WHEELING — Football at Wheeling Jesuit University. Is it a possibility? Will it become a reality? If so, how soon?

The Cardinals are the only member of the 12-school Mountain East Conference that doesn’t have a football program. The NCAA Division II league officially began competition on Sept. 1, 2013.

When the MEC was formed, Wheeling Jesuit was never given a definitive timetable to launch a football program. But there was a gentlemen’s agreement the university would eventually start a grid program.

Reid Amos serves as MEC commissioner. The league office is headquartered in Bridgeport, W.Va. Member schools, in addition to Wheeling Jesuit, include Concord, Fairmont State, Glenville State, Notre Dame (Ohio), Shepherd, Charleston (W.Va.), Virginia-Wise, Urbana, West Liberty, West Virginia State and West Virginia Wesleyan.

Starting a collegiate football program is a costly undertaking. Very costly.

I sat down with WJU Athletic Director Kevin Forde in his office Tuesday to discuss the football scenario at his school. Obviously, finances are the elephant in the room.

“Right off the bat, we would need more space. The press box is fine right now but would need expanded to accommodate more media that goes with college football. We would have to expand our weight room and add more locker room space,” Forde said. “Division II schools are allowed to give 36 football scholarships. If we would hand out all 36 scholarships over a four-year period that would cost $1.2 million.

“We would also have to add four-to-six football coaches,” he added. “One of the big keys is finding that right head coach. It is a full-time position as they will be constantly recruiting.”

Wheeling Jesuit is doing quite well athletically minus football. That was illustrated by the Cardinals missing out winning the MEC Commissioner’s Cup last year– awarded annually to the top athletic program in the conference –by a whisker to Charleston.

Jesuit’s volleyball team is the reigning Division II national champions. The men’s hoop team climbed to No. 1 in the national polls last winter while the school’s wrestling program has gained national respect.

With such success as a foundation, it is obvious that Jesuit can operate quite well without a football program.

The question is, however, will the MEC continue to allow the Cardinals to be members without offering a football program?

“When the MEC was formed we received a waiver on football. Some conference schools really don’t care we don’t have football while others want it to happen so they could have a closed schedule (playing 11 conference games),” Forde said. “We have several members that don’t offer various sports. Many D-II conferences have members that don’t offer all sports.

“It would take a minimum of three years to get football up and running. You would have to recruit a couple of classes to get the program properly manned. It would be both fun and challenging to start football, but you have to do it the right way,” he continued. “It may happen here, but right now there are no immediate plans to start football. That is a decision that our board will make.”

I have had several discussions with Commissioner Amos. He brings passion, knowledge, energy and character to his post. He is an ideal fit to lead the MEC as he has the vision to help the conference experience continued upward mobility.

“Having 12 members provides long-term stability for the conference and when all members participate in a team sport it creates an ideal scheduling scenario that supports reduction in travel costs and reduction of missed class time, among other benefits. To that end, the MEC Board of Directors implemented a core sports requirement where all institutions are required to compete in men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, softball, women’s volleyball and football among the MEC’s 17 NCAA-recognized conference championship sports,” Amos said. “The Mountain East values Wheeling Jesuit as a quality member of the conference, and the MEC additionally values its vision where all of its member institutions have similar goals, budgets, capacities to compete, and sports offerings – particularly among its core sports.

“We have had valuable discussions with Wheeling Jesuit regarding the potential of football and we anticipate that those discussions will become very substantive over the coming months,” he added. “Our efforts are aimed at assisting Wheeling Jesuit in the development of a plan for a football program that will support WJU’s institutional mission and foster institutional growth. We look forward to what the cooperative efforts over the coming months will bring.”

Where does a football-void Wheeling Jesuit turn should it eventually get the boot from the MEC?

“Should that happen, the PSAC (Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference) and GLIAC (Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) may be possibilities,” Forde said. “But we like the MEC. It is a good fit for us.”

The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference was founded in 1972.

Current members are: Ashland University, Ferris State, Findlay, Grand Valley State, Hillsdale College, Lake Erie College, Lake Superior State, Michigan Technological University, Northern Michigan, Northwood University, Ohio Dominican, Saginaw Valley State, Tiffin, Walsh and Wayne State.

Current Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference members are: Millersville, West Chester, E. Stroudsburg, Shippensburg, Bloomsburg, Lock Haven, Kutztown, Mansfield, Mercyhurst, Seton Hill, Gannon, California, IUP and Pitt-Johnstown.

BUBBA’S BITS

NOT ONLY do the Cleveland Browns draft terribly, they also have horrible luck. Losing your starting quarterback in your opener for several months really is a bad break.

DR. GREGORY MERRICK continues to raise the bar with the Cancer Research Classic. The prep hoop extravaganza will play out for the 10th time on Jan. 6-7 at Wheeling Jesuit University. Merrick says this year’s lineup (four Friday games and seven Saturday games) is the best ever. More than 500 CRC participants have went on to play college basketball with 23 more going on to the NBA.

WHEELING JESUIT University is raffling off two seats to the Ohio State-Michigan game in Columbus on Nov. 26. The drawing will be held Oct. 13 during the Cardinal Athletic Club’s reverse raffle. All money raised will support WJU Athletics. Raffle tickets are $10 each and can be purchased by calling the WJU Advancement Office at 304-243-8166 or 1-800-888-2586.

WEST LIBERTY is a good football team that is simply snakebit. The Hilltoppers can’t catch a break, reflecting by three heartbreaking losses. I look for WLU to turn the tide at Urbana Saturday.

STEVEN COLLIAS from Eastlake, Ohio recorded a hole-in-one on the No. 14 hole at Bec-Wood Hills on Sept. 9. He used a 9-iron on the 150-yard par 3. The ace was witnessed by John Burke, Greg Phillips and Jason Greene, all of Euclid.