Here's a commentary by Bray Cary, President and CEO of West Virginia Media, on the Bill Stewart situation...

Bill Stewart Should Accept Responsibility

WV Illustrated Wrote:Reports indicate head coach Bill Stewart attempted to gather information against offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen.

If the reports out of Morgantown are true and West Virginia University head football coach Bill Stewart has engaged in a media smear campaign against offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen, then he has no choice but to step down.

Read the entire quote, and see the included video online at WV Illustrated...

There is no doubt he is gone; and the sooner the final details get worked out, the better for everyone involved. A distraction like this drags on, it causes more and more damage.

Once he is gone and Holgerson is in place as Head Coach, things should be fine. We will actually be in an even better position going into this season than we otherwise would have been with the "head coach in waiting" situation.

I figure it will all be over and settled by the end of the week, crazed...

Stew can join Doc down in Huntington...

(06-07-2011 03:17 PM)bitcruncher Wrote:  Stew can join Doc down in Huntington...

Best place for him.

They are currently the only folks in WV who aren't upset with Stew. But I still wonder if he can handle going from the top dog at THE big school in the state, to a peon at the state's little big school - a school that lives in constant bitter envy of the school where Stew is about to be jettisoned...

(06-07-2011 04:38 PM)bitcruncher Wrote:  a school that lives in constant bitter envy of the school where Stew is about to be jettisoned...

ain't that the truth

I tend to think Bill Stewart has already dealt with a lot of those feelings. Keep in mind Stewart was essentially fired back in December but was told if he still wanted his paycheck for another season.....he had to sit around and help his replacement. His replacement came in and had all the power, probably fired some of Bill Stewart's friends in offensive coaches.

I don't blame Stewart in all of this, the blame really belongs to those who decided to enter into this "Coach in waiting" scheme. To seriously believe Stewart was just going to sit there and "Take it" for a whole season is a little naive in my opinion. They should have cut Stewart loose, paid him his buyout and let him leave with some dignity. I think Stewart has had 7 months to deal with this, then he got to see it first hand in spring ball and didn't like it. How can you blame him for being ticked? Wouldn't you be? Sure maybe he could have handled it better but if you went into work everyday and felt like you were taking it up the backside.....wouldn't you handle it poorly after a while?

(06-07-2011 04:45 PM)wvucrazed Wrote:  

(06-07-2011 04:38 PM)bitcruncher Wrote:  a school that lives in constant bitter envy of the school where Stew is about to be jettisoned...

ain't that the truth

Don't get us involved, if we're so little then why are you all always thinking about us?

(06-07-2011 03:03 PM)wvucrazed Wrote:  Once he is gone and Holgerson is in place as Head Coach, things should be fine. We will actually be in an even better position going into this season than we otherwise would have been with the "head coach in waiting" situation.

Well, except that Holgerson has his own issues right now.

(06-07-2011 11:26 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(06-07-2011 03:03 PM)wvucrazed Wrote:  Once he is gone and Holgerson is in place as Head Coach, things should be fine. We will actually be in an even better position going into this season than we otherwise would have been with the "head coach in waiting" situation.

Well, except that Holgerson has his own issues right now.

I'm not worried about Holgerson's "issues"

If his issues are as bad as we are led to believe they are much more worrisome then Stewart gathering information.

Not to take up for Bill Stewart. But all of this is Oliver Lucks fault. He should have fired Stewart at the end of last season. You really can't blame a man that is desperate to keep the only head coaching job at a big time program he'll ever get.

Hawg, I don't think Luck had a decision on that front. IMO the WVU BoG forced another year with Stew on him. I think Luck wanted the clean break, and this modification was imposed on his decision making process...

(06-08-2011 05:56 AM)CatsClaw Wrote:  If his issues are as bad as we are led to believe they are much more worrisome then Stewart gathering information.

Worrisome for who?

Dana Holgerson is 38 yo, single, loaded with money, and likes to party a bit. Big deal. If I were him I probably would too. That doesn't mean he's a raging alcoholic, or that he's going to bring shame to the university. Dick Rod was widely rumored to be chasing tail all across Morgantown and nobody batted an eyelash.

The reality is that Luck has already stated that many of the things being spread about Holgerson is pure fantasy.

Frankly I like the swagger of Holgerson - that's just what the program needs, especially after 3 years of Bill Stewart. All these prudes who want to judge can shove it, as far as I'm concerned.

And even if I was going to get in a tizzy over that, it is in no way "more worriesome" than the head coach actively trying to sabotage the school and the man who has been chosen to be the head coach going forward, his own offensive coordinator, in the press. That is a betrayal that is hard to fathom, and infinitely "more worriesome" than anything Holgerson has done, even if every rumor about him is true.

As for Oliver Luck's being at fault here, Bill Stewart had strong support among some both in the Board of Governors and also w/ the school president. They didn't want to throw him out immediately, after a 9 win season. They wanted to give him an opportunity to go out with some dignity and class. Obviously Stewart wasn't able to swallow his ego sufficiently to allow that to happen.

(06-07-2011 11:59 PM)wvucrazed Wrote:  

(06-07-2011 11:26 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(06-07-2011 03:03 PM)wvucrazed Wrote:  Once he is gone and Holgerson is in place as Head Coach, things should be fine. We will actually be in an even better position going into this season than we otherwise would have been with the "head coach in waiting" situation.

Well, except that Holgerson has his own issues right now.

I'm not worried about Holgerson's "issues"

You should be.
The tag-team antics of Holgerson and Huggins could be disastrous for a University's PR.

(06-08-2011 08:13 AM)jnewyouth Wrote:  

(06-07-2011 11:59 PM)wvucrazed Wrote:  

(06-07-2011 11:26 PM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(06-07-2011 03:03 PM)wvucrazed Wrote:  Once he is gone and Holgerson is in place as Head Coach, things should be fine. We will actually be in an even better position going into this season than we otherwise would have been with the "head coach in waiting" situation.

Well, except that Holgerson has his own issues right now.

I'm not worried about Holgerson's "issues"

You should be.
The tag-team antics of Holgerson and Huggins could be disastrous for a University's PR.

So far the extent of Huggins' "antics" has been a final four run, Big East Championship and multiple NCAA appearances. That's what people remember. And everyone looks down on WVU anyway, so let them look down their noses at our school, students, and coaches while we run rings around most of them on the football field, and on the basketball court.

Give 'em hell, crazed...

(06-08-2011 08:13 AM)wvucrazed Wrote:  Worrisome for who?

Dana Holgerson is 38 yo, single, loaded with money, and likes to party a bit. Big deal. If I were him I probably would too. That doesn't mean he's a raging alcoholic, or that he's going to bring shame to the university.

Let me ask you: Exactly how many more incidents like the recent casino fiasco do you think DH could have before the university cuts him loose? I'd say the over/under is 1.

Quote:Frankly I like the swagger of Holgerson - that's just what the program needs, especially after 3 years of Bill Stewart. All these prudes who want to judge can shove it, as far as I'm concerned.

Of course you do: He has swagger and his record indicates he's a very good coach, and has a good chance to lead WVU back to the top-level success you enjoyed the last years under RR. That's exactly what a WVU fan wants, right?

But of course now you sound just like the Ohio State fan who last week was saying "frankly, i love coach Tressel, he's beaten the hell out of Michigan and won us Big 10 titles and BCS bowls, and those prudes who want to crucify him for a paperwork mistake can shove it". And there were a lot of those, right? He got fired anyway, right?

Point is, we live in a national-media age where the 'reputation' of the U is even more important than winning (yeah, and that's saying something, since these schools care mightily about winning). If you embarrass the U beyond a certain point, whether it is by violating NCAA rules or by bad personal behavior, you're gone, no matter who you are. The elites who run the U are going to make that call even if 80% of the yahoo fan base feels otherwise.

You're gone even if you have an incredible resume, like a Carroll or a Tressel. DH isn't in their league, so he has even less slack.

(06-08-2011 08:31 AM)quo vadis Wrote:  

(06-08-2011 08:13 AM)wvucrazed Wrote:  Worrisome for who?

Dana Holgerson is 38 yo, single, loaded with money, and likes to party a bit. Big deal. If I were him I probably would too. That doesn't mean he's a raging alcoholic, or that he's going to bring shame to the university.

Let me ask you: Exactly how many more incidents like the recent casino fiasco do you think DH could have before the university cuts him loose? I'd say the over/under is 1.

Quote:Frankly I like the swagger of Holgerson - that's just what the program needs, especially after 3 years of Bill Stewart. All these prudes who want to judge can shove it, as far as I'm concerned.

Of course you do: He has swagger and his record indicates he's a very good coach, and has a good chance to lead WVU back to the top-level success you enjoyed the last years under RR. That's exactly what a WVU fan wants, right?

But of course now you sound just like the Ohio State fan who last week was saying "frankly, i love coach Tressel, he's beaten the hell out of Michigan and won us Big 10 titles and BCS bowls, and those prudes who want to crucify him for a paperwork mistake can shove it". And there were a lot of those, right? He got fired anyway, right?

Point is, we live in a national-media age where the 'reputation' of the U is even more important than winning (yeah, and that's saying something, since these schools care mightily about winning). If you embarrass the U beyond a certain point, whether it is by violating NCAA rules or by bad personal behavior, you're gone, no matter who you are. The elites who run the U are going to make that call even if 80% of the yahoo fan base feels otherwise.

You're gone even if you have an incredible resume, like a Carroll or a Tressel. DH isn't in their league, so he has even less slack.

It's a bit of a stretch to compare Tressel to anything Holgerson has done, or alleged to have done (to put it mildly). We are not talking about systemic cheating and fraud on a massive scale, so it's just a bit different.

I agree of course that reputation is important, and Holgerson has doubtlessly been told firmly to watch himself and not to go overboard when he's out drinking. But considering there is an active attempt going on to smear Holgerson, I think we need to step back and withhold judgment a bit, and a drunken night at a casino doesn't particularly cause me to lose sleep at night.

Steve is right that Holgorsen isn't in Tressel's and Carroll's league. He hasn't done anything to trash any football program he's been associated with, like those 2 have...