That's not exactly what you expected to hear, is it? We have thought for years that if the Big East offer ever came, the Hokies would take it immediately, and the deal would be done.

We also thought it would be an "invitation," not a "proposal." As I told John Hale Thursday night on his Bear SportsTalk show, an "invitation" is something you extend with open arms. A "proposal" is something you negotiate.

This is not quite the warm, fuzzy experience we all anticipated.

This will, of course, lead to more wondering and more speculation about what is really going on. I thought the speculation after Thursday would center around how the Big East was going to split itself into divisions after inviting Tech in, but instead, the speculation will center around the reasons why Tech would delay … and the future of the conference.

I was operating under the assumption that the Big East had been in contact with Tech throughout the whole process, and that both schools understood the basic terms of the agreement, and therefore all that remained was to hold the vote, sign on the dotted line, and make the announcement.

That's not the way it worked out, and that tells me one of four things. Here are some theories on what might be going on, and they range from the most conservative at #1 to the most radical at #4:

1.) Tech had no idea of the specifics of the forthcoming offer, and is therefore doing the right thing and carefully evaluating what is probably a very complex agreement.

2.) The basic concepts were agreed upon, and the proposal Tech has received is not what the Hokies expected, and there's a "What the heck?" reaction going on right now in Blacksburg. Tech has been thrown for a loop by an unexpected clause or two, or the entrance fee is higher than anticipated, and the Hokie athletic administration is regrouping and figuring things out.

3.) With the turmoil surrounding the Miami-Hurricanes-to-the-ACC rumors, Tech is choosing to play it cool for a while and see how things play out before committing to the Big East.

4.) A big-time shakeup is about to occur in conference alignment, and the Hokies want to keep their options open a little longer.

There are other possibilities that fall somewhere in the range of #1 to #4 in terms of their likelihood, but the truth can't be known right now, at least, not by little ole me. And we also have to remember that not only are we entering a conference, but we're leaving one as well in the A-10, so there are issues to be resolved there, also.

Justin Ditmore of Channel 10 reported at eleven o'clock Thursday night that issues under discussion and negotiation with the Big East are revenue sharing, membership fees, and scheduling.

As usual, Jim Weaver is playing it close to the vest, saying words to the effect of, "We consider this to be a presidential document, and not for public consumption. As a matter of fact, it's probably best if the details are not disclosed, so we can evaluate the proposal privately."

With this interesting twist, it will take a while for the rumor mill to spin back up (there's a difference between rumor and speculation, and what is going on right now on the message board is the latter, not the former). So for now, we're left in the dark, and we'll have to sit back and wait, much as we have been doing for nearly a decade now.