MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia University officials are using pictures from social media and information WVU students are providing to find the people responsible for the vandalism in Morgantown that followed Saturday’s 30-21 upset win over Oklahoma State.
On Monday morning, WVU Student Body President Ryan Campione said tips about the vandals were already being submitted and the vandals were being criticized on Twitter and Facebook.
“That kind of behavior, I think, is really embarrassing for a lot of students,” said Campione of the volunteered information. “I don’t think you need to ask (for tips). I think there’s a lot of students who feel very proud about the image of the University and proud about Morgantown. They want to do it whether you ask or not.”
Morgantown officials estimated at least ten streets fires were set on Saturday evening into Sunday morning. A video that was posted on Youtube.com showed several people flipping over a Volkswagon parked in the University Avenue loop this weekend.
At this point, WVU Dean of Students Corey Farris said it is early in the investigation and there is no confirmation that all the people involved were WVU students. However, he admitted there are some, his word, “hooligans” in Morgantown.
“We still have a few of them around and we’re ready to get them out of town and we’ve got lots of people and lots of ways to try to identify them,” said Farris. He confirmed University officials were using social media.
“Sometimes, we laugh and joke about social media being everywhere, why is everyone broadcasting their lives? But, in situations like this, it is a great help,” he said.
Students who were involved in the vandalism could face criminal charges along with disciplinary action from WVU, up to and including expulsion.
Both Campione and Farris were guests on Monday’s MetroNews “Talkline.”
To the chagrin of University officials, WVU has become notorious for vandalism and fires following big football and basketball wins for the Mountaineers.
A zero tolerance policy for such activities, both on campus and off campus, was implemented in 2003 after more than 100 fires were set in the hours after a win against Virginia Tech.