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The largest athletic programs -- many of which think they are constrained by the smaller budgets of their peers -- will most likely have to suck it up. Or at least their reprieve probably won't come in the form of a separate division, Nathan Hatch, chair of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I Board of Directors, said in a statement Wednesday. At their quarterly meeting in Indianapolis this week, the university presidents who make up the board's membership heard ideas from various groups regarding NCAA governance and structure. Afterward, the NCAA announced it will create a subcommittee to "develop some alternative plans the membership can discuss" at the association's annual convention in January.
A new governance plan could be put up to a vote as soon as August, Hatch has said.
While Division I will likely remain as is and university presidents should stay in control, an altered rule-making process that allows some flexibility for institutions to make decisions in areas like recruiting and financial aid could emerge as a compromise, the statement said. Currently, all Division I institutions must abide by the same limitations and rules, despite their drastically different budget levels.
The board identified other key elements to emerge from the feedback this week: the board should be less focused on day-to-day operations and more focused on overarching strategy for Division I; the division needs a more transparent, fast-moving, streamlined and simple governance process; and all groups, particularly athletics directors and athletes, should have "representation within the governance structure."
The much-discussed prospect of a new division or subdivision for the largest athletic programs garnered support (or at least consideration) from numerous organizations, conference commissioners and faculty groups. But others, including associations of athletics directors and faculty athletics representatives, as well as the Division I Leadership Council, oppose the idea.
