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A number of media reports are indicating Northern Kentucky will exit the Atlantic Sun this summer with the Horizon League as its landing spot, NKU Board of Trustees set to meet tomorrow to approve the switch with a presser already set, Horizon fits the Norse geographically better, but the level of competition in some key sports will be ratcheted up, would add Cincinnati to the league's media footprint - link
Playing first round games in the Men's Hockey NCAA Tournament at neutral sites is unlikely to change after a 52-6-1 vote against the move last week by coaching leadership, North Dakota AD & committee chairman Faison notes the strength of the vote's message, regional hosting will still be heavily debated at meetings in June, possibility exists for re-bids on 2017 & 2018 regionals - link
Gatorzone with a solid account of how Florida AD Foley identified & recruited Louisiana Tech MBB HC White to be the next leader of the Gators program, Foley & Executive Assoc. AD Hill had been monitoring the situation in OKC for weeks, outlined criteria of what they'd be looking for, started warming up to White even before they spoke to him, search committee traveled to Ruston to meet face to face with White & cement deal - link
Northeastern AD Roby could be involved in a reshuffling of the leadership behind Boston's effort to land the 2024 Olympic Games, reports have Bain Capital executive & Boston Celtics co-Owner Pagliuca becoming the new chairman with Roby serving as a vice chairman, potential changes a result of dissatisfaction from the USOC on the level of local support for the major push, lots of dynamics at play - link
ACC leaders continue to debate full cost of attendance moves, Clemson FB HC Swinney's feelings are well documented, Virginia Tech Director of University Scholarships & Financial Aid Armstrong notes the guidelines, not a specific formula, that is used to compute a final figure for student-athletes, Virginia AD Littlepage & Hokies boss Babcock recognize it's not a perfect system, interested to see how it plays out over time - link
Oklahoma State FB student-athlete Simmons provides some perspective on full cost of attendance upgrades, says outsiders never know the situations of players, many of whom are sending money home to support their families, while COA will be welcomed, "it's really not that much," Tulsa AD Gragg sees it as a positive step, recalls his own experiences as a student-athlete at Vanderbilt, Oklahoma State AD Holder says there's never enough money & is focused every year on generating more revenue, more - link
Oral Roberts AD Carter says his department is still crunching the numbers on new cost of attendance legislation, doesn't think the situation will impact his programs much either way, but is concerned about MBB scholarship limits & transfer rules, "One could argue that the mid-majors spend their time and money recruiting and developing student-athletes that then leave the mid-major level to move up...that becomes very dangerous to the entire structure of men's basketball." - link
Australian League Football executives have turned their sights to the States for talent as a recent combine included 15 MBB student-athletes who had exhausted their collegiate eligibility, North Melbourne Kangaroos scout Byrne notes his country doesn't produce many really tall, athletic prospects, an AFL game averages 60 to 70 jump balls, putting height at a premium, average AFL salary is $240k, a handful of former MBB student-athletes are already playing in the league - link
Longtime FB AC & current Stanford Director of Player Development Lynn talks about the time commitments required by student-athletes, "Most places, you're an athlete before you're a student," 51 FBS programs now have at least one staffer dedicated to student-athlete development, Northwestern HC Fitzgerald notes the importance of the role on his staff, UCF's Belden is in her fourth year, "It's almost the equivalent of a team mom," lots more - link
South Carolina is starting to move on a new Track & Field facility as the Gamecocks broke ground yesterday for the Sheila & Morris Cregger Track Stadium, HC Frye recounts the process of getting to this point, credits former AD McGee for having the initial dream, Creggers have donated to USC before, along with other universities, "We like to contribute to sports... Athletes understand teammate, leadership & all the things needed to succeed" - link
Former Illinois AD Guenther says he tried to model the Illini department after Stanford's, happy to see a number of programs achieving a high level of national success, including Men's Golf, Baseball, Men's Tennis & Men's Track & Field, still believes all sports can be nationally relevant & says "it's all about getting the right guy," reflects on some key moments in Champaign & his current role as a consultant to Big Ten Commish Delany - link
North Carolina academic leaders are exploring ways to give Tar Heel student-athletes more access to key collegiate experiences, such as internships & study abroad opportunities, to prepare them for professional life, one option would be funding an extra year of attendance, though that could demand a budget increase, debate centers around special circumstances for student-athletes & reintegrating them more into campus - link
Long, but solid read on the path that led Duke Men's LAX HC Danowski to Durham & his moves to reestablish the Blue Devils program, son Matt was a team member back in 2006 when the sensational rape allegations involving other student-athletes went down, recalls conversations with the search committee that involved little talk about coaching strategy, quickly ingrained himself in the Duke community, National Championship in 2010 was pretty symbolic, more - link
Texas A&M is celebrating its 40th year participating in Women's sports & this piece reflects on the growth of the Aggies program, initial budget was $91,000, today stands at over $48m when factoring in academic, nutrition & facility support, current UTSA AD Hickey was hired as the Women's AD & WBB HC in 1984, talks about the process of changing the culture, six National Championships highlight the school's progress - link
This one may make you stop & think, government contracts show the Department of Defense spent $5.4m with NFL organizations between 2011 & 2014 for a variety of sponsorship involvement, including specific moments to honor military members, Arizona Senator Flake says the practice doesn't sit well with him, "It leaves a bad taste in your mouth," understands the recruiting angle, but questions paying for the honoring of heroes - link
Arkansas FB HC Bielema, MBB HC Anderson & AD Long are three of the top four highest paid state employees at $4m, $2.28m & $965k respectively, there are 2,585 college & university officials in the state who make more than $100k, state Senator Teague, "Higher ed is big business," Governor Hutchinson notes the importance of schools staying competitive in the marketplace - link
After filling their high-profile MBB HC opening, Florida brass completed another key hire by naming Auburn AC Rowland as new Women's Gymnastics HC, Rowland was recently named co-Assistant Coach of the Year after helping the Tigers reach their first Super 6 in the last 22 years, AD Foley says Rowland's name kept coming up during the search, impressed with the Tigers program over the last couple of years - link
Notable Marquette law professor Mitten, who is getting ready to start a two-year term as Prez of the 1,800-member Sports Lawyers Association, a major proponent of a federal regulatory commission that would work with the NCAA to establish rules & govern college athletics, does not believe lawsuits are the vehicle for appropriate change, set to appear in front of the Knight Commission later this month - link
Georgia Southern is pushing to replace the playing surface of Glenn Bryant Field at Paulson Stadium to an artificial turf, AD Kleinlein still working on all the specifics, including final costs that could be upwards of $1m, fellow Sun Belt member Louisiana-Lafayette made the move in 2008 & has been highly satisfied with the results as annual maintenance only runs around $5k - link
UTEP is already moving in the direction of artificial turf for the Sun Bowl, Glory Field & University Field at an overall price tag of $2m, AD Stull notes the challenges with growing good natural grass in El Paso, Sun & Glory getting FieldTurf Classic HD CoolPlay, University will have FieldTurf Revolution CoolPlay installed, all three will be completed by the Fall - link
