An already weird situation at West Virginia has taken an abrupt turn toward the bizarre, with rumors swirling that head coach Bill Stewart may soon find himself with a “former” label attached to his title much earlier than expected.
For those unfamiliar, here’s the brief background of the developing situation in Morgantown: late last month, it was reported -- and subsequently acknowledged -- that offensive coordinator Dana Holgorsen had been booted from a casino following a not-exactly-sober episode. Shortly thereafter, another damning report emerged, accusing Holgorsen of having been involved in as many as six alcohol-fueled incidents over the past couple of years.
The denials were swift, but the repercussions continue to reverberate around the Mountaineers football program.
According to Mike Casazza of the Charleston Daily Mail, the university “is searching for anonymous contributors to newspaper stories it says contain ‘blatant inaccuracies’ about the football team’s head coach-in-waiting and offensive coordinator.” Additionally, the paper reports, the university has tabled the finalizing of the separation agreement contract with Stewart due to the investigation.
The inference here, of course, is that the source or sources of the leaks came from someone in Stewart’s camp. And, according to at least one report, one of those sources comes from very deep inside Stewart’s camp.
The website HailWV.com is reporting that Karen Stewart, the wife of WVU’s lame-duck coach, is at least one of the sources of the leaks. There are also rumors making that rounds that Stewart himself leaked the damaging info. We have not yet been able to substantiate or corroborate the site’s claims or any of the other speculation that’s quickly gaining momentum, but, if they turn out to be true, it would effectively end Stewart’s career at the school a year earlier than planned.
It’s unclear how long the inquiry, which the Daily Mail reports includes members of the entire football program as well as other athletic-affiliated organizations, will last.