The next meeting starts on 4-22-05.


http://www1.ncaa.org/membership/gove..._Standards.htm

NCAA Division I football Membership Standards

1. april 2005 Action ItemS.

Recommendations to the Division I Board of Directors.

a. Recommendation No. 1.

Adopt emergency legislation to provide that effective for the 2005 football season, a Division I-A member shall demonstrate during a rolling two-year period, at least one season in which it averages a minimum of 15,000 in actual attendance for all home football games, or at least one season in which the institution aver*ages a minimum of 15,000 in paid attendance for all home football games.

Reasoning: This recommendation maintains a measure of public support, but aids those who consider actual attendance to be outside the control of an institution by pro*viding the opportunity to demonstrate compliance through paid attendance once every two years. This recommendation also continues to encourage efforts to build a local following, thereby making the institution more attractive to football bowl sponsors associated with the Division I-A postseason format. This membership criterion also provides relief from the 2004 attendance requirement and can be distinguished clearly from the re*quirements necessary to secure and maintain Division I-AA status.

b. Recommendation No. 2.

Adopt emergency legislation to provide that effective for the 2005 football season, a Division I-A institution may use one win each year against a Division I-AA op*ponent (i.e., has averaged 90 percent of the permissible maximum number of grants-in-aid per year in the sport of Division I-AA football over a rolling two-year period) for bowl eligibility.

Reasoning: This provides for some competition between the two subdivisions and is considered an enhancement by Division I-AA. It also has the probable effect of in*creasing the number of Division I-A bowl eligible teams.

c. Recommendation No. 3.

Adopt emergency legislation to provide that effective for the 2005 football season, a Division I-A institution may use one game each year against a Division I-AA opponent (i.e., has averaged 90 percent of the permissible maximum number of grants-in-aid per year in the sport of Division I-AA football over a rolling two-year period) to satisfy the home game scheduling requirement for Division I-A membership (for 2005, four home games; for 2006 and thereafter, five.)

Reasoning: This provides flexibility for Division I-A institutions to meet the home-game scheduling requirement and permits some competition between the two subdivi*sions.

d. Recommendation No. 4.

The Board of Directors should request that the NCAA staff, Collegiate Commissioners Association (CCA) and Division I Management Council evaluate editorial and other changes in the NCAA Manual to provide that for football competition purposes, references to Division I-A and I-AA be changed to distin*guish Division I football members by reference to those eligible for Bowl Championship Series (BCS) and Football Bowl Association games in contrast to those eli*gible for the NCAA Division I Football Championship.

Reasoning: This would affirm that the Bowl Championship Series, Football Bowl Association games, and the NCAA Championship are alternative postseason formats for football in Division I. In addition, this would help avoid confusion when institu*tions participate in Division I championships other than football where there is no distinction by subdivision. The NCAA Division I Football Championship would limit eligibility to institutions that, among other possible requirements, provide no more than the equivalent value of 63 grants-in-aid in football and that schedule and play more than 50 percent of football games against members of either the bowl or championship eligible groups. The bowl eligible group would continue to vote as a subdivision on its bowl eligibility requirements. Therefore, this recommended change is primarily editorial in nature and would not impact representation or votes in the governance structure for either group.

e. Recommendation No. 5.

The Board of Directors should continue to support additional en*hancements that may impact the NCAA budget that would encourage stability of the Division I-AA group and participation in the Division I football championship. Also, attention to low and no-scholarship programs, and evaluation of regular season and post season opportunities for these programs, would serve to benefit the long range viability of football.

Reasoning: It appears appropriate to evaluate the NCAA’s Division I regular season and championship to ensure viability, stability and satisfaction for all participating institu*tions and student-athletes, recognizing that the football bowl game and BCS formats have established the baseline for perceptions of institutions, student-athletes and the public. The Division I-AA Governance Committee and Division I-AA Football Committee, along with the Football Issues Committee, may be best suited to develop and monitor on behalf of the Board, a plan for a coordinated set of enhancements and initiatives.

Further, many institutions in Division I and Division II either do not provide football grants-in-aid or provide only a limited number, yet they conduct football programs that are integral to their athletics’ and institutional missions. The relative competitiveness and budgets of these institutions may support increased opportunities for competition within this group. Ensuring meaningful regular and post season competition opportunities for these programs should be a priority as well.

2. informational items.

Additional factors to consider.

a. Division I-A Membership Principles. In 2001, the eight presidents that comprised the Football Study Oversight Committee (FSOC), and later the Board of Directors, agreed that in order to foster and maintain a high level of competition, the Division I-A membership is committed to similarities in: the level of competition in football; resource allocation; and public support.

The 15,000 average attendance requirement that was adopted in 2002 (effective in 2004) was intended to address the principle of public support and replaced previous legislation that required either 17,000 in paid attendance for home games in a 30,000 seat stadium one year in a four-year period, or required the institution to aver*age more than 17,000 in paid attendance for all home games during the immediate past four-year period.

b. New BCS Structure. In 2004, the eleven current Division I-A conferences joined to*gether to establish a new Bowl Championship Series format for the football post-season and recommitted to long standing conference agreements with Football Bowl Association events. A consideration in establishing the new BCS national championship format was the continued promotion of the sport at institutions that desire to participate at the highest level. Media and corporate partners that are associated with all bowl games seek community and public support of such games and “public interest” in the teams is a significant consideration in selection of teams, in addition to “competitive rank” among available teams.

c. Marketability of Division I-A. Division I-A is committed to intercollegiate football competition on the highest amateur level possible and recognizes that this unique product should be preserved through competition together, promotion and public sup*port of programs that involve student-athletes who are fully integrated into the insti*tution’s academic as well as athletics’ mission.

d. Current Division I-AA membership. Any modification of the Division I-A member*ship criteria will affect the stability of the Division I-AA membership. The Division I-AA membership supports a clear demarcation between the two groups in regard to the required financial commitment to both the overall intercollegiate athletics program and football.

Public support is a desired outcome for participation in Division I-AA competition and championships, but is not a primary consideration. Division I-AA competition and opportunities for championship play among similarly competitive programs provides a meaningful and balanced experience for the involved student-athletes and institutions.

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