The Division III membership is voting on legislative proposals today at the NCAA convention. Some key proposals, and the action that has been taken on them:
Proposal 6:
Amend (bylaw) 14.1.11 by adding new 14.1.11.1, page 91, as follows:
“14.1.11.1 Requirements. The use of male practice players
in a women’s sport is subject to the following requirements:
“(a) Male practice players shall only be permitted to
practice in the traditional segment in the women’s
sport;
“(b) The use of male practice players is limited to one
practice per week; and
“(c) In team sports, the number of male practice players
shall not exceed half of the number of student-athletes
required to field a starting unit in that sport.”
And an amendment to said proposal, sponsored by the MASCAC (the real MASCAC, the one in Massachusetts), which would increase the players to five players for three days per week in basketball.
This proposal was sent back to committee by a vote of 359-62-3. It could be revisited in another year, though the prevailing opinion appears to be that the status quo should be maintained.
For those who missed Hoopsville, Dave McHugh interviewed Barb Bausch (Vassar), Lori Kerans (Millikin) and Val Cushman (Randolph-Macon Woman’s College). Click here for the audio.
Bylaws: Amend 14.2.4.1, page 92, as follows:
[Division III, roll call]
“14.2.4.1 Minimum Amount of Participation. A season of intercollegiate
participation shall be counted when a student-athlete
participates (practices or competes) during or after the first contest
following the student-athlete’s initial participation at that
institution. A season of participation shall not be counted when
a student-athlete participates in a preseason scrimmage or preseason
exhibition conducted prior to the first contest following
the student-athlete’s initial participation at that institution.
This provision is applicable to intercollegiate athletics participation
(practice or competition) conducted by a Division III any
collegiate institution at the varsity, junior varsity or freshman
team level.”
A change to make the redshirt rules even more restrictive was defeated … again … as the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference’s proposal to no longer honor redshirts granted by another division. There were 82 in favor, 336 opposed with five abstentions. This would have meant that student-athletes who redshirted in Division I, Division II or the NAIA would have lost a year of eligibility in transferring to Division III.
This is a rule the MIAC uses on a conference level. It’s now had two airings on the national level and has not gotten widespread support.
Proposal 11, from the NCAC, to cap Division III membership at 459, was withdrawn. This was the recommended course of action — it’s hoped that there will be other ways of managing the growth of Division III other than a hard cap.
Ahh, and Proposal 14 passed — this is a big one for Division III basketball. Now exhibitions against Division I and Division II will not count against a school’s maximum of 25 games. It can take the place of one of the two permitted scrimmages.
These games have to take place between Oct. 31 and the opening of the Division III regular season.
Takes effect Aug. 1, 2007.
pat, does that mean if Lynchburg wanted to have an exhibition against a D1 next year, it would have to be a scrimmage, or could they still have two scrimmages and an exhibition?
As I read it, the d1 counts as a scrimmage. You get two. I assume you could still schedule a d1 school for a regular game, but it would have to count on the schedule for both schools. Not too many d1s like to do that.
(Cough, cough… Arlington.)
The way I read the rule, you can have a scrimmage, an exhibition game, and then 25 regular-season games before your conference tournament.
Yeah, that’s what I was trying to say about the pre-season, it just didn’t come out right.
Pat, this wouldn’t affect scheduling d1 teams for one of your 25 games would it?
I don’t see anything in here that talks about regular-season games.