Future of Division III

[smedindy]

I actually like moving the 3-pointer back. I remember the ABA, and it's 3-point line was farther back, but it did nothing to deter players like Louie Dampier and Billy Keller from firing at will.

[David Collinge]

Just in case there's any lingering doubt on where the North Coast Athletic Conference stands on the politics of Division 3, here's a link to a short article (PDF format) in the Chronicle of Higher Education by Earlham College president Doug Bennett, who also serves as the chairman of the NCAC's President's Council.

Division III: Too Big for Its Own Good

This article can be accessed through the Chronicle's website (subscription required), and also through the sites of Earlham College and the NCAC without cost.

[Josh Bowerman]

You beat me to the punch on this one, David. 

In my 15+ years of being an ardent DIII fan, I think President Bennett has many of the issues just plain backward.  I agree that there's a divide between the high participation rate schools and the low participation rate schools, but in my experience, it's the high rate schools that want more emphasis placed on the athletic experience, not less.  The low rate schools tend to put very little emphasis on participation (a big part of the reason their rates are low) and more on a broader collegiate experience, and THEREIN lies the divide (read Swarthmore Football). 

Furthermore, the low rate schools tend to want access to postseason play, not simply more of it.  The high rate schools tend to want this too (not a focus on the regular season as is suggested)--but the finances of DIII dictate that high rate schools suffer when it comes to postseason participation due to the necessary inclusion of the small rate schools.  What we need is fair access, not equal access.

I also fervently disagree that the divide between the two perspectives is untenable.  It will certainly require give and take on both sides.  Philosophies like President Bennett's tend to have a much more divisive effect than an inclusive one.

Ultimately, I think he's got the issues well identified, but I think he's honestly mis-identified the players.

[Ralph Turner]

David, thanks for the article.

Josh, your commentary sneaked in ahead of mine. 

As I was reading Dr Bennett's article, I, too, had trouble telling the players by their "numbers on his scorecard".

So schools with a small percentage of athletes encourage focused intense competition...like Wash U (StL) and NYU? Right?   Are there any more multi-talented student athletes in D3 than UAA athletes?

The differences in "culture" don't mesh, and it seems that the "Elites" are losing to "rabble"!  And that doesn't set well!

You have a high concentration school like Beloit, Monmouth or Lake Forest from the Midwest Conference, and they cut the basketball season short by 10%.

I don't think that the participation rate issue even divides the camps on redshirting...  That may be the old "traditionalist 243" versus the NAIA newcomer "177".

It is much harder to win the NCAA's when you have nearly twice as many schools competing as in 1973. 

It reminds me of under-6 soccer.  Every kid "needs" a trophy!

Why are opportunities to participate in the post-season harder to come by?  We just used the NCAA March Madness money to expand the bid allocation ratio from 1:7.5 to 1:6.5, and added the Pool System and AQ's in M&W Golf and M&W Tennis among others.  SCAC Baseball Champion Austin College gets into the playoffs with a losing record versus a very tough schedule because they persevered thru the long season and post season tourney.

Now the Pool system does away with the "good ol' boy" network of at-larges.  Is that the crux of the matter?  The Pool System has given fair and equal access to the playoffs for all 420 schools:  (1) Join a conference of peers. (That should be a good thing;  Wasn't that the reason for founding the Big Ten?) (2) Stabilize the conference (3) Earn the Pool A bid!  Simple!

Honestly, it all looks like the problem is perennially miserable teams of high profile D3 sports (among interested alumni)
read football and trying to take the pressure off the presidents.  Did I mis-read that one?

More comments will be appreciated!

[Josh Bowerman]

The Pool System has given fair and equal access to the playoffs for all 420 schools:  (1) Join a conference of peers. (That should be a good thing;  Wasn't that the reason for founding the Big Ten?) (2) Stabilize the conference (3) Earn the Pool A bid!  Simple!

I respectfully disagree with this particular point, Ralph.  The new systems have certainly given equal access to all DIII schools, but there's a big difference between fairness and equality.  Every year, in every sport, VERY deserving teams are left out of the playoffs because of the AQ system and limited Pool B/C slots.  These slots are limited because of the deluge of teams getting in (for the sake of equality) from traditionally weak conferences.  I think it's also pretty hard to rationalize the current mileage restrictions on playoff participation with the fairness side of this arguement.

I don't mind the equality--we need it.  But  we also need to expand the Pool C's to balance the equality with fairness--even if it's only theoretical fairness.

[Ralph Turner]

The Pool System has given fair and equal access to the playoffs for all 420 schools:  (1) Join a conference of peers. (That should be a good thing;  Wasn't that the reason for founding the Big Ten?) (2) Stabilize the conference (3) Earn the Pool A bid!  Simple!

I respectfully disagree with this particular point, Ralph.  The new systems have certainly given equal access to all DIII schools, but there's a big difference between fairness and equality.  Every year, in every sport, VERY deserving teams are left out of the playoffs because of the AQ system and limited Pool B/C slots.  These slots are limited because of the deluge of teams getting in (for the sake of equality) from traditionally weak conferences.  I think it's also pretty hard to rationalize the current mileage restrictions on playoff participation with the fairness side of this arguement.

I don't mind the equality--we need it.  But  we also need to expand the Pool C's to balance the equality with fairness--even if it's only theoretical fairness.

Josh, the Championship Committee has expanded the playoff bids to one bid for every 6.5 slots in the higher profile sports.

What ratio do you suggest that we use for the playoffs?  If you are suggesting anything over 32 teams for football or 64 teams for other team sports, I would like to hear your thougths about the logistics and the time requirements to conduct the playoffs without extending the seasons, which would be another "ball of wax".

Thanks.

[Wydown Blvd.]

"At colleges with high participation rates, though, where sports are
a common activity among students, officials want their athletes to
participate in other activities as well: art, music, theater,
community service, politics, and the like."

I see where he is coming from with this idea about high rate schools. If the student athletes aren't involved in other activities then there aren't other activities. I think that was his point in a nutshell on the rates.

"When participation rates are low, colleges can safely encourage
their athletes to focus on sports, giving them the intense and
vigorous athletics experience those students seek. They can do so
without unduly influencing the entire campus, because of the
relatively small number of students who participate in athletics
programs. Such an intense focus has little consequence for the
rest of the campus."

Although athletes in the UAA are very involved, multi-faceted individuals, they are the elite student athletes (a special breed if you will). Also, a devotion to athletics does lead to UAA teams being continuously in the national spotlight. In larger schools (usually with lower rates), it is important for a student to find his/her niche. Although, I always hate stereotyping schools. Bennett should have came with more hard evidence from other schools, instead of stereotyping 420 schools.

[Ralph Turner]

Thanks Wydown Blvd. (which is the address for Wash StL and Fontbonne  )

I appreciate your amplification of those remarks.

I seriously doubt that the student-athletes at those two institutions are so singularly athletes-only that they don't contribute to other campus functions.

As I reflected on your comments, I then began to analyze the recent college students whom I knew.

Two with whom I have worked were baseball players until they hit their competitive walls...just weren't going to get that much better...

One became President of the Student Government.

The other became a fraternity president and Physics Honor Society president.

They matriculated as student-athletes, but their contributions to the university were much greater off the field.

I think that President Bennett is selling athletes short with his generalizations.

[frank uible]

Not to put too fine a point on it, but WashU's official street address is Brookings Drive. Wydown Boulevard borders the WashU campus but is not generally used as its address.

[Ralph Turner]

Not to put too fine a point on it, but WashU's official street address is Brookings Drive. Wydown Boulevard borders the WashU campus but is not generally used as its address.

+1 and thanks! 

I appreciate the precision.  I remembered Wydown's post prior to the Wash StL-Fontbonne basketball game last winter...

[frank uible]

In the 50s the St. Louis Hawks of the NBA played their home games in WashU's fieldhouse which, I believe, still stands but is not where WashU now plays its basketball games. If you you saw the Fontbonne/WashU game at WashU, then that event occured in its basketball court which was built in the early 80s.

[Warren Thompson]

In the 50s the St. Louis Hawks of the NBA played their home games in WashU's fieldhouse which, I believe, still stands but is not where WashU now plays its basketball games. If you you saw the Fontbonne/WashU game at WashU, then that event occured in its basketball court which was built in the early 80s.

In the late 1950s I lived in St. Louis. As I recall, for the 1957-58 season, the Hawks played home games in Kiel Auditorium.

[frank uible]

Warren: I should have been more clear and said "some of the St. Louis Hawks' home games".

[Warren Thompson]

Warren: I should have been more clear and said "some of the St. Louis Hawks' home games".

No harm done, Frank. BTW if you are familiar with the St. Louis area, you'll recall that in that era Fontbonne was a small, all-women Roman Catholic college, adjacent to the campus of Concordia Seminary in Clayton.

[frank uible]

Warren: I lived in greater St. Louis from 1972-88. My sons attended Wydown Junior High School - now I believe called Wydown Middle School. One son and his 2 children live there now.