Big 12 schools and fan bases are quickly learning about their new members. They are quickly learning why Arizona State has not been particularly successful in football in recent years.
Big 12 fans are getting to know what Phoenix residents have known for a long time: Arizona State athletic director Ray Anderson is not the sharpest tool in the shed.
Anderson, for absolutely zero good reason, said over the weekend: “I promise I’m not going to Morgantown,” a reference to ASU road trips to West Virginia, one of the longer commutes the Sun Devils and their athletic teams will have to make within the Big 12 Conference. This follows remarks made by ASU President Michael Crow about being very disappointed the Sun Devils couldn’t stay in the Pac-12 and that the Pac-12 couldn’t be preserved. Crow was a steadfast defender of Larry Scott and was deeply invested in saving the Pac-12.
Arizona State doesn’t like being in the Big 12, but Anderson’s shockingly insensitive comments have already transformed the Sun Devils from “unhappy neighbor” to “vocal troublemaker and bomb-thrower.” West Virginia fans are irate. Other Big 12 fan bases are raising their eyebrows and wondering why these guys were ever invited into the conference.
Here’s a sample of the very emotional reactions which greeted Ray Anderson’s incredibly dumb public comments: