The West Virginia Mountaineers are going to have to pay the Big East $20 million in total exit fees for leaving the conference immediately. Mike Casazza of The Daily mail originally reported that the settlement would wind up actually being an $11 million cash payout. On Wednesday evening, we have more news on the details of the settlement of Casazza.
The $9 million is what the Big East and WVU agree is the "Forecasted Amount" WVU will earn in conference revenue in 2011-12. The Mountaineer are leaving that behind, which means, in essence, WVU is paying $9 million. There's a chance WVU makes more than $9 million in 2011-12, in which case the Big East would pay WVU the difference.
The FOIA delivered the details of the deal, which contained three financial amounts. Those amounts were $2.5 million, $8.5 million, and $9 million which all add up to $20 million. The $2.5 million mark is the amount that the Mountaineers have already paid to the Big East conference. The $8.5 million will be paid by WVU and the Big 12 Transition Fund to the Big East conference, which equals out to the agreed upon $11 million cash payout.
Adding together the $11 million from what WVU has already paid and the $8.5 million from the Big 12 Transition Fun with the $9 million in projected revenue from the 2011-2012 season, you have the full $20 million settlement amount.
For more on the Big East, check out Big East Coast Bias. For more on WVU sports, there'sThe Smoking Musket.