Bob McCarty Writes

Watching West Virginia paste a 48-28 loss on my beloved Oklahoma Sooners last night was painful, but a “silver lining” did emerge following the 2008 Tostitos Fiesta Bowl.

After Mountaineers interim head coach Bill Stewart accepted the team trophy and linebacker Reed Williams the defensive player of the game hardware, quarterback Pat White accepted the game’s offensive player of the game award. More importantly, however, he used his moment in the spotlight before a national television audience — and everyone in West Virginia — to put in a plug for Stewart to be named the team’s next head coach.

This morning, only hours after the final seconds had ticked off the clock in what was arguably the biggest game in school history, White’s lobbying effort yielded fruit for Stewart. The coach, who reportedly never lobbied for the head coaching position himself was named the Mountaineers’ head coach.

Now, after earning only $139,000 as an assistant this year, he’ll earn $4.5 million over the next five years. Such fortune prompted him to tell a reporter for the Charleston Daily Mail, “Lou Gehrig has nothing on me for being the luckiest guy in the world.”

I, for one, think he’s wrong. Having witnessed his display of sportsmanship and class during what had to be challenging times, I’d say Gehrig has nothing on the people of West Virginia either. They are the luckiest fans in the world to have Stewart as their coach.

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