Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, May 26, 1990 TAG: 9005260035
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Bill Brill
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Corrigan is the commissioner of the Atlantic Coast Conference, but that is only one of his jobs. He has many more.
He is chairman of the NCAA's cost-containment committee, which is seeking ways to reduce some of the staggering expenses that come from running multisports programs.
And Corrigan's league, the ACC, has been a leader in a model-conference program that is aimed at alleviating some of the pressures on athletes and bringing them more into the mainstream of the student body.
There are contradictions here, something Corrigan acknowledges.
Cost reductions are necessary, college leaders say, because most athletic programs increasingly are overwhelmed by red ink.
When a school such as Michigan - with a sports budget exceeding $20 million - attracts more than 100,000 for every home football game, participates in the Big Ten Conference's lucrative bowl and TV packages and still loses money, there's a problem.
But there is no scientific solution.
At the ACC spring meetings in Myrtle Beach, S.C., this week, Corrigan said the cost-containment committee is studying recruiting, competitive policies and financial aid.
In simple terms, what the committee wants is agreement on how to cut back without hurting athletics or athletes, while avoiding the ever-growing problem of keeping up with the Joneses.
"What we're doing is throwing out stuff for people to shoot at," Corrigan said. "I've gotten some good suggestions. I want their support for our report."
The cost-containment plan will be presented July 12-13 in Kansas City, Mo. The report will focus on staff limits, a reduction in scholarships and recruiting restrictions.
Not surprisingly, such cutbacks have little support among the high-profile coaches in football and basketball.
"I don't expect support from coaches for these things," Corrigan said. "If I was a coach, I wouldn't support them, either."
Football coaches, in particular, seem to be fighting cutbacks rigorously. That is true in the ACC, as well as nationally.
"Football coaches are into numbers," said one ACC source. "Gene met with them and told them that some reductions are coming, but they aren't happy."
At a recent Knight Commission meeting in Washington, D.C., where a blue-ribbon panel is studying college sports, a comparable scene occurred. Instead of agreeing to reductions, the football group actually asked for more scholarships.
The coaches traditionally complain that football and basketball are the revenue sports, and that if cuts must be made, they should be made elsewhere.
To which a female athletic director said, "The key word here is revenue, not profit."
She is accurate. While it is true that football and basketball essentially are the revenue-producing sports, that does not mean they make money. In fact, a substantial majority of Division I football and basketball programs operate at a deficit.
The coaches have not yet accepted what appears to be obvious, that cuts are coming and that these cuts will be across the board.
The basketball coaches appear to be better organized and closer to a consensus. And they appear willing to go along with some changes, as long as they have input. They long have been troubled by the fact that the NCAA convention always is held in January, in the middle of their season.
To their credit, basketball coaches have not complained that reductions will ruin their game.
Not true in football. The statements made in Myrtle Beach echoed those made by some coaches at the Knight meeting: "If you cut back on staff size, scholarships, or spring practice, you'll hurt the quality of the game.'
Sez who?
If Division I-A teams operated with 85 scholarships instead of 95, who could tell the difference? Certainly not the fans. And not the sportswriters, either. They're not that smart.
The same number of games would be played, and I suspect that, for the most part, the same teams would win. There might be a slight trend toward parity, with each of the top squads losing 10 good players to somebody else's team.
Corrigan has indicated the reform package is moving forward, if more slowly than critics would prefer. "Reform is a heavy word," he said. "What we're looking for is good sense."
The ACC is prepared to adopt a plan that would outlaw athletic dormitoriess, whether the rest of the nation goes along or not. But some of these model-conference ideas may waffle along because of anticipated opposition.
Corrigan warns not to expect a dynamic reform package to be adopted immediately.
"Things like this always take time," he said.
Reform - or good sense - may come in bits and pieces.
by CNB