic 10.
But the A-10, top to bottom, beats the Colonial when it comes to men's basketball. That is to say, when it comes to the kind of national exposure and money that pays bills, excites alumni and sticks in the minds of potential athletes.
So though the CAA seems a natural fit for Virginia Tech's baseball, soccer and swimming programs, among others, it is evident to many of Tech's coaches that the school's best option probably will be what is best for basketball, and for Tech's ultimate goal of membership in the Big East.
They expect to hear a decision next Monday, after athletic director Dave Braine has made his recommendation to Virginia Tech's board of visitors. The athletic director, who has not divulged his leanings in interviews, consulted Monday with many of his coaches. Apparently, he heard a common answer.
``I think most of the nonrevenue coaches are in favor of the Colonial,'' baseball coach Chuck Hartman said. ``Particularly in our case. The Colonial is a much better baseball league than the A-10. Normally they're one of the top five or six conferences in the country, they have an automatic bid, and the weather is one hell of a lot better.
``But I can understand the situation when it comes to basketball. The league's been getting three and four NCAA bids. But from a baseball standpoint, I think the Colonial is far superior.''
Hartman said he's told Braine the same things, ``and I'm sure we've got basketball coaches down there talking about the quality of the A-10's basketball,'' Hartman said. ``You're talking about Massachusetts, Temple, George Washington, some of the premier programs in the country. Basketball draws more people and more publicity, consequently it could mean more to our university.''
Men's basketball coach Bill Foster and women's coach Carol Alfano are on record as preferring the Atlantic 10, in part because they think a presence in the Northeast would help Tech reach the Big East. Virginia Tech plays football in the Big East, but that conference rejected Tech's bid for full membership last spring.
Track coach Russ Whitenack said he is in favor of anything that gets Virginia Tech into the Big East, though the Big East has not announced its future expansion plans. Next year, though, it will get West Virginia and Rutgers, two of the Atlantic 10's top programs.
Whitenack said the Colonial's lack of indoor track bothers him, but that the outdoor season is spent so much at invitational meets that league affiliation is less important.
``It may just be a myth, but I think the A-10 has a little better image among high school kids,'' Whitenack said. ``They may not know what's best for them. The Colonial might be the best, you don't know. But when they see UMass on TV, they remember the A-10.''
Joining the Atlantic 10 wouldn't be so great for Wayne Norris' men's and women's swim teams. Rutgers and West Virginia had that league's two best programs and now they're leaving. But the Metro no longer sponsors swimming, and Norris said he'd just be happy to have a league to swim in.
``I would lean toward the CAA, because it would be better for us in the sport of swimming,'' Norris said. ``I can't say what would be better for the school. I would not want to be in Mr. Braine's shoes. He's got a tough decision.''
Jerry Cheynet's wrestlers already compete in the Colonial as an at-large member, because the Metro does not offer that sport. Cheynet also coaches men's soccer, and he said the CAA would be his choice because of the ease of travel, caliber of play and automatic bid.
The CAA offers automatic NCAA tournament bids in men's and women's basketball, baseball, soccer, women's volleyball, wrestling and field hockey. The Atlantic 10 has three automatic bids: men's and women's basketball and volleyball.
Whichever decision is made, golf coach Jay Hardwick can afford to stand firmly behind it. Once Hardwick was assured that Tech, no matter the new conference, would remain in highly competitive and successful District 3 North, it set his mind at ease, he said.
``I would think that basketball has to be a very big consideration,'' Hardwick said. ``It's such a high-profile sport. But we have a very close-knit coaching staff here at Virginia Tech. It'll be a very unselfish decision.''
Probably Hartman stands to lose the most from going to the A-10, in that his baseball team would move from largely a warm, southern schedule to a northern one. He figures he would lose recruits, particularly from players from the Northeast seeking a league in a warmer climate.
But he's a company man, he said. He'll play what he's dealt.
``I'm going to do this another four or five years,'' Hartman said. ``Whatever we go into, we're going to try to be one of the best in the league, if not the best. That's the only way to approach it. It's no way to get bent out of shape if you don't get your way. I've been around too long for that.'' by CNB