A Daily Mail editorial from the Charleston Gazette-Mail
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia University and Marshall University: Play ball!
That’s the outcry of many sports fans across West Virginia as they learned last week that the state’s only two NCAA Division I athletic programs have not scheduled their annual Capital Classic men’s basketball game for next season or, as of now, any future seasons.
“I have not been advised to hold any dates at this point,” said John Robertson, general manager of the Civic Center, in a Gazette-Mail article by WVU and Marshall beatwriters Mike Casazza and Doug Smock.
The schools have played yearly since 1978. After alternating campuses in the 1980s, the series has been played at the Charleston Civic Center every year since January 1992. The most recent, on Dec. 17, represented the 25th consecutive game.
The game has consistently drawn 10,000 to 12,000 fans, for basketball. Last month’s installment drew 11,748 fans on a Thursday night, nearly filling the Civic Center and crowding downtown Charleston restaurants and shops.
Many fans are also frustrated that the two DI schools’ football teams have no future games on their schedule…
