Senate Feud Surfaces Over College Football

A war is brewing in the Senate over… college football? Yep. Mitch McConnell is making a zero-hour backroom push to get Louisville into the Big 12, calling officials at the conference’s other schools to sing his beloved alma mater’s praises, sources tell Politico. That’s put him in direct confrontation with Democratic West Virginia senators Joe Manchin and Jay Rockefeller, because, according to some reports, the Big 12 had already decided to give West Virginia University its last open slot.

Manchin, a former WVU quarterback, isn’t being quiet about his displeasure. “Tell him to bring it on!” Manchin said in a radio interview. “I’m going to fight … if Mitch wants to fight. But Mitch, if you lose the fight, go back and retrain and get better. OK?” He’s even calling on the Rockefeller-chaired Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee to investigate McConnell’s “unethical” behavior. Dan Boren, an ex-senator who is now the University of Oklahoma's president, says both McConnell and Rockefeller have contacted him—but neither exerted “improper political influence.” (More West Virginia University stories.)