MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (August 31, 2012) – Volodymyr Gerun, a 6-foot-10, 240-pound forward from Dnipropetrovsk, Ukraine, has signed a grant-in-aid to attend West Virginia University in 2012-13, WVU coach Bob Huggins announced today. The sophomore will have three years of eligibility remaining with the Mountaineers.

            “We’re extremely happy to have Volodymyr in our program,” says Huggins. “He brings us much-needed depth to our front line. We think he will bring an added dimension of skill level to our front line.”

            At the 2011 under-18 European Championships, where his team finished 5-4, Gerun led Ukraine in scoring (18.2), rebounding (11.1) and blocks (2.1). He posted 29 points and 14 rebounds against Italy. Gerun also posted double-doubles against Finland (19 points, 20 rebounds), Greece (16 points, 18 rebounds), Finland (23 points and 14 rebounds) and Czech Republic (25 points and 10 rebounds). He had 23 points against Greece. In those nine games, Gerun shot 50.0 percent (61 for 122) from the field, averaging 34.3 minutes per game.

            Gerun was named MVP of the 2010 under-16 European Championships after he averaged 17.3 points per game. During that tournament, she shot 58.0 percent from the field, averaged 9.1 rebounds per game, 1.8 steals per game and 2.4 blocks per game.

            Gerun played for the Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk basketball team in the Ukraine Superleague. Last year, he attended the Canarias Basketball Academy in the Canary Islands off the Northwest coast of Africa and attended Dnipropetrovsk State Institute of Physical Culture and Sport in 2010-11. Gerun graduated high school from the Dnipropetrovsk High College of Physical Culture in 2010.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. (August 9, 2012) – West Virginia University Director of Athletics Oliver Luck and the Big 12 Conference have announced the 2012-13 men’s basketball schedule.

At least 19 regular season games on national television highlight the schedule, including 11 Big 12 contests that will be televised nationally. Three of those games will be on ESPN’s Big Monday (Kansas, Texas and at Kansas State), while WVU will have two contests on CBS (at Purdue and at Kansas) this season.

“This schedule is very competitive from start to finish, and I know our fans will enjoy watching us on the court as we enter our first season in the Big 12 Conference,” says Luck. “We are delighted to have 19 games already selected for national television to showcase our basketball program and our great University. Coach Huggins has coached in the Big 12 before, and I know he and his guys are looking forward to getting the season tipped off.”

The Mountaineers will play 14 regular season games at home, with every Big 12 team visiting Morgantown. In addition to conference play, Virginia Tech, VMI, Oakland, Radford and Eastern Kentucky will visit the Coliseum.

WVU will play road games at Purdue and Duquesne and will open the season at Gonzaga on Nov. 12 in a preliminary game of the Old Spice Classic that begins the ESPN College Hoops Tip-Off Marathon. WVU will then play three games in the Old Spice Classic in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. The 2012 Old Spice Classic will feature Vanderbilt, Gonzaga, Clemson, Davidson, Marist, Oklahoma, UTEP and WVU.

The Mountaineers will play two more neutral site games against Marshall in Charleston and against Michigan in Brooklyn, N.Y.

West Virginia will play its first Big 12 Conference game at home against Oklahoma on Saturday, Jan. 5. WVU will conclude the Big 12 schedule against Iowa State on Saturday, March 9, also at home.

WVU’s nationally televised games this season will be Gonzaga (ESPN), Virginia Tech (ESPN2), Michigan (ESPN), Oakland (ESPNU), at Texas (ESPN2), at Iowa State (ESPN2), Purdue (CBS), TCU (ESPN2), at Oklahoma State (ESPNU), Kansas (ESPN), Texas (ESPN), at Baylor (ESPN2), at Kansas State (ESPN), Oklahoma State (ESPN2), at Kansas (CBS) and at Oklahoma (ESPN2). WVU’s three games in the Old Spice Classic will be televised by either ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU, including the opening game against Marist on ESPN2.

West Virginia will play one exhibition game against Glenville State on Nov. 6.

“I know I say this every year, but top to bottom, this has to be one of the toughest regular season schedules in school history,” says coach Bob Huggins. “We have ranked in the top 20 in terms of strength of schedule in each of the last four years, including two years where we were ranked in the top three, and this year’s schedule will be no different. To have 19 of our 31 games already selected for national television is something our basketball program is proud of and certainly proud to be able to showcase our University and the great state of West Virginia.

“I’ve spent a year in the Big 12, and the fan support is tremendous. I think the Big 12 has the best home court advantages in college basketball in addition to having great coaches. I was sitting at the Big 12 meetings in the spring and looking around and we had 10 coaches there and five of them have been to the Final Four. When 50 percent of your coaches have been to the Final Four, you have a pretty good league.”

The rest of the game times will be announced at a later date. All dates and times are subject to change for television. Basketball practice begins Friday, Oct. 12.

The complete WVU men’s schedule:

Day     Date         Opponent                                                    Location                            TV                             Time

Tue     Nov. 6      Glenville State (exh.)                                Morgantown                     Root Sports             TBA

Mon    Nov. 12    at Gonzaga ^                                              Spokane, Wash.              ESPN                       11:59 p.m.

Thu     Nov. 22    vs. Marist $                                                  Lake Buena Vista, Fla.   ESPN2                     Noon

Fri       Nov. 23    vs. Vanderbilt/Davidson $                        Lake Buena Vista, Fla.   ESPN/ESPNU        12:30/3 p.m.

Sun     Nov. 25    vs. UTEP/Oklahoma/Clemson/Gonzaga $                                            Lake Buena Vista, Fla.       ESPN2/ESPNU    TBD

Thu     Nov. 29    VMI                                                               Morgantown                     Root Sports             TBA

Wed    Dec. 5      vs. Marshall #                                             Charleston                        Capital Classic Net. 7:30 p.m.

Sat      Dec. 8      Virginia Tech                                              Morgantown                     ESPN2                     4 p.m.

Tue     Dec. 11    at Duquesne                                               Pittsburgh, Pa.                                                    TBA

Sat      Dec. 15    vs. Michigan !                                             Brooklyn, N.Y.                   ESPN                       8 p.m.

Wed    Dec. 19    Oakland                                                       Morgantown                     ESPNU                    TBA

Sat      Dec. 22    Radford                                                       Morgantown                     Root Sports             TBA

Sun     Dec. 30    Eastern Kentucky                                      Morgantown                     Root Sports             TBA

Sat      Jan. 5       Oklahoma *                                                Morgantown                     Big 12 Network      4 p.m.

Wed    Jan. 9       at Texas *                                                    Austin, Texas                    ESPN2                     9 p.m.

Sat      Jan. 12     Kansas State *                                           Morgantown                     Big 12 Network      1:30 p.m.

Wed    Jan. 16     at Iowa State *                                            Ames, Iowa                       ESPN2                     9 p.m.

Sat      Jan. 19     at Purdue                                                    West Lafayette, Ind.        CBS                          2 p.m.

Wed    Jan. 23     TCU *                                                           Morgantown                     ESPN2                     7:30 p.m.

Sat      Jan. 26     at Oklahoma State *                                  Stillwater, Okla.                ESPNU                    1 p.m.

Mon    Jan. 28     Kansas *                                                      Morgantown                     ESPN                       9 p.m.

Sat      Feb. 2       at Texas Tech *                                          Lubbock, Texas               Big 12 Network      1:30 p.m.

Mon    Feb. 4       Texas *                                                        Morgantown                     ESPN                       9 p.m.

Sat      Feb. 9       at TCU *                                                       Fort Worth, Texas            Big 12 Network      4 p.m.

Wed    Feb. 13    at Baylor *                                                   Waco, Texas                     ESPN2                     9 p.m.

Sat      Feb. 16    Texas Tech *                                              Morgantown                     Big 12 Network      4 p.m.

Mon    Feb. 18    at Kansas State *                                       Manhattan, Kan.              ESPN                       9 p.m.

Sat      Feb. 23    Oklahoma State *                                      Morgantown                     ESPN2                     2 p.m.

Wed    Feb. 27    Baylor *                                                        Morgantown                     Big 12 Network      8 p.m.

Sat      Mar. 2       at Kansas *                                                 Lawrence, Kan.                CBS                          2 p.m.

Wed    Mar. 6       at Oklahoma *                                            Norman, Okla.                  ESPN2                     9 p.m.

Sat      Mar. 9       Iowa State *                                                Morgantown                     Big 12 Network      1:30 p.m.

Wed-

Sat      Mar. 13-16 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship          Kansas City, Mo.              ESPN/ESPN2/        TBD

                                                                                                                                                Big 12 Network

^ Old Spice Classic/ESPN College Hoops Tip-Off Marathon

$ Old Spice Classic

! BROOKLYN HOOPS Winter Festival

# Chesapeake Energy Capital Classic

* Big 12 Conference Game

- ALL DATES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE FOR TELEVISION

- All Times Eastern

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia University Director of Athletics Oliver Luck and Head Football Coach Dana Holgorsen have agreed to terms of a six-year contract that runs through the 2017 season.

Under the agreement, the second-year head coach will be paid an annualized salary of $2.3 million this season -- $250,000 in base pay and the remainder in supplemental pay -- all from revenue generated by the athletic department or private sources -- “very much in line with other Big 12 and major college coaches’ salaries,” according to Luck. 

“This contract brings us closer to the salaries of other major university head coaches and those within our conference,” Luck said. “We have said all along we are going to pay our coach a competitive salary for a very valued and competitive position. I have full confidence in Coach Holgorsen and his staff and want them to be with us for a long time. He is the right man to lead our football program into the Big 12 and beyond.”

According to conference statistics, Texas Coach Mack Brown and Oklahoma’s Bob Stoops remain the highest paid coaches in the Big 12, followed by Oklahoma State, TCU and Kansas.

“I want to thank Oliver Luck and President Jim Clements for their confidence in and commitment to our football program. We have a lot of things that we want to accomplish, and we have a great administration supporting us,” Holgorsen said. “There is no question that joining the Big 12 Conference presents new challenges in competition, facility upgrades and overall growth. However, I am excited to be the head coach of the West Virginia University Mountaineers, I enjoy living in this state, and I look forward to many more successful years in Morgantown.”

Holgorsen’s contract calls for yearly raises -- $200,000 in year two and three; $100,000 in year four and five; and no increase in the final year. It also has retention payments, and there will continue to be performance-based incentives for team academic achievements, regular season victories, conference titles, postseason bowl appearances and other rankings and honors.

The contract also includes liquidated damages clauses which establish payments by the coach should he leave early and by WVU should it choose to end the contract.

Holgorsen’s previous contract was scheduled to pay him $1.725 million this season. The terms of the new agreement are effective immediately. The contract will be available online at www.wvusports.com later today.

WVU finished with a 10-3 record and a Big East championship in Holgorsen’s first season. The Mountaineers also defeated Clemson 70-33 in the Discover Orange Bowl, and will begin their inaugural Big 12 season when the team meets Baylor on Sept. 29 at Milan Puskar Stadium.

WVU remains one of only a dozen or more self-supporting athletic departments in the country.