CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- West Virginia athletic director Ed Pastilong plans to speak with quarterback Pat White about the player's accusations that the Mountaineer baseball team doesn't pursue black athletes.
White made his comments Tuesday at the Big East football media day in Newport, R.I. The comments were first reported by Adam Zagoria of SportsNet New York.
White was asked about the possibility of playing baseball in college. He has been selected three times in baseball's amateur draft, including last month by the Cincinnati Reds.
White's comments came the same day the Mountaineers were chosen to win the Big East football championship.
When asked whether he had spoken with WVU baseball coach Greg Van Zant, White said Van Zant "wasn't interested"
in having him on the team.
There were no blacks on the 2008 WVU baseball roster and about one-third of the players were from West Virginia, where blacks make up just 3.3 percent of the population.
"In my knowledge of West Virginia baseball, there's not been many players of my race on his team. (Van Zant's) not too high on it,"
White said.
Van Zant, the baseball team's head coach for 14 seasons, didn't immediately return telephone messages seeking comment Wednesday and White was unavailable for comment. WVU's football players are on break until they report for the start of fall practice on Saturday in Morgantown.
White, the university's highest-profile athlete, finished sixth in last year's Heisman Trophy balloting. He rushed for 1,335 yards and threw for 1,724 in leading the Mountaineers to an 11-2 record, including a win over Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl and a No. 6 final ranking.
First-year football coach Bill Stewart has allowed some players to pursue a second sport. Backup quarterback Jarrett Brown played on the basketball team this past season and punter-kicker Pat McAfee practiced briefly with the soccer team.
Pastilong said in a statement Wednesday that the university is committed to racial diversity.
Pastilong pointed to oneWVU, a university-backed program promoting racial equality and justice. It was spearheaded by men's soccer coach Marlon LeBlanc, the university's only black head coach.
The program includes signs on campus, newspaper ads, a Web site and a video message shown at football games. The university plans to use the program in student orientation and training for faculty and staff.
"Our coaches and staff also are committed to an atmosphere of community for our student-athletes,"
Pastilong said. "I look forward to speaking with Pat more about his thoughts."
LeBlanc said he was aware of White's comments.
"My conversations with Pat have always been great. He's a respected, well spoken young man. When I read the article, my initial response was 'I don't know what this actually means,'"
LeBlanc said Wednesday. "I know our athletic department is very supportive of all of our diversity initiatives."
Jennifer McIntosh, executive officer of the WVU President's Office of Social Justice, said she plans to monitor any discussions involving race with White.
"I think that's his opinion and he's entitled to it,"
McIntosh said Wednesday. "If you look nationally, indeed baseball has very few blacks on those teams."
A report issued in April by Richard Lapchick, director of the University of Central Florida's Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports, showed only 8.2 percent of major league baseball players in 2007 were black, the lowest level in at least two decades.
Another Lapchick report showed that among Division I college baseball players, 5.7 percent were black in the 2005-06 academic year, the latest available. That was down from 6.5 percent in 2004-05.
