During his playing days with the old gold and blue, Oliver Luck often was described as being a cool and calm operator of the Mountaineers' offense when he was West Virginia University's starting quarterback under legendary Hall of Fame head coach Don Nehlen.
It comes as little surprise then that when all seemed hopeless for WVU's departure from the Big East to join the Big 12 that the coolest person in the Mountain State was Luck.
"Well, I had, a 100 percent belief that we wouldn't be held up in our movement toward the Big 12," Luck explained prior to going out to meet and greet fans who attended the Mountaineer Athletic Club's Coaches Caravan Thursday at J.P. Henry's Restaurant. "I believed from day one that we would find a way to get into the Big 12.
"And, play this upcoming season because that is what the Big 12 both wanted and needed."
Throughout the battle, that included legal actions being filed in both West Virginia and Rhode Island (the home state for the Big East), Luck relied on the teachings he received under Nehlen.
"Don Nehlen taught me as a quarterback that even if you are in a tight situation-down by whatever, seven or 10 points with two minutes to play-that you've got to keep your cool.
"And, you are responsible for a pretty large group of people as a quarterback, the offensive players and the fans, so my job today is very similar.
"I wanted to make sure that folks felt very comfortable with our ability-from the school's president, to our Board of Governors and our lawyers-to make all of this work."
The answer to the latter part of that statement won't be gleaned until we see the Mountaineers enter Big 12 play in the fall, but just the thought of an Oklahoma or a Texas coming to Mountaineer Field has spurred season ticket sales to reach record-setting heights.
Another concern, surrounding travel, for fans as well as the student-athletes was addressed by Luck.
"It (travel) is a legitimate concern for fans," said the Director of Athletics. "Especially those fans that had become accustomed to driving to Cincinnati or driving to Pittsburgh.
"To those fans I would say that they need to compare it with the new, re-configured Big East. The one that now has Houston, SMU, San Diego State, Boise State, Central Florida and Temple.
"And, remember, Pitt was close by and they are leaving and Syracuse was still a short plane ride away and they are leaving.
"I will admit it (travel) will be a negative. I can't gloss over that. But, everything else is such a positive, that the negative is really overshadowed."
Luck's approach to much of the criticism surrounding the Mountaineers' departure to the Big 12 is much the same as his approach to those detractors of WVU's sale of beer at Mountaineer Field.
"It (beer sales) was a success across the board. It was a success financially because we generated another three quarters of a million dollars for our athletic department. In terms of creating a better atmosphere, it was a success as well.
"The university police and the Morgantown police-in all of their incident reports surrounding all of the arrests or complaints about alchohol in and around the stadium, dropped by 30 percent.
"So, it was all positive in my mind."
About as positive as most West Virginia fans feel about the direction their beloved Mountaineers are taking under Luck.
Contact Jim Butta at jbutta@newsandsentinel.com
