The early reports out of Villanova on Monday had merit, as it happens, and Tuesday’s planned vote on whether or not the program will join the Big East has been put on indefinite hold thanks to existent member concerns about Nova’s lack of a high-capacity stadium. SB Nation’s Nova Blog has an email from university president Fr. Peter Donohue that reads, in part:
Villanova Vote On Big East Expansion Move Delayed Indefinitely
Without a clear and formal invitation from the Big East, we cannot proceed. We are now working with the Big East to provide whatever additional information and details we can. It is our hope that in the near future we will proceed with the Board of Trustees vote as planned.
Needless to say, after all this hurry-up-and-now-wait, our Nova community ain’t happy -- with anybody, really.
[A]pparently, the the communication not only amongst the conference members, but between Villanova and the Big East was so astoundingly horrible that at the 11th hour it was discovered that Villanova’s plan wasn’t up to the expectations of the conference members. On the surface, the Big East looks to have screwed the pooch pretty bad on this one - but we’re not letting ourselves off the hook either.
Over in the peanut gallery, the NCAA’s compliance blogger, John Infante, has a cheeky renaming suggestion for when they get this stadium thing worked out, and meanwhile, UCF’s all, “Oooh! Oooh! Pick me! Pick me!”
Stay tuned to this StoryStream, The Nova Blog, and SB Nation Philly for more news on possible Big East expansion in 2011.
See More:
