Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, October 28, 1995 TAG: 9510300055
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DANIEL UTHMAN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
When the coaches of Virginia's six NCAA Division I-AA football-playing schools go out recruiting each year, they easily could add another item to their lists of selling points.
In addition to an extended playing career and further education in the field of their choice, high school players who commit to play in the state are guaranteed extensive travel.
``Sometimes me and my old roommate, Terry Tucker, used to add up the hours we spent on the bus [in a year],'' said VMI wide receiver Jeff Hubbard. ``It added up to a week.''
It adds up to major costs for college athletic departments in Virginia, and that is after scholarship costs. Road games up and down the east coast for a I-AA team in the state cost anywhere from $20,000-$40,000 when transportation, meals and lodging is included, say the athletic directors at the state's I-AA football schools. If it's a trip west, it goes even higher.
Liberty University, a I-AA independent that historically has had a hard time finding games to fill its schedule, recently turned down a date at Northeastern Louisiana because it was guaranteed only $65,000.
``We're not going to make much off that game,'' said Liberty athletic director Chuck Burch.
The costs of running a I-AA football program are becoming increasingly difficult to bear. At VMI, for example, the cost of a scholarship has grown rapidly this decade. The cost of a full in-state grant for VMI in 1991-92 was $7,850, with out-of-state grants ringing in at $13,390 a pop. This year, the numbers have jumped to $9,130 for an in-state scholarship and $15,350 for out-of-staters.
At William and Mary, out-of-state scholarships have jumped from $14,196 in '91-'92 to $18,800 for this school year.
Many officials say if the state's programs - VMI, Liberty, Hampton, Norfolk State (eligible 1997) and the three Yankee Conference members, James Madison, Richmond and William and Mary - would play each other more often, or perhaps form their own conference, they would save money.
``Geographically, fans can get to the games and see the teams and, economically, it doesn't cost as much,'' Hampton coach Joe Taylor said. ``Then you have a better gate and it's less expensive.
``I can see that coming.''
Norfolk State will join Hampton in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in 1997, but its athletic director, Dick Price, admits, ``To form our own state conference would be great. It would be a great league.''
It also could be a money-saver. For example, when Liberty made its inaugural trip over the mountains to play VMI last month in Lexington, the Flames spent about $3,000, Liberty coach Sam Rutigliano said.
``No way could you ride to Orono, Maine, for that,'' he said.
Orono is the home of the University of Maine, a Yankee member. JMU's Sept.30 game at Maine cost the Dukes $44,201.43 in travel expenses.
So why are JMU, Richmond and William and Mary making seven separate trips to New England this season? Why did Hampton play five straight September road games, including stops in East Rutherford, N.J., Baton Rouge, La., and Jacksonville, Fla., which even Taylor called ``murderous?'' Why doesn't VMI play James Madison, which is an hour up I-81?
VMI is a fixture in the Southern Conference; JMU and William and Mary in 1991 joined Richmond in the Yankee; Hampton is a MEAC member in its first year of I-AA competition; and Liberty is an independent looking for takers. Richmond was a member of the Southern Conference until 1976. William and Mary left the league in 1977.
Rutigliano, Taylor, VMI football coach Bill Stewart and Richmond athletic director Chuck Boone and coach Jim Reid each say they would like to play all of the I-AA teams in the state. The Keydets are restricted by their league schedule, which annually accounts for eight of their 11 games.
``Why are we going all the way to Georgia Southern when we can play these people in our backyard?'' Stewart said. ``What are we thinking?''
``Nobody in Lexington cares about seeing UT-Chattanooga or East Tennessee State,'' Rutigliano said. ``They're going to go to the game if they play Richmond, William and Mary, James Madison. People are going to make money by saving money.''
Aside from Richmond, which benefits from having a major airport in the vicinity, Yankee schools are laying out large sums of money to play their scheduled games. While Boone said Richmond never spends more than $20,000 for a road game, JMU's average expenditure per road game this season is $23,774.98. William and Mary's assistant athletic director, Charlie Elwood, estimated his school is averaging $25,000 per road game.
``I don't understand why they keep going to the northeast,'' Stewart said. ``They don't take anybody up there, and their people don't come down here. JMU played in front of 2,400 at Northeastern! I guess they've got money up north.''
The Keydets have traditional rivalries against Richmond and William and Mary, and those are not about to end.
``The alumni would skin me if we didn't play those teams,'' Stewart said.
Officials at Liberty and Hampton say they would love to have VMI on their schedule, too.
It also is unlikely that Hampton will have to endure a season like the present again. The Pirates have signed future contracts with JMU, William and Mary and Liberty.
Liberty has had a difficult time finding a league for its football team, not to mention games to play. It doesn't get much relief in the state, either. Although many are reluctant to say it, schools seem hesitant to be aligned with Liberty, a private Christian school, because of its outspoken founder, Jerry Falwell, and the perceptions that come with it.
Liberty approached JMU and William and Mary about joining a league when the Dukes and Tribe were still independents.
According to Rutigliano, ``We were almost rudely avoided.''
The Flames never have played William and Mary or Richmond. JMU was a frequent opponent until 1992, when school officials told then-coach Rip Scherer they were going to stop competing against Liberty.
``I think an in-state program would be great, at least making up the major part of a league,'' said Scherer, currently in his first year as the head coach of I-A Memphis. ``The toughest program to fit in would be Liberty, and I don't know why. Our administration at JMU was reluctant to play them. I wasn't consulted in that.''
JMU president Dr. Ronald E. Carrier would not comment on the issue.
Rutigliano's view? ``I thought college football was for the kids, not the presidents.''
One Liberty player said he thinks some in-state programs are getting hung up on the wrong thing.
``If they could put aside all the political issues and get back to what's the main issue here and that's playing football ...,'' said running back J.T. Morris. ``If we just play football and leave all that other garbage outside, I think it could be an asset.''
JMU and William and Mary say they aren't sure an in-state league is the answer. Tribe coach Jimmye Laycock and interim athletic director Barbara Blosser say they are happy with their situation in the Yankee Conference. The Dukes are looking beyond the state.
``One of the problems is you begin to limit yourself in the recruiting aspect,'' said JMU athletic director Don Lemish. ``The higher end of I-AA level players want to travel and have visibility beyond their state.''
JMU sees itself at a level similar to the Mid-American Conference, one of the lowest-rated I-A leagues.
``I see that as a 10-year project,'' Lemish said.
In reality, the project may not be worth it. Out of 227 I-A and I-AA teams that are listed in the Sagarin power ratings published by USA Today, the average MAC school is rated 111th. The average of Virginia's six I-AA teams is 131. The cost of going to the MAC's level may outweigh the actual improvement that comes with the move.
One of the reasons I-AA programs are looking to move up is that I-A games produce bigger paydays.
As of 1991-92, a rule went into effect that said I-A teams must have at least six wins against I-A opponents to go to a bowl game. As a result, many I-AA teams were dropped from I-A schedules. It happened in Virginia, with UVa ending series with VMI and William and Mary, and with Virginia Tech, which dropped JMU.
Davis Babb, VMI's athletic director, said those games used to bring in upwards of $150,000 for the I-AAs. Tech athletic director Dave Braine said that if the rule were rescinded, which could happen in a vote of NCAA Division I-A schools Jan.8 or 9, the Hokies would pick up the JMU game again.
``It's a win-win situation,'' he said. ``But as long as the win does not count, we would not do it.''
Braine added there is a good chance the rule could be changed, but that many power conferences, including the Big Ten and Pac-10, want the rule to stay in effect.
``In I-AA, you're not going to get the TV money and you're not going to get 10,000 season ticket holders,'' said Rutigliano. ``It would make a lot of sense for [the in-state schools] to draw a circle in a five-six hour radius. We could all travel by bus. Some games wouldn't even require a hotel Friday night.
``It's absolutely crazy for us not to be together.''
by CNB