One of the best parts of sports, especially when a particular sports season has ended, is to break down the play of the individual players and to rank the team compared to those that came before them. Many years come and go without much to talk about – very few wins or standout performances, which leaves little to debate.
Until now, West Virginia University fans have been able to take any sport and compare teams, not only from different eras, but exact years to determine the cream of the crop. Sure, opinions are like certain body parts, and everyone has one, which allows every person to feel like they have a say in the argument.
Fans of other universities faced a dilemma well before mountaineer fans, and it took the recent success of the baseball team to bring light to a problem that could plague future debates for years to come. College players have been receiving compensation for several years now. NIL has become a staple of college athletics. Also, when you throw in the additional years of eligibility into the NCAA has granted for nearly any excuse, the age of the athletes, in many instances, is climbing. Athletes are hopping from one school to the next, like the Easter Bunny making the NCAA look more like a glorified rent to own business.
The point is that enough has changed in major college athletics that there does not appear to be a road back to true amateur sports. If we can’t find our way back to the principles that provided separation from pro sports, then how can we fairly compare teams of yesteryear to those of this new era? Are we in need of an asterisk?
No, this isn’t the steroid era of major league baseball, but there is a huge divide between the way it was and the way it is now. Unfortunately, for WVU fans, it’s taken until now to have a team excel at this level to have this discussion. It’s the 1st time in program history that a baseball team has made it to the College World Series. As a matter of fact, they were a final four team.
Are they the best team in school history? On paper?
The answer is, yes, and their record is the best ever as well. They took the country by storm, and country roads almost became our new national anthem. A few months ago, I wrote about the 1996 baseball team that was two wins away from the World Series. If they could have brought a couple of pitchers, bought a couple of pitchers and another big bat, they might have had a different ending.
What if Shinston’s Don Vincent would have been given more eligibility? He and Jerry West might have won a basketball championship. If Rich Rod would have had a couple more pieces with Pat White and Steve Slayton, there could have been multiple titles. The ability to debate is one of the many reasons why sports are so much fun. And because of this year’s baseball team, we can let the newest debate begin.
That will do it for now! Until next week . . . take care, and God bless.