Option play QB-turned-senator Allen playing tough with ACC

George Allen, the U.S. senator from Virginia, admits that wrangling with leadership in the Atlantic Coast Conference is all about politics and options -- the triple option, in the case of looking out for Virgina Tech. And it appears to have worked.

From the start, Virginia Tech wanted in on the ACC expansion, only to be rebuffed

So Allen, Gov. Mark Warner and Attorney General Jerry Kilgore played hardball, putting the squeeze on University of Virginia president John Casteen to vote against the expansion plan.

When it hadn’t landed an invitation a month later, Virginia Tech joined the other Big East schools not named Miami, Syracuse and Boston College in a lawsuit against the ACC, Miami and BC. The suit neatly alleged, among other things, breach of fiduciary duty, civil conspiracy, unfair competition, and breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing.

Allen and Virginia’s senior U.S. senator, John Warner, also joined senators from New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania and West Virginia in a letter to leaders of Miami, BC and Syracuse, begging them not to break up the Big East. They invoked loyalty, leadership and sportsmanship, suggesting: “Now those very virtues find themselves under assault, not by the corrosive effects of scandal at the student-athlete level, but rather by the decisions of individuals in leadership positions."

WOW, I have to take a break getting this post ready to ROFL over that one

>“We were just supporting Tech," Allen explained. ............“I’ll just have to use football analogies. It is very difficult to do it on principle."

You can say that again, George. It's difficult to use any GOP principles on this strong arming of the University of Virginia

There’s no telling what the reaction will be from the likes of Sens. Robert Byrd, Joseph Lieberman and Arlen Specter if Virginia Tech now receives an invitation and elects to bolt the Big East. Or maybe they clearly understand and appreciate the political dance.

ROFL, stupid lawsuit is now the Hokies biggest obstacle for accepting the invite and doing exactly what they are suing the people they are joining for.

As for the wonderful behavior by the Virginia pols, what do you expect them to do, something useful like trying to work on the state budget deficit or breaking the Estrada fillibuster?

From Virginia Tech's perspective, I do not see how the lawsuit seems so stupid. It as well as the strongarming from Virginia pols has possibly helped Tech get an invite.

That being said, the whole episode has been disgusting. I probably have a different perspective from you, you seem to be an ACC fan and I am a Pitt fan. Pitt, because they are not lucky enough to win the location lottery like Syracuse or Boston College, or have an ACC team in its backyard like Virginia Tech, or have an in with Donna Shalala seems to be on the outside looking in. They face a demotion to the Conference USA and no BCS hopes through no fault of their own. They are Preseason top 10 in some polls in football this year and finished in the top 10 in basketball the last two years. They have worked hard to get to this point and now they are poised to be arbitrarily thrown to the back of the line. For what, so the ACC schools can make an extra million a year.

I really have never understood why the ACC felt so threatened. I also understand that a school should have a right to associate with whatever schools they choose and believe Miami makes sense in the ACC, but BC and Syracuse. For what reason would the ACC want these Northeastern teams for any reason other than the destruction of the Big East, freeing up televesion dollars and a BCS slot. This makes some sense if this was a business, but college football is supposedly run by nonprofit entities. I would have so much less of a problem with this if we started taxing these entities accordingly.

Finally, this whole BCS system has to change. I know it is hypocritical to suggest this, because Pitt has enjoyed the fruits of this system the last 6 years. Now I undersand what positiion the BYU's, Louisvilles, TCU's and Tulane's have been in. Why should Baylor be better positioned than BYU, Kansas State have more opportunities than Louisville, Vanderbuilt have a more realistic national championship hopes than TCU. It is absurd.

From Virginia Tech's perspective, I do not see how the lawsuit seems so stupid. It as well as the strongarming from Virginia pols has possibly helped Tech get an invite.

Because this Virginia Tech betrays Big East is what you have now.

With with Puke and UNC a solid "no". Judas Casteen was already holding the vote up for Tek, before they called in the politicians.

Miami was saying no Vippy Sue under any circumstances, but the calender forced their hand, they are now ready to accept them.

Supposedly, Tek has been told they have to withdraw from lawsuit before recieving the invitation.

SU isn't too thrilled about going to the ACC anyhow, they would have been dropped, Martha would have slipped in, no muss, no fuss, except for waiting to get the frivolous lawsuit thrown out.

Now they have to appear like the biggest hypocrites, liars, backstabbers on the face of the earth to accept the invitation.

Best case scenario:
Carolina and Duke say they will take the original 12 instead of the new 13 or 14, Casteen votes no by himself, Tek's out of the lawsuit and the ACC.

Ugly, Ugly, Double Ugly, that's what Martha looks like now to people from people on the outside who have no dog in this fight, as you can by the other post I linked you to or, in case you missed it Pickin' and Grinnin': College football goes to the courts is a fun read.

On the political side, if Allen and Kilgore (it's a given that RINO Warner would go w/ the Dim) had stayed out of it, they could have said "That's why the GOP stands for smaller government and letting business things work out on their own. Government involvment does no good and often makes matters worse, blah blah blah".

But no-o-o-o-o-, they had to take the bait, jump on lawsuit bandwagon and make fools out themselves and traitors to their alma mater.

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