Shalala to meet with Big East presidents

CORAL GABLES, FLA - After a two-day visit to Miami that included an hour-long meeting with school president Donna Shalala, ACC officials seemed ready to offer the Hurricanes an official invitation to join the conference. <br> <br> It could happen next week, but probably not until the Big East gets a chance to convince the Hurricanes to stay. <br> <br> Shalala has agreed to meet with school presidents from Pittsburgh, West Virginia, Virginia Tech, Connecticut and Rutgers on Wednesday, a university source said, giving them an opportunity to confront her before she makes a decision that could drastically impact their future. <br> <br> The school presidents from the five Big East schools left out of the Atlantic Coast Conference&#39;s expansion plans have sought a meeting with Shalala since Miami said it would consider leaving the conference. Shalala reportedly guaranteed the other Big East presidents 18 months ago that the Hurricanes would stay in the league. <br> <br> The meeting will take place in Washington, D.C., on the same day the ACC concludes its site visit to Syracuse. <br> <br> ACC commissioner John Swofford headed a nine-person delegation to Miami on Thursday and Friday. He also will lead two-day visits to Boston College beginning Sunday and to Syracuse beginning Tuesday. <br> <br> ``When you get to a point of visiting campuses, you know there&#39;s a very high level of interest on our part as well as their part,&#39;&#39; Swofford said. ``If that&#39;s not the case, we&#39;re not going to be here and they&#39;re not going to be welcoming us here.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Swofford refused to put a timetable on Miami&#39;s decision but said it could be made in two weeks. <br> <br> ``That&#39;s possible, but it would inappropriate for me to give you a drop-dead date,&#39;&#39; Swofford said. ``I don&#39;t know that there is one.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Florida State athletic director Dave Hart, North Carolina State athletic director Lee Fowler, three associate ACC commissioners and two faculty athletic representatives also made the trip. <br> <br> They toured the Orange Bowl, Miami&#39;s campus and its athletic facilities that include a new $48 million basketball arena and a workout facility that was part of a $4.5 million renovation in 2001. <br> <br> ``This was an enjoyable visit, one in which we had a lot of questions answered and believe that the University of Miami had a lot of their questions answered,&#39;&#39; Hart said. ``We came away very impressed with where the University of Miami is academically, athletically and the potential they hold for the future.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> The ACC voted May 16 to extend invitations to Miami, Boston College and Syracuse to begin formal discussions on joining the nine-team league and creating a 12-team superconference that would add a lucrative title game. <br> <br> Site visits are mandatory based on ACC bylaws before league presidents can vote to extend formal invitations to the three Big East schools. <br> <br> ``Obviously the process is moving forward, and we&#39;ll see how it ultimately culminates,&#39;&#39; Swofford said. ``There is serious interest on our part; there&#39;s serious interest on the part of Miami, Boston College and Syracuse. And we&#39;re mutually evaluating where we are as a conference and where those institutions are with their programs and where we all will be best suited for the future.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> After the visits, Swofford said he would report back to ACC presidents. The presidents would then speak individually with Shalala, Boston College president William Leahy and Syracuse chancellor Kenneth Shaw. <br> <br> Formal invitations could be presented anytime after that. <br> <br> ``At some point you know all you&#39;re going to know,&#39;&#39; Swofford said. ``And you have to make a decision and see if the votes are there.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> The Big East has guaranteed Miami at least $9 million annually for the next five years if the Hurricanes remain in the conference. AD Paul Dee said the university still has some work to do before making a decision. He said school officials have reviewed the ACC&#39;s projected revenue package and were ``getting to feel more and more comfortable&#39;&#39; with the numbers. <br> <br> ``Every step you take gets you closer,&#39;&#39; Dee said. ``We got information and those kinds of things. But we&#39;re not committed to making a statement whether we&#39;re going to leave if we get invited. We&#39;re not taking any position at this point.&#39;&#39;