The NCAA News - Briefly in the News

January 19, 1998

Attendance at the Convention was down about 20 percent, which was the drop that had been indicated by preregistration figures. Attendance by Divisions II and III presidents appeared to be up slightly, but Division I chief executive officers were notably absent.

Another group with dramatically different attendance was the media.

A total of 37 media representatives registered, which is a bit of a contrast to recent years when media attendance usually was between 50 and 100 representatives.

What was very different, though, was the media who were not present. There were no national writers from wire services nor were reporters present from newspapers that had regularly attended the Convention before. Among those that didn't attend were The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Chicago Tribune and USA Today.

"If we restructure again," joked Executive Director Cedric W. Dempsey, "we might not have any media at all."

Dempsey did note, however, that he hoped the press would find the event more media-friendly than in the past. In particular, he said that the Division I forums and workshops would be informative sessions dealing with topics of general interest.

And the numbers are...

In place of the usual business session, Division I implemented a set of forums and discussion sessions for its program January 12.

Here is how they were attended:

8:30-9:30 a.m. -- Opening-session speeches by Donna Shalala and Kenneth A. Shaw: 512.

9:45-10:45 a.m. -- Student-athlete gambling issues: 132; basketball recruiting issues: 354; future of NCAA communications: 54.

11 a.m.-noon -- Student-athlete gambling issues (part 2): 132; basketball recruiting issues (part 2): 354; legislative structure/process: 54.

1:15-2:15 p.m. -- Public perception of collegiate athletics: 415.

2:30-3:30 p.m. -- Collegiate sports marketing, past, present and future: 79; implementation of Proposal 62: 287; sportsmanship and ethical conduct: 68; Division I-AA Football Championship forum: 78.

Special mention

Former NCAA President Alan Chapman of Rice University was recognized in the State of the Association address by Executive Director Cedric W. Dempsey.

Chapman's experience with the Association goes back 34 years. His term as president was an active period in NCAA affairs, but he is perhaps best known for his almost endless tenure as parliamentarian for Division I and general business sessions. Perhaps nobody was as physically visible at NCAA Conventions as Chapman, who was at the head table every year for the 25 years he served as parliamentarian.

-- Compiled by David Pickle

Division II notes

Facilities: Sacred Heart University recently dedicated its new William H. Pitt Health and Recreation Center. The three-story, 132,500-square-foot facility is named for an area realtor whose $3 million gift was instrumental in construction of the $17.5 million project. The Pitt Center combines athletics and recreation with administrative and educational functions, including a physical therapy clinic for public use. The main basketball arena will seat 2,200 fans for Pioneer men's and women's games, and the center also features three other basketball courts, a state-of-the-art fitness center, aerobics room, wrestling arena, indoor running track, six men's and women's locker rooms, and athletics department offices. Classrooms and laboratories for health sciences, physical therapy, human movement and sports science academic programs also are available.

Conferences: The Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference announced its expansion to 12 members with the addition of Anderson College (South Carolina) and Limestone College. Both schools will play full conference regular-season schedules starting in 1998, but Limestone immediately will be able to compete for conference championships. Anderson is projected to begin playing for conference honors in September 1999 after its provisional-membership period is completed.

Milestones: Coaches -- Pat Pecora, University of Pittsburgh, Johnstown, 250 dual-meet victories in wrestling; Roger Vannoy, Lincoln Memorial University, 300 victories in women's basketball; Johnny Jacumin, Wingate University, 500 victories in women's basketball (high school and college).

Institution -- Texas A&M University, Commerce, 1,000 victories in men's basketball.

-- Compiled by Jack L. Copeland