FB: Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference

[OzJohnnie]

The best obituary every written, or so many claim.  It starts:

Harry Weathersby Stamps, ladies' man, foodie, natty dresser, and accomplished traveler, died on Saturday, March 9, 2013.

My favorite paragraph:

He despised phonies, his 1969 Volvo (which he also loved), know-it-all Yankees, Southerners who used the words "veranda" and "porte cochere" to put on airs, eating grape leaves, Law and Order (all franchises), cats, and Martha Stewart. In reverse order. He particularly hated Day Light Saving Time, which he referred to as The Devil's Time. It is not lost on his family that he died the very day that he would have had to spring his clock forward. This can only be viewed as his final protest.

[Retired Old Rat]

DI athletes should receive a stipend that allows them to have money to buy clothes, travel home on breaks, buy food.  Not enough to buy a BMW, but enough to live like the average college student.  DI is all about the money.  The athletes are too many times being taken advantage off.  And lets face reality here, a significant number of basketball and football student athletes are coming from homes that don't have the financial resources most of us who post here have.

The money would be a drop in the bucket.  I prefer to see some who may not need the money get it rather than those who do need it not get it.

What about DI programs that are cash strapped?  Maybe they don't belong in D1.

The average college student ends up with student loans and pays for an education.
It seems a free education swapped for athletic participation is fair. A small student loan to pay back post school/athletic participation doesn't seem like a lot to ask.

The average college student doesn't generate millions in profits for the University and is not regulated by the NCAA.

[hazzben]

DI athletes should receive a stipend that allows them to have money to buy clothes, travel home on breaks, buy food.  Not enough to buy a BMW, but enough to live like the average college student.  DI is all about the money.  The athletes are too many times being taken advantage off.  And lets face reality here, a significant number of basketball and football student athletes are coming from homes that don't have the financial resources most of us who post here have.

The money would be a drop in the bucket.  I prefer to see some who may not need the money get it rather than those who do need it not get it.

What about DI programs that are cash strapped?  Maybe they don't belong in D1.

The average college student ends up with student loans and pays for an education.
It seems a free education swapped for athletic participation is fair. A small student loan to pay back post school/athletic participation doesn't seem like a lot to ask.

The average college student doesn't generate millions in profits for the University and is not regulated by the NCAA.

I don't disagree with this. And the stipends might be a solid middle road. But even for this, the money has to come from somewhere.

Just taking football for example: 119 FBS teams, 85 scholarship players per. Let's assume a $500/mo stipend. That's over $60,000,000 right there!

Basketball: 344 teams x 13 scholarship x $500 stipend x 12 mo = $26,000,000. That number doubles if the women are getting a slice too.

So with a pretty modest $500/mo stipend (which is actually a little less than cadet/midshipmen would get at a service academy), we're already pushing $86,000,000 to $100+ million. And that's just if we give the stipends to the revenue sports. Do you give stipends to swimmers, gymnasts and wrestlers too? Even if you don't, that money has to come from someones pocket.

The NCAA isn't stupid (they just do dumb things  ), they aren't going to bite the hand that feeds them and take the money from the Big Schools that produce the revenue. They are going to take it from the little guys. I.e. cut off funding for DII and DIII playoffs, schools and tournaments that basically make them no money. Which means you probably have fewer teams getting in and/or teams having to foot their own bills for travel expenses (which might/will preclude some schools from taking part).

No easy answers here...

[FearTheEar]

Per twitter: Hank van Liew out of Mt Si High School in WA is coming to Moorhead to play for the Cobbers.

[emma17]

DI athletes should receive a stipend that allows them to have money to buy clothes, travel home on breaks, buy food.  Not enough to buy a BMW, but enough to live like the average college student.  DI is all about the money.  The athletes are too many times being taken advantage off.  And lets face reality here, a significant number of basketball and football student athletes are coming from homes that don't have the financial resources most of us who post here have.

The money would be a drop in the bucket.  I prefer to see some who may not need the money get it rather than those who do need it not get it.

What about DI programs that are cash strapped?  Maybe they don't belong in D1.

The average college student ends up with student loans and pays for an education.
It seems a free education swapped for athletic participation is fair. A small student loan to pay back post school/athletic participation doesn't seem like a lot to ask.

The average college student doesn't generate millions in profits for the University and is not regulated by the NCAA.

I understand your point and many find it the sensible thing to do.
My view is probably too old fashioned and wishful thinking. With the continued watering down of the student part of student-athlete I hate to do anything that could have the effect of minimizing it even more.  The revenue to the school is the trade off for free education, room and board and the chance for kids to participate in a sport they love. For the sake of the country, we should do everything we can to convince kids that a small student loan used to cover expenses for their college degree is a no-brainer decision.

[tmerton]

DI athletes should receive a stipend that allows them to have money to buy clothes, travel home on breaks, buy food.  Not enough to buy a BMW, but enough to live like the average college student.  DI is all about the money.  The athletes are too many times being taken advantage off.  And lets face reality here, a significant number of basketball and football student athletes are coming from homes that don't have the financial resources most of us who post here have.

The money would be a drop in the bucket.  I prefer to see some who may not need the money get it rather than those who do need it not get it.

What about DI programs that are cash strapped?  Maybe they don't belong in D1.

The average college student ends up with student loans and pays for an education.
It seems a free education swapped for athletic participation is fair. A small student loan to pay back post school/athletic participation doesn't seem like a lot to ask.

The average college student doesn't generate millions in profits for the University and is not regulated by the NCAA.

I'd rather put the money into a NFL developmental league for the guys who have no interest in school, then we won't have to worry about supposedly taking advantage of them.  Or put the money into need based grants for all students, including athletes.  I am definitely not in favor of simply giving every D-1 athlete a $3K or whatever stipend.

[tmerton]

DI athletes should receive a stipend that allows them to have money to buy clothes, travel home on breaks, buy food.  Not enough to buy a BMW, but enough to live like the average college student.  DI is all about the money.  The athletes are too many times being taken advantage off.  And lets face reality here, a significant number of basketball and football student athletes are coming from homes that don't have the financial resources most of us who post here have.

The money would be a drop in the bucket.  I prefer to see some who may not need the money get it rather than those who do need it not get it.

What about DI programs that are cash strapped?  Maybe they don't belong in D1.

The average college student ends up with student loans and pays for an education.
It seems a free education swapped for athletic participation is fair. A small student loan to pay back post school/athletic participation doesn't seem like a lot to ask.

The average college student doesn't generate millions in profits for the University and is not regulated by the NCAA.

The average student-athlete also doesn't generate millions for his/her school.  If we're going to do this based on what the athletes generate for the school, then players in lots of sports generate losses not profits and would get nothing.  Even for football and basketball, as some have noted, some programs operate at a loss, plus many of the players have little to nothing to do with generating whatever money is generated.  Some never play.  Once you start paying on the premise that they are generating $ for their school, then it also seems to follow that the star players who generate the most $ should be paid more than others.

I don't think making payments to athletes does anything to cure the ills of D-1 athletics.  It might make us feel better but it doesn't do anything good that I can see.

[BDB]

Well, my brackets are sliced and diced like just about everyone. I still have my picks for the Elite 8 all playing. My tournament group, the "Tainter Lake Drifters" are highly competitive in this type of thing. Lot's of smack talk going down.

Beer is on the line, and bragging rights.

My biggest rival had Wiscy going to the Final Foul. Eat my dust. 

[Tom Thumb]

Looks like SJU picked up two nice recruits:

Austin Britnell, Lakeville South HS
Ryan Landherr, Prior Lake HS

[OzJohnnie]

It's the opening round of the AFL season and I'm desperate to share this with someone. Anyone. Even a Tommie. If someone could work his way down here I swear I would make this a holiday to remember.

EDIT: Even a Wisconsinite. I'm that desperate.

[OzJohnnie]

Vegas;

Your tag reminds me of this clip from The Incredibles:

http://youtu.be/1E9pKU_N15A

[FearTheEar]

Are the Johnnies playing JV this year?

[HSCTiger74]

It's the opening round of the AFL season and I'm desperate to share this with someone. Anyone. Even a Tommie. If someone could work his way down here I swear I would make this a holiday to remember.

EDIT: Even a Wisconsinite. I'm that desperate.

I would think that there would be plenty of Aussies to share it with, Oz, unless you're looking for a similarly footy-smitten seppo.   
What kind of season are you expecting out of your Hawks this year?

[Tom Thumb]

Are the Johnnies playing JV this year?

I think they are.  I believe Fasching made that announcement a few weeks ago. I wonder who they will schedule.  If so, I hope there will be a JV Tommie/Johnnie game! 

[SagatagSam]

Are the Johnnies playing JV this year?

I think they are.  I believe Fasching made that announcement a few weeks ago. I wonder who they will schedule.  If so, I hope there will be a JV Tommie/Johnnie game! 

If there has been any official concerning the establishment of a JV program, I can't find it anywhere. And, I've not heard anything out of the athletic department. Gary has only alluded to starting a JV or futures program.