Page 10-The Michigan Daily-Thursday, January 10, 1991
NCAA
Continued from page 1
ovich said. "We'll all survive. There
will be greater parity."
The increase of the minimum
number of varsity intercollegiate
sports from six to seven for both
men and women for a total of 14 for
a university to remain in Division I.
Proposal 38 passed.
The amendment, along with
seven provisions, would reduce ath-
letic-related activities to 20 hours per
week. In addition, for at least one
day each week, athletes must remain
idle. The amendment also shortened
the number of days of the year an
athlete can participate in a sport by
setting the starting and ending dates
of each sport. The maximum num-
ber of days now totals 144..
There was little opposition to
this amendment, which received
support from the Student-Athlete
Commission as well as the Presi-
dents' Commission. Michigan Ath-
letic Director Jack Weidenbach
strongly supported the proposal, but
felt it still needed some work.
"I think there will be some fine-
tuning, but you've got time to work
on that," Weidenbach said. "The
biggest one I worry about at Michi-
gan is hockey. The reduction of
those four games bothers me because
they are a revenue sport. You don't
get much sympathy in a group of
people like this about hockey."
The only representatives that
raised opposition to the proposal
were those from track and field. The
sport would suffer up to 25 percent
cuts in athletic time.
"We've bitten the bullet many
times. If we do it once more we
might die of lead poisoning," said
Clyde Hart, President of the Divi-
sion I Track Coaches' Association.
What surprisingly didn't pass
were several eligibility requirements
that force athletes to maintain certain
academic standards. Many universi-
ties have already established their
own policies in this area.
"It was a start or continuing ef-
fort to bring the academic require-
ments more in line nationally than
they have been," Mackovich said.
"The council and the Presidents'
Commission have said that they're
going to look into next year any-
way. So at least it was on the table
this year."
ONH -VE
by Theodore Cox
Daily Sports Writer
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Maybe everyone received a train set for Christ-
mas because the railroad business has become somewhat of a catch phrase
among the 2,000-plus University delegates at the 1991 NCAA convention.
"The train is rolling."
"So far, it's a fast-moving locomotive."
"The athletic directors better climb aboard or they'll be left standing
on the tracks."
The symbolism is precise as most of the proposed amendments have had
results overwhelmingly in the presidents' favor. But to continue the compar-
ison, I wondered three things:
1. Where's this train headed?
2. Will it crush some innocent people stuck on the track?
3. Could the train be replaced by something more efficient, such as the
automobile?
Of course, the overall purpose of the presidents is to mainstream a stu-
dent-athlete with the rest of the student body. But in the State of the Associ-
ation address on Monday night, NCAA Executive Director Richard D.
Schultz stressed two points that make sense: "To convincingly emphasize
who's in charge" and "to reduce and simplify the rules."
The problem is that the presidents' current way to show who's boss is to
add over 100 amendments to the bylaws, a majority of which are new rules.
One of the biggest problems the NCAA faces is coaches who don't take
the time to learn and understand the bylaws, and frankly, I don't blame the
coaches. When I first entered the media room on Monday, I almost collapsed
Presidents continue to
railroad NCAA policy
under a ton of paperwork.
Another problem is enforcement. The most complex amendment pas
yesterday is the limit of 20 hours per week of athletic-related activities per
athlete with a coaching staff. Of course, this amendment is 12 pages long
and has more exceptions than a calculus problem. Now, who's going to
monitor this? Are coaches going to have players punch in time clocks?
"It's going to be a problem to keep track of it," Michigan Athletic Direc-
tor Jack Weidenbach. "A lot of it is going to depend upon the coaches doing
a good job of monitoring themselves."
This doesn't mean the athlete can't practice on their own. Certain sports
can have coaches supervise workouts for safety reasons. So how will people
be able to differentiate between supervision and organized instruction?
Perhaps everyone is hopping on the train because this could be the last
ride. The public is fed up with the NCAA's apparent lack of control over
rule violators; congressmen are talking about legislation over schools; and
some speculate that superconferences will form and break from the NCAA.
Right now someone has to take charge, and many athletic directors are
turning to the presidents.
"They're responsible for the schools, God bless them," Michigan State
Athletic Director and coach George Perles said. "That's who we work for and
that's who the schools are run by. That's fine as long as they're putting the
time in like they are here."
I am just as confused as anybody as to what needs to be done. I thin
there needs to be an overall governing board - and the NCAA is best suited
for this role. But at the same time, more amendments, especially unenforca-
ble rules, only run the train right off the track.
r
Il
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Ready,
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Rush!
We're ready whenever you are at the corner of North University and State Street !
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