Tonight, West Virginia won't have a player selected in the first round of the NFL draft.
However, the school's athletic director, Oliver Luck will be at Radio City Music Hall, and might be prouder than anyone in attendance.
His son, Andrew Luck, will almost certainly be the first name announced, and begin his career as an Indianapolis Colt.
Colleague Liz Merrill offered an indepth look at the Lucks, and spent some time with Oliver to get to know Andrew more. It's interesting reading.
Here's an excerpt:
They have gathered on this late-April night to see Oliver Luck, a man whose bio in the Wheeling Chamber of Commerce dinner program fills an entire single-spaced page. Luck is all over the West Virginia map these days, dining with Boy Scouts and rubbing elbows with Rotarians, because this is what the athletic director for West Virginia University does in the springtime.
He does not rattle off his résumé, which sounds as if it could be a "world's most interesting man" script. Former NFL quarterback. Rhodes Scholar finalist. World traveler. Former president and CEO of NFL Europe. Ran a Major League Soccer team that won a couple of championships. Oh, and he has a law degree, which he picked up taking night classes while in the NFL. But Luck taught his kids to be humble, which is why you'll hear very little about any of this tonight.
He steps to the center of the stage to give his speech about West Virginia athletics, and breaks code a bit, probably to break the ice.
Great read from Merrill. Have a look.
