The NCAA News - News and Features

January 27, 1997

III members say enhancements enough

After hearing a comprehensive presentation of the options for subdividing or subgrouping Division III championships, the Division III membership has indicated a strong preference for restricting championships changes to enhancements that already are planned.

In a straw vote taken during the Division III business session at the 1997 NCAA Convention, approximately 60 percent expressed a preference for staying with the planned enhancements. The remainder indicated they would prefer to develop an alternative model for either subdividing or subgrouping the championships.

The enhancements will become effective during the 1997-98 academic year.

The vote was the culmination of several months of discussion about how to make the Division III championships accessible to more student-athletes as the division grows. The championships enhancements apply only to seven of the eight team sports sponsored by more than 200 institutions -- men's and women's basketball, women's softball, baseball, men's and women's soccer, and women's volleyball. Access issues are considered most acute in those sports.

While football also is a team sport, any changes in the championship structure for that sport are limited because it is believed enhancing the championship bracket would make the season too long. The question of how to improve access to the football championship was referred to the Division III Football Committee for recommendations.

Before the Convention, the Division III subcommittee of the Presidents Commission stated its desire to go beyond the enhancements package, and some indications were that the Division III membership also wanted to further refine its championships. But the presentation of two models -- one for subgrouping championships and one for subdividing championships -- during the Division III business session and subsequent discussion revealed a shift in momentum away from going beyond the already-planned enhancements.

The Division III subcommittee of the Presidents Commission agreed last June to enhance championships for the 1997-98 academic year in the seven sports by expanding the brackets to allow more teams access.

With the expansion, there will continue to be one national championship in all sports; however, the championships brackets will be increased consistent with access-to-participant guidelines for team sports of between one championship slot to eight member institutions (1:8) and one championship slot to 12 members (1:12).

After approving the enhancements, the subcommittee asked the Division III Task Force to Review the NCAA Membership Structure to develop models for subdividing or subgrouping, in keeping with the membership's desire to provide greater access for student-athletes to championships competition.

Both models incorporated the basic principles adopted by the task force -- that Division III student-athletes have proportionate opportunities to participate in postseason play and that teams from comparable institutions should face one another in championships competition. Both models also incorporated the enhancements.

The subdivision model would subdivide championships into two separate divisions competing for separate national titles, such as in Division I-A and I-AA football. The subgrouping model would divide institutions into four subgroups with champion determined in each subgroup. Those champions then would meet to determine one Division III champion for the sport, except in football.

During discussion at the business session, most questions and comments related to allowing the planned enhancements to be implemented, and delaying discussion of any additional changes until after observing the effects of those enhancement measures.

Members also noted that the division is facing major changes when the new NCAA structure goes into effect in August and expressed the opinion that restructuring and championships enhancement is enough change to deal with in the immediate future.

Interest in an extension of the championships enhancements to individual sports and other team sports before subdividing or subgrouping also was expressed.

The Division III leadership had planned to conduct two straw votes at the business session -- one on whether a championships model beyond the planned enhancement package is favored and the second on which of the two models presented at the Convention is favored if a championships model is developed. At the request of the members, a third vote -- seeking a preference for either the planned enhancements, subdivision or subgrouping -- was added.

On the question of whether a championships model beyond the enhancement package should be developed, the vote was 113 in favor, 173 opposed and four abstaining.

On the question of which championships model beyond enhancement is preferred, the vote was 95 for subdivision, 131 for subgrouping and 38 abstaining. That vote seemed to indicate that if further championships changes are needed, the preference at this point is for subgrouping.

The third vote was 173 members in favor of staying with the planned enhancements, 64 for subdivision and 37 for subgrouping.

The championships issue now will be taken up by the new Division III governance structure.

Steering committee actions

In other recent actions involving championships, the Division III Steering Committee of the NCAA Council: