Tulane to suspend 1/2 it's athletic programs

MeanGreen61 · December 9, 2005

Saw a post stating they had received an exemption from the NCAA on # of programs required to remain 1A.

Tulane to suspend half its athletic programs

Associated Press

NEW ORLEANS -- Tulane is suspending half its athletic programs to cope with the financial damage done by Hurricane Katrina.

The school will continue to compete in Conference USA in football, men's and women's basketball and baseball, along with volleyball, women's indoor track, outdoor track and cross-country

Men's track and cross country, women's swimming and soccer, men's and women's golf, and men's and women's tennis are part of university-wide cuts. The cuts affect about 100 athletes.

The school will still compete in Division I-A because it received a five-year waiver of the league requirement of 16 sports, university president Scott Cowen said Thursday.

Athletic Director Rick Dickson went to displaced athletes' current campuses to inform those whose programs were eliminated.

"Today is a day of great loss," Dickson said. "As far as I am concerned, no student-athlete is any more important than any other."

Cowen said the university will honor athletic scholarships for students who stay at Tulane, even though their programs were eliminated.

Those who transfer to continue with sports cut by Tulane will be immediately eligible to play at their new schools, said Doug Hertz, chairman of the board's athletics committee.

Hertz said the board considered eliminating athletics altogether.

"Anybody who loves Tulane athletics owes Scott Cowen and Rick Dickson a huge pat on the back for going to the NCAA and convincing them to give us a waiver and for going to the conference and convincing them to allow us to continue to compete," Hertz said. "That was essential."

The Green Wave's membership in C-USA and accompanying revenue from television contracts is worth between $1.8 and $2 million dollars a year, Hertz said.

Tulane has had minimal income from athletics since Katrina hit. The football, volleyball, soccer and basketball teams have been competing on four campuses in Louisiana and Texas.

The football team played 11 games in 11 different cities. Where the team will play next season is still uncertain.

Hertz said the university will evaluate all of its facilities in January. The men's and women's basketball teams will return to campus later this month.

A women's game in Fogelman Arena on Dec. 18 will be the city's first college or professional sporting event since the hurricane. The men's team will return a week later.

Rudy · December 9, 2005

So if any of their athletes transfer, how do we get them here?

untbowler · December 9, 2005

Would be nice to get a few of the Women's Tennis transfers in here, but just curious how they will be able to stay Title IX Compliant?

I see only VolleyBall, Basketball for the women, while the men have Football which is a Scholarship eating machine, maybe they are getting a waiver, but it would seem like dropping football or even limiting scholarships would help them more than dropping a ton of lesser sports, plus they will not even meet the eligibile number of Sports for 1-A.

Should be very interesting to follow.

Duh finally read the article much closer, sounds like they plan to readd the teams within the 5 year period of the waiver I assume.

Edited December 9, 2005 by untbowler