D-II loses another one

[89rabbit]

D-II just lost another top notch program, luckily Upper Iowa is on the way. ;)

http://www.nhregister.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=10889491&BRD=1281& ;PAG=461&dept_id=517515&rfi=6

UNH puts an end to football program


By Sean Barker , Assistant Sports Editor 01/29/2004


WEST HAVEN — Only seven years after competing in the NCAA Division II championship game, the University of New Haven announced Thursday it is dropping football immediately.

The university is also dropping women's golf, women's indoor track and field and women's outdoor track and field, effective in the fall of 2004 to comply with gender equity.

"We couldn't get a regional schedule," New Haven director of athletics Deborah Chin said. "The inability to get a regional schedule, along with the change in the way the NCAA selections for the playoffs are selected were the main factors.


This only reinforces my belief that we are leaving D-II at the right time.


Go State!

[JBB]

It seems odd to me that some schools, most recently Sac State and Northern Az in DI-AA and now New Haven in D2, are re-evaluating their sports programs with the emphasis on making them smaller. Others, most notibly NDSU, SDSU and UNC are trying to expand the size of the athletic departments. Are things just that different from market to market? Are the programs being torpedoed by non athletic interests? Is it the first signs of some kind of shift to de-emphasize?

[tony]

Satisfying as it would be to blame DII's new regulations for New Haven dropping football, I'm not buying it. They were talking about this before and didn't mention it (just like Roger Thomas said UND couldn't play NDSU because they needed an appropriate number of home games).

Both schools are just using the excuse du jour. If DII changed the system tomorrow, they'd trot something else out.

BTW, Sac. State isn't putting an emphasis on getting smaller - they're just evaluating. NAU, that was just a newspaper guy talking.

[89rabbit]

I agree that the new playoff format is not the real reason that UNH is dropping football. *My point is that D-II just lost another good program (no matter what the reason is) one that can't easily be replaced by the newcomers (Upper Iowa, Newberry, etc.).

I also agree that neither Sac-State or NAU are looking to get smaller. *They both look like they may be trying to get more efficient. *Make their athletics dollars go further. *One of the ways to do that is to cut down on travel costs (possibly through different Conf. affiliation), *but I don't think they will be getting smaller.

[JBB]

Well, I dont know about that. Sac State has actually talked about dropping football. NAU looks like they would like cut back as well. When I said smaller, I guess I was talking about the size of the budget.

Some would like to point to these things and imply that NDSU is irrational in its move to DI because of the economics and our geopgraphical situation. Do we have so much money that we can absorb the same travel expenses that other schools are trying to avoid? Or, is it a local situation and shouldnt be of concern?

[89rabbit]

SDSU and NDSU are both flagship Universities in their states, the same can not be said for Sac State and NAU. *One might call both school commuter schools with not a lot of support for their teams. *I think both schools are working to change that, and their athletic programs are just part of that equation.

Their market places are completely different from our own. *They have different advantages and disadvantages that make it hard to compare. *Although if you go by attendence we beat them both.

Lastly, if these two left the Big Sky because the travel was "too much for them" then we wouldn't face that challenge. *These two are the farthest from us, in terms of Big Sky members. *If they left, and I am not saying they will, the footprint of the Big Sky would change dramatically. *If they stay and we join we are still ok because both SDSU and NDSU have budgeted with that in mind before we started down this road.

Long story short, I don't see any reason to look at the UNH, Sac-State, and NAU thing as any sort of warning. *Each school has very different issues and needs, IMHO.

[Sac_State]

*Sac State has actually talked about dropping football. *




When?
Where?
Who?

Wrong!

[Sac_State]

SDSU and NDSU are both flagship Universities in their states, the same can not be said for Sac State and NAU. *One might call both school commuter schools with not a lot of support for their teams. *I think both schools are working to change that, and their athletic programs are just part of that equation.

Their market places are completely different from our own. *They have different advantages and disadvantages that make it hard to compare. *Although if you go by attendence we beat them both.

Lastly, if these two left the Big Sky because the travel was "too much for them" then we wouldn't face that challenge. *These two are the farthest from us, in terms of Big Sky members. *If they left, and I am not saying they will, the footprint of the Big Sky would change dramatically. *If they stay and we join we are still ok because both SDSU and NDSU have budgeted with that in mind before we started down this road.

Long story short, I don't see any reason to look at the UNH, Sac-State, and NAU thing as any sort of warning. *Each school has very different issues and needs, IMHO.

The widening shift of have's and have-not's will continue to distance the gap between pure college athletics and a quasi semi-pro college environment being developed deliberately or innocently by the NCAA and its gang of BCS.

You will find that unless you are BCS, these non-BCS schools will be severly limited to financially fund ever demanding enhanced facilities, higher tuition and bigger conferences (travel distance). I remember a time when 10,000 was a good attendance # for a IAA team. Actually, that is probably more than 85% of the IAA's attendance playing out there. And NAU doesn't think 10,000 is enough? What about the stadiums? Most IAA teams have been content with playing in their 30 year old stadium. Now, it seems if your not building, your being singled out to have the title 'their cutting football' plastered all over the web.

Is S. Dakota State planning on upgrading their football facilities?

Sad, the see New Haven go out. They were a top team in the 90's. To see a team zenith and then burn out so quick is frightening.

[89rabbit]

Is S. Dakota State planning on upgrading their football facilities?



Sac,

The answear is yes. *We are adding on to the East side of Coughlin. *New Scoreboards, Locker rooms, Suites, the whole deal. *Not sure of the of the time frame. *I think the Scoreboards are this year.

Also please don't get me wrong, I like your President's vision. *I wish nothing but the best for Sac-State and their quest. *All I know for sure is that SDSU and NDSU are either going to be in the Big Sky of GWC. *I am good either way. *I think the same can be said for both Sac-State and NAU (they will either stay in the BSC or move thier football to the GWC). *

Let me end by saying once again I started this thread to bring up the point that I think that D-II is losing some of it's luster and I am glad we are moving up to I-AA.