Let’s give some love to our soon to be BE brethren at Marquette. I like to think if Pitt tried to pull the whole “Pittsburgh” crap, that happened in ’97 it would have met with similar destruction. The boys at Marquette Hoops have owned this story on the blogs. Read it all. Especially catching the MSJ in some stupidly bizarre flip-flopping over the name issue. Just read it all and go back an additional week to see how much they have been at the vanguard. Not sure how many years you guys will be in the same conference, but it’s good to have you in a blog alliance right now.

That said, John Walters at SI.com had too much fun with this not to excerpt.

Earlier this week Marquette University decided to renege on its decision to change the school’s mascot name to “Gold.” The verdict came after public and private rebuke (an alumnus friend of mine noted “I bought a nickel-bag of that on spring break once”). Although, as a sportswriter, I must admit that I was disappointed: I was looking forward to dubbing Marquette the “Au.”
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Marquette proudly proclaims itself to be a “Jesuit” university. The actual name of the Jesuit order is “Society of Jesus.” “Jesuit” is in fact a slang term, one that originated as a slur. According to the Etymology Dictionary (and my high school teachers at Brophy College Prep, which is also Jesuit), “Their enemies (in both Catholic and Protestant lands) accused them of belief that ends justify means, hence the sense “a dissembling person” (1640), and Jesuitical, “deceitful” (1613).

In fact, looking up “Jesuit” in my dictionary, I find the definition, “one given to subtle casuistry.” And, because, just like you, I had no idea what casuistry means, I looked that up, too: “subtle but specious reasoning intended to rationalize or mislead.”

So it is alright for Marquette to embrace the term “Jesuit,” which was once unquestionably derisive, but it is offensive for the school to align its sports teams with the term “Warrior,” which means “one who is engaged in or experienced in battle?” Isn’t that a fairly accurate analogy for an athletic competitor?
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If the Marquette officials abhor the name Warriors, they certainly will not approve of the mascot created by a group of cheeky students at Roger Williams University in Bristol, R.I. In a clever protest of “V-Day” (a celebration held on their campus and many others across the country to honor Eve Ensler‘s play, The Vagina Monologues, and one that takes place with complete cooperation of university administrators), the College Republicans at Roger Williams University inaugurated “P-Day” and described themselves as “P—- Warriors”. They even created a mascot, Testaclese.

The administration, alas, not only failed to get the joke but also confiscated Testaclese’s costume. Apparently, to them a V is valiant but a P is pernicious. That’s what I call a phallacy.

Never miss an opportunity to make the Richard Head jokes.

No, I’m not talking about contributions to the ticket and tailgate fund. (Though such contributions are gratefully accepted. I thought you/we were done begging. Never too proud to beg. Snippet of an schizo-internal conversation.)

I am talking, of course, about the 12th game NCAA Legislation.

When it comes to cashing in on the business of college football, there’s no place like home.

So when Division I-A university presidents conceded that financial considerations were one of the biggest reasons for passing the 12th-game legislation last month, the response from athletic directors whose job is to schedule games was predictable.

As they scurry to find that extra opponent for the 2006 season — the first year 12 games are allowed — schedule makers for Pitt, Penn State and West Virginia said that added game will be used to buy a “guarantee game” so they can have seven home games every season. They said playing host to seven home games is essential to running a solvent athletic department.

For those who were hoping the 12th game might serve as a way to create some blockbuster interconference matchups (say, for example, Pitt vs. Southern California or Penn State vs. Oklahoma), don’t hold your breath. In order for that to happen, teams would have to play seven home games every other season, and that trade-off isn’t enough for the bottom-line university administrators.

“That seventh home game, we need to take advantage of that financially,” said Mike Parsons, the deputy athletic director at West Virginia who is in charge of scheduling. “Does that guarantee we’ll have seven home games every season? No, not 100 percent of the time, but it better be close to it.”

Pitt athletic director Jeff Long and Penn State athletic director Tim Curley share the same view. None of the three schools are ready to announce which team will serve as the 12th game in 2006 — that should come over the summer or early next fall — but expect a steady diet of Mid-American Conference schools and the like to parade through Heinz Field, Beaver Stadium and Mountaineer Field.

You know, if the House and Senate can take a moment from uselessly and sanctimoniously proclaiming the evils of steroids and threatening to render void more and more civil liberties and contract terms maybe they can go all self righteous and hold hearings about the hypocricsy of no college football playoffs while another game is added to the schedule to gouge the fans and the student-athletes.

For Pitt fans, we can expect that will be the increase in our average season ticket prices. The cost of an additional game. Can we expect a quality game? Hah! Expect at least one 1-AA per year for the long-term.

Don’t expect better nonconference matchups with the schedule expanding to 12 games in 2006. When the NCAA passed the proposal, it also passed a resolution that will allow teams to count games against I-AA schools in the race to secure a winning record and reach a bowl game. So instead of seeing more Auburn-Southern California games, we’ll see more Auburn-Western Kentucky games. What coach is going to risk a loss to another I-A team when coaches are being fired for 7-4 seasons? Moreover, many mid-major teams now want a home game in return for taking a beating from a BCS school. . . .

Yup. More Youngstown St., Villanovas and the like for at least one game every year. That’s all it will mean. Can you say hello to an annual “City Game” versus Duquesne in football? I knew you could.

Joe Starkey generates his outrage for the issue.

…Part of the rationale, an NCAA spokesperson told me Wednesday, is to foster “rivalries” and help I-AA schools in recruiting.

Sorry, but I have to believe it’s all about filling athletic department coffers on both sides.

It’s a money grab.

So, instead of using that 12th game to try to stoke old rivalries (Pitt-Penn State) or give the home fans a game to get excited about, schools all around the country will be executing a widespread rip-off.

I mean, people are going to pay cold, hard cash to see Pitt play Youngstown State, even if it’s just part of their season-ticket package.

Six of the eight Big East teams are getting a head start on the insanity. Pitt, WVU, Rutgers, Cincinnati, South Florida and UConn are hosting a Division I-AA team as part of their 11-game schedules this season.

Wasn’t the weak-sister Big East supposed to be beefing up its non-conference schedules?

Granted, there are plenty of I-AA teams that are better than the worst I-A teams. Playing Wofford isn’t much different than playing Buffalo or some other I-A weakling, but the least college football can do — the least it could have done — is limit the opportunity for grotesque mismatches.

Big East schools will tell you they are forced to play I-AA teams because of scheduling difficulties. They might need to find five non-conference games in 2006, for example, while other conferences won’t have nearly as many dates to fill. And there are only so many teams to go around.

Too bad. If it takes scheduling a conference team twice, do it. West Virginia and Pitt talked about a second game a few years ago. Split the gate. Do something. Just don’t play a I-AA opponent.

To be fair, schools like Pitt and West Virginia are just playing the hands they’re dealt. And the I-AA schools aren’t complaining, mind you. They get a nice payout of their own when they play sacrificial lamb at the big-time opponents’ field.

And that’s just it. It isn’t just the lack of enough Akron, Buffalo, and Louisiana Tech teams in 1-A. It’s about keeping the price down.

These were schools that could finance their entire athletic departments on a few well-paid patsy games per year. These schools get $600 K to show up and play Washington Generals to the Harlem Globetrotters in Oklahoma or Miami. Now, schools can go out and get Maine, Hofstra, Alabama St., Penn, Lehigh, Lafayette, Montana St., SE Louisiana, UMass, Coastal Carolina and such. Simple econ. The pool grows and price drops.

So, you can spare me the crocodile tears about how Pitt and Penn State want to work something out.

It’s good to be back.

Man.

I’m alternatively flattered and disturbed.

The ego appreciates the e-mails and comments expressing concern and wondering if everything is alright.

It’s a little scary to realize how much this blog has come to mean to some of you.

Anyways, it was a long trip home from Portland with flight delays, cancellations and sitting on the tarmac for a while.

If I’m lucky, I’ll be back later today. If not, tomorrow for sure.