Arizona State AD rips West Virginia in discussing Big 12 move: 'I'm not going to Morgantown'
Arizona State Athletic Director Ray Anderson was asked about the Sun Devils’ recent announcement that they, alongside Arizona and Utah, will join the Big 12 in 2024.
His answer was not quite what you’d expect, though. He both praised and criticized different atmospheres in his new conference, setting a match to Morgantown, West Virginia in the process.
Just take a look for yourself:
Arizona State AD Ray Anderson discussing move to Big 12: “I promise I’m not going to Morgantown. I’m going to sign that to (deputy AD) Jean Boyd. He can go to Morgantown. But send me to Texas & the rivalry w/Arizona & starting a new one w/BYU, Utah & Colorado”
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) August 6, 2023
Essentially, Anderson is saying Austin, Texas and Provo, Utah = good, Morgantown, West Virginia = bad. Well, that’s certainly one way to start a rivalry in a new conference.
The Sun Devils and Mountaineers have played exactly twice: once in 1979 and once more in 2015. The Sun Devils won Game 1 while the Mountaineers took the more recent battle between the 2 in the 2015 Cactus Bowl.