UNCC decides to add football

The trustees at the University of North Carolina Charlotte have decided to go forward with the plan to add a football team. The team will make its debut in 2013.
This is also a good time to mention that Hofstra University cut its team last week, shortly after Northeastern University announced it was cutting its team due to the expenses associated with the team and the inability to properly upgrade facilities.
And in the wake of these two announcements there was a fair amount of desperate "football is dying" talk.
But it seems UNCC has granted some people's holiday wishes and brought peace on earth to football-loving folks.
It will not be a cheap endeavor, however. The stadium will cost $40.5 million and the student body is slated to bear most of the financial burden with fees predicted to be raised by $320 over the course of the next few years. This number could go down, according to the Chancellor, if private donations increase. Of course, by this logic, they could also go up if donations go down. I mean they say the recession is over, but...
It was not an uncontroversial decision as you might imagine--especially because of the above-mentioned economic uncertainty. But it had many proponents as well.
The decision is not final final yet. It has to be approved by the Board of Governors in February.

Other voices in North Carolina

The coverage and commentary we have read thus far on the proposal to add a football team at the University of North Carolina Charlotte has suggested that there is near-unanimous support for the plan, though with a healthy amount of concern over where the millions of dollars it would take to do so would be coming from. But recently, two former UNC system presidents stepped forward and publicly expressed their concerns over adding football.
Dick Spangler and Bill Friday will be meeting with faculty at UNCC to tell them just how much football really costs. And though actual money is a concern and will be discussed extensively, they won't be talking just dollars and cents. Information from the Knight Commission on Athletics will be presented to faculty so they are able to assess how football affects then entire university community. Because while many proponents of the plan are discussing the excitement that a football program would create within and outside the university community, few are talking about how football affects a school's overall reputation. As collegiate sports (and not just DI; I witnessed how the addition DIII football program affected the climate of a tiny liberal arts school I used to work at) grow more and more out of control, it is something a school like UNCC will want to factor into its decision.

The push for more football

The season is over. No more bowl games, no more NFL playoffs. But people still want football. Over the past month or so I've come across several stories of schools where someone(s) is pushing for the revival or institution of intercollegiate football.

The study on the viability and feasibility of adding football at UNC Charlotte concluded not too long ago. Not surprisingly the committee has decided to issue a recommendation to the chancellor that states football would be a positive addition to the institution.

The popular conception that football brings in alumni dollars and increases school spirit was likely a huge factor in the committee's decision. They did not take lightly, though, the huge expense adding a football team--a team that they want to eventually take to Division 1A--adds to the budget. And the increase in the budget also necessarily includes the costs associated with adding women's sports to keep in line the opportunities for male and female student-athletes.

Across the country in California, there is movement afoot at Cal State Fullerton to reinstate football at the school. Football was cut over 15 years ago in order to save money. Bringing back the sport at the Division I Championship Subdivision Level (formerly known as IAA--a far easier label, I thought) would cost, according to a guesstimate from athletic director Brian Quinn, at least $4 million--every year. It's not entirely clear from the article who is leading the push to bring back football but those involved have suggested raising some of the money by increasing student fees--likely above and beyond the 10 percent increase called for by Governor Schwarzenegger. Beyond the costs of a football program are--again--the costs that would be incurred when the university adds women's teams to keep the number of opportunities proportionate to the percentage of undergraduates at Fullerton (58 percent are women but only 52 percent of athletic opportunities currently are provided to women). Adding a football team at the DI level usually means a roster of at least 100 players. Fullerton doesn't currently have women's crew--they may want to consider it if the plan to reinstate football moves forward because they are going to need a lot of opportunities fast.

Also in California, UC San Diego (DII) has put together a task force to look at the possibility of adding a football team. But unlike at UNCC it looks like the task force is a student-run one out of their student government association. The debate over a potential addition has generated some discussion, both in person at meetings and on the internet where two opposing Facebook groups have formed to debate to the issue. Even though the task force will look at all the attendance issues addressed by the UNCC committee, the CUSD chancellor has said there just isn't enough money right now and argues that the pro-football Facebook group that claims the addition would cost $1 million (including covering the addition of women' sports) is underestimating.

UNC Charlotte starts crunching numbers

The first phase of UNC Charlotte's decision-making process which will determine whether to add a football team, is complete. The University received the estimated costs associated with bringing football to the school. (The link to the news story also includes a brief news clip that does not offer much more than the print story though there is an interview with a student about what football could bring to campus.)

I have to commend the university for exhibiting a great deal of candor thus far. The numbers are out there and they show a doubling of the athletic department's 2005-2006 expense budget if football were to be added in 2012. They have been forthright with students that some of the money will have to come from them. (The problem with this scenario though is that only 20 percent of students polled last year said they would pay an up-to $400 athletic fee for the addition and they were polling students who will not be around in 2012 to benefit.)

The estimates also include $1.6 million to add women's sports that would provide opportunities to about 100 female student-athletes. Field hockey, lacrosse, and swimming are the early contenders. Note that that figure is a small percentage of the $8.9 million increase in the department budget. One of the senior associate athletic directors felt that the increase would be made up by the revenues. But over half the expected revenues are budgeted to come from student fees--not ticket or merchandise sales.

Also not included in the $8.9 million is the biggest cost of all: the $75 million for a stadium and an additional $33 million for other fields and facilities. Although the numbers were there in the estimates and the article reported on them, the fact that they seem to be separated out is problematic. While money for capital costs often comes from a variety of sources, including donations, they will factor into the department budget when you think ahead to upkeep or to the possibility of paying off the bonds that could be used to help build the facilities.

I don't think UNC Charlotte would put it this way, but the start-up costs involved with bringing football to the school will be $116.9 million.

One to watch

UNC Charlotte has decided to go ahead with a study that will look at what it would take to bring a football program to the school. The school has been under some pressure from students and alumni to institute a football program, but administrators are quick to say that the study does not mean a football team is a guarantee.
Early number show the addition of a football team will result in a pretty hefty hike in the student athletic fee. Student government at UNCC organized a poll that ends tomorrow to gauge student interest in the endeavor.
UNCC has been talking about the possibility of a football team for some time now and every time they do they say a football team will not get in the way of Title IX compliance. They have stressed they will not eliminate men's teams and are likely to add women's teams. Currently the school offers soccer, basketball, track & field, cross country, softball, volleyball, and tennis for women.
Right now it appears they have achieved substantial proportionality but the addition of 80 scholarship players on a football team would skew that considerably. UNCC would have to add, I would guess, 3-4 women's teams to account for the addition of football.
It will be interesting to follow the study as it progresses as well as student and fan reaction.