Rice

[50's PONY]

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HoustonChronicle.com -- http://www.HoustonChronicle.com | Section: Sports

April 28, 2004, 7:59AM



On defense for Rice athletics
Ex-players, fans fear trustees will downgrade, kill program
By TODD ACKERMAN
Copyright 2004 Houston Chronicle
A group of Rice University ex-athletes and fans are joining forces out of concern that school trustees might downgrade athletics or drop football altogether.

The Friends of Rice Athletics formed last weekend and immediately launched a campaign to prevent any change in the status of Rice athletics "without a full, fair and open public dialogue." Trustees are reviewing the future of Rice athletics.

"Trustee discussions should be focused on how to make Rice athletics even better," said Wanna Hadnott, president of the R Association, a group of past Rice letter winners. "A drop to Division III or eliminating the football program completely would dramatically reduce Rice's prestige."

Rice participates in Division I athletics, the most competitive level. In Division III, the level where Ivy League schools participate, athletes don't receive scholarships.

Hadnott and other people concerned about change said they had no inside information about such plans but said they want to be "prudent" because Rice trustees are considering a full range of possibilities.

Terry Koonce, chairman of the trustee subcommittee reviewing athletics, said last week that some options, like the abolition of athletics, aren't "practical." But because he didn't list all the options, Rice athletic supporters became worried.

The board recently received the draft of a consultant's report about athletics that looks at finances, academics, team success rates and the changing national picture. Heavy on data, not including recommendations, the final product will be distributed among the Rice community before the trustees come to any conclusions about Rice's athletic future, Koonce said last week.

Nevertheless, Rice Athletic director Bobby May said he's "absolutely in the dark" about the board's intentions and worries about how much input supporters will get.

"My concern is how much time there is between the release of the report and the board's decision," said May. "The timing is critical -- when does the dialogue occur, and how meaningful is it?"

Koonce declined comment Tuesday, but Rice spokesman Terry Shepard said trustee Chairman Bill Barnett is "conscious" of that matter.

Rice's participation in big-time college sports has been a source of contention on campus historically, with a few professors calling for abolition, the majority of trustees solidly behind it and most faculty favoring reform.

A faculty report released last week said athletics costs the school financially and academically but didn't call for any change. A survey of faculty opinions on athletics, including whether Rice should continue to participate in Division I athletics, drop to Division III or get out altogether, is due today or Thursday.

A student poll, conducted earlier this spring, found strong support for Rice's participation in big-time athletics.

Hadnott, a former tennis player, said eliminating football would affect other Rice sports, hurting their recruiting and ultimately dropping them from Division I. She said that is a concern of most Rice ex-athletes.

Hadnott said Friends of Rice Athletics was formed by about 10 people but includes the R Association's 2,500 members and the roughly 1,000 members of the Owl Club, a fan group open to all.




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HoustonChronicle.com -- http://www.HoustonChronicle.com | Section: Sports
This article is: http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/sports/2535297

[EastStang]

I would be very surprised to see Rice downgrade athletics. I noticed that the main faculty beefs were that players were cheating, weren't doing their work or attending classes. There is a cure for that, flunk players who aren't doing their work or that you suspect are cheating. You know if a faculty member did his job correctly, then he can't complain about special treatment for athletes. Hand out a few "F's", that will get the attention of the players and their coaches.