With AD Oliver Luck leaving West Virginia, the school will "have one of its own in a position of power" in the NCAA, but will "have to find a new leader" for its athletic department, according to Cam Huffman of the Beckley REGISTER-HERALD. In his four-and-a-half years since replacing Ed Pastilong as AD, Luck "helped guide WVU into the Big 12 Conference," initiated a $21M baseball park project, and "increased the department’s overall revenue." Luck also "added the 18th varsity sport" with men’s golf and "initiated a media rights contract with IMG." Luck brought WVU "credibility on a national level by serving on the College Football Playoff Committee this year, a position he’ll have to give up" as NCAA Exec VP/Regulatory Affairs. But Luck also "ruffled a few feathers with some of his moves, including allowing beer sales at Mountaineer Field." Still, WVU President E. Gordon Gee "had nothing but positives to say about the job Luck did with the athletic department." In the end, leaving WVU "was not an easy decision for Luck, who has a long history with the institution." He said, "It has been a tremendous honor to serve my alma mater as director of athletics. ... As a member of the Big 12, the university is well-positioned for future success, and I know that great things lie ahead." Huffman notes WVU Exec Senior Associate AD Keli Cunningham, who has been with the school since '10, will serve as interim AD "until a permanent replacement is named" (Beckley REGISTER-HERALD, 12/18).
MOVING TO MORGANTOWN? Gee said WVU plans to "move swiftly to find the best fit in a new athletic director." In West Virginia, Mike Casazza writes while Luck "had missteps in the Dana Holgorsen-Bill Stewart [football] coaching transition and the outsourcing of the athletic department’s multimedia rights to IMG College which generated lawsuits that remain active, he leaves a position that’s more appealing than it was when he was hired" in June '10. He was "compensated, too, which should also help WVU attract candidates" (CHARLESTON DAILY MAIL, 12/18). Casazza writes Gee should have "no shortage of connections and candidates who will not need" much persuading to become WVU’s 12th AD. Luck’s successor "will be the school’s first athletic director to begin with a Big 12 affiliation, a slice of the league’s massive revenue payouts, a beneficial and lucrative multimedia rights contract, money for a nationally competitive salary and rising coaching salaries, a new baseball stadium and renovated facilities to support 18 varsity sports." Some "possibilities" include Virginia Tech AD Whit Babcock, WVU's Cunningham, Alabama Deputy AD Shane Lyons, Oregon AD Rob Mullens and Ohio Univ. AD Jim Schaus (CHARLESTON DAILY MAIL, 12/18). SI.com's Pete Thamel: "Don't be surprised if Alabama associate AD Shane Lyons gets a long look for the WVU AD job. He's qualified and a WV native" (TWITTER.com, 12/18).
THE COMMITTEE: CFP Exec Dir Bill Hancock said that the Big 12 will "nominate a replacement for Luck and that person will be named by the spring" (Beckley REGISTER-HERALD, 12/18). ESPN.com's Heather Dinich lists possible candidates to replace Luck on the CFP selection committee, including Texas Tech AD Kirby Hocutt, Oklahoma AD Joe Castiglione, former Texas coach Mack Brown, Kansas AD Sheahon Zenger and TCU AD Chris del Conte (ESPN.com, 12/17).
ALL YOU NEED IS LUCK: In N.Y., Ben Strauss writes Luck joins the NCAA as it "tries to reinvent itself." His hiring "represents a departure from the status quo in some ways." With his background as an AD, he "could be considered an olive branch to a group of college sports administrators who have felt neglected" under the tenure of NCAA President Mark Emmert. Gee said, "This is a new direction in the partnership and the balance of college athletics. Hiring an athletic director closes a lot of loops because the NCAA in some ways has been disconnected from the athletic community" (N.Y. TIMES, 12/18). In Indianapolis, Mark Alesia writes under the header, "Hiring Oliver Luck Should Help Battered NCAA." Luck's hiring "gives the NCAA a respected former athletic director during a time of upheaval in college sports and frequent attacks on the Indianapolis-based group" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 12/18). ESPN.com's Ivan Maisel wrote under the header, "NCAA's Hiring Of Oliver Luck A Home Run." Emmert's tenure "has been one misstep after another." But the hiring of Luck is "such an inspired move it makes me wonder how Emmert made it" (ESPN.com, 12/17). CBSSPORTS.com's Jon Solomon wrote Luck comes to the NCAA as a "forward thinker and one of the most pragmatic ADs about the legal challenges facing college sports." His hiring "means the NCAA is truly recognizing that change is coming, Luck could be a valuable bridge to whatever the future looks like" (CBSSPORTS.com, 12/17). Meanwhile, Colts QB Andrew Luck joked of his father's new job with the NCAA, which has its HQ in Indianapolis, "I've spent most of my adult life trying to get as far away from my folks as possible. But yeah, very excited" (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 12/18).
