Future of Division III

[Ron Boerger]

Had forgotten that former University of Texas (Austin) president Fenves had gone to Emory.  Probably not the first such announcement of this type we'll be hearing given the probable loss of federal research funding, increased endowment taxation for wealthy schools, reduced federal educational spending of all kinds (like Pell grants).

[Kuiper]

Had forgotten that former University of Texas (Austin) president Fenves had gone to Emory.  Probably not the first such announcement of this type we'll be hearing given the probable loss of federal research funding, increased endowment taxation for wealthy schools, reduced federal educational spending of all kinds (like Pell grants).

Considering that Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania imposed hiring freezes today (and Cornell, Stanford, Notre Dame, Pitt, Boston University, Vermont and many others did so as well or did so recently), you can expect this to spread like wildfire throughout higher education.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/universities-impose-hiring-freezes-face-uncertainty-federal-funding-rcna195697

[Kuiper]

Some chatter on social media about schools considering dropping down from DI, possibly to DIII

https://x.com/MattBrownEP/status/1899593506747748672

Hearing from multiple industry people I trust that several D1 schools are having SERIOUS internals talks about reclassifying out of D1 before July/House. Mostly but not exclusively in the northeast. I'd be a little surprised if nobody ends up doing it.

https://bsky.app/profile/mattbrown.bsky.social/post/3lk55jtbgps2t

I know of at least three schools that are seriously considering that model at the presidential level. Another four that are considering DI, DII or DIII. Don't think anybody is looking to drop ALL sports, like St Francis Brooklyn did.

[Kuiper]

Interesting data on DIII enrollment/financial issues in the midwestern conferences

https://x.com/d3bubble/status/1899076542493315516

Ohio schools have suffered brutal drops in enrollment over the last decade.  John Carroll with a 25% drop and Wittenberg and Capital with 32% drops?

[Ron Boerger]

I've seen similar numbers for a lot of D3s in the northeast, which is why so many of them are suffering financial pressures and cutting programs and staff. 

In what could be a good sign for D3, though, there's this tweet:

Hearing from multiple industry people I trust that several D1 schools are having SERIOUS internal talks about reclassifying out of D1 before July/House. I'd be a little surprised if nobody ends up doing it this year. Budget cuts may force some hands.

A followup says this would be D1 to either D2 or D3, not FBS to FCS.  Hartford having done this fairly recently probably helps schools consider this, but the larger number of scholarships permitted (required to compete?) by House would be a larger factor.

[Kuiper]

Here's more from Matt Brown from another message board about his tweets regarding DI schools considering reclassifying:

https://csnbbs.com/thread-1007768.html

So, a few bits of clarity here:

1) The rationale and situation for every school is different. For some of the schools my industry people raised to me this week, the thought process around potentially reclassifying has little to do with the athletic department itself, and everything to do with budget cuts, generally. For other schools, the House settlement and increased cost structure of D1 athletics is forcing some difficult conversations. For at least one school, Trump/DOE/NIH budget cuts may be the shove off the D1 bridge. There isn't a one-size-fits-all situation here.

2) I decided not to mention the specific schools because some of them (and their peers) are still playing meaningful basketball games, and I don't want to blow up anyone's spot if the school holds the meetings and decides to stick around. That being said, St. Francis Brooklyn decided to pull the plug on athletics in March, right around when FDU beat Purdue, if I remember correctly. If decisions are made, schools are going to look to pull the band-aid quickly.

3) I have not heard directly from any industry person that I really trust that any *FBS* schools are considering getting out of D1 sports. The bulk of the schools I've heard from, but by no means exclusively, are in the Northeast. I imagine many of you could probably guess at least some of the schools...I haven't heard any names that like, deeply shocked me or anything.

4) Part of the reason I tweeted this, beyond trying to present a counternarrative to the "everybody is opting into House" stuff, is that sometimes posting a little bit of the story pushes folks to leak me other stuff...or at least, clarifying information.

There will be AD and presidential meetings this week and next to discuss some of these school-specific situations. As I get more concrete information, including any on-the-record denials, I will share it.

If this helps, none of the schools I've heard from are Ivy league schools or anywhere close (institutionally) to an Ivy League school. While those institutions are unquestionably political targets, they're on firm enough financial footing that even massive cuts won't push them out of big-time college sports.

[Kuiper]

Johns Hopkins plans layoffs after $800 million grant cuts

The Trump administration has terminated $800 million in grants to Johns Hopkins University, spurring the nation's top spender on research and development to plan layoffs and cancel health projects, from breast-feeding support efforts in Baltimore to mosquito-net programs in Mozambique.

Ouch!

 

[Ron Boerger]

UMass Chan is pulling acceptances for next year's biomedical sciences PhD class due to this crap - though this article notes they were provisional offers.

The statement released by the school notes "UMass Chan is not the only school making these types of calls amid the uncertainty over future funding".

[Kuiper]

Why I'm Hearing More D-1 Schools are Considering Reclassifying

First, I stand by that tweet. I talk to all sorts of potential sources every day, from athletic directors and coaches, to agents, consultants, professors, business executives, other reporters, and more. When it comes to realignment and reclassification type stories, I've found it is important to talk to a wide variety of people. Folks in athletic departments don't always know about conversations happening at the presidential or university system level, but sometimes consultants or other industry people do.

Over the last week or so, I've begun to hear from more than one of those sources, that multiple D-I schools are having serious talks about reclassifying. Having serious conversations doesn't mean that they will reclassify. It simply means that senior university administrators are now willing to entertain options that normally wouldn't be considered. Normally, nobody ever wants to reclassify out of D-I.

[Ron Boerger]

Colorado College announced today they would opt into House for their two D1 sports. 

[EnmoreCat]

It feels like the general demographic time bomb couldn't have come along at a worse time.  As well as some D1s musing over whether D1 makes sense, I guess at the very top end, most D1s must be wondering the same.  I don't have much of a feel for D1 football or hoops, but do supporters of the best teams in those sports care so much about whether the games are under the auspices of the NCAA? Michigan v Ohio State will be big irrespective I presume.