The NCAA News - News and Features

July 20, 1998

Division I membership tests override process

The process for challenging legislation in Division I will be tested for the first time now that enough written requests have been received to call for an override vote of Proposal No. 98-32 regarding Sunday competition in NCAA championships.

The proposal, which eliminates the requirement of adjusting a championship schedule to accommodate a participating institution that has a policy against Sunday competition, was adopted by the Division I Board of Directors in April.

Since that time, however, 99 written requests have been submitted from the membership to override the adoption of the legislation. The total is just one shy of the number needed to suspend the legislation, but more than enough to require the Board to revisit the legislation at its August 11 meeting in Chicago.

Should the Board not reverse its decision, an override vote of the active members of Division I would take place at the 1999 Convention in San Antonio.

It is the first time that legislation passed by the Board has encountered enough opposition to warrant a potential override vote.

Cabinet proposal

The proposal originated from the Division I Championships/Competition Cabinet, which in February requested that NCAA Bylaws 31.1.4.1 and 31.1.4.4 regarding Sunday competition be deleted. (At its July 8-9 meeting, the cabinet reaffirmed its support for the original decision.)

The request gained subsequent approval from the Division I Management Council in April and was forwarded to the Board.

Once the Board's action was published, Division I members had 60 days to generate the 30 written requests necessary to require the Board to review its legislative decision. Had 100 requests been received, the legislation would have been suspended until the Board's August meeting. Because the total was 99, however, the legislation remains in effect.

Among the Board's options in August are to reverse its decision and revert to the previous legislation; restore the previous legislation and send the issue back to the Championships/Competition Cabinet for further study; or vote not to change the legislation, which would require an in-person override vote on the Convention floor in January. A five-eighths majority would be needed to overturn the legislation. The 99 petitions represent about one-third of the Division I membership.

The latter option also would mean that the fall championships season would be impacted by the new legislation. Schools with policies against Sunday competition would not be afforded the flexibility in championships scheduling that they had been used to in the past.

Negative reaction

Reaction against the legislation has been spearheaded by Brigham Young University and Campbell University, two schools that restrict Sunday competition. They are concerned that the legislation unnecessarily forces them and other religious-based institutions with Sunday competition policies to choose between religious values and athletics.

The Board contends that the adjustment to avoid Sunday competition has resulted in certain events not receiving necessary television coverage that helps promote the applicable sport.

Many NCAA championships are conducted at campus sites and in most cases can be scheduled to accommodate a participating institution with Sunday competition policies. There are several championships, however, including the Women's Final Four, with predetermined sites, Sunday schedules, and contractual agreements with television networks that may be difficult to change to accommodate a particular school that may advance to the final.

The Board believes that places a difficult burden on the management of championships competition. It also has been noted that singling out Sunday as the only day of accommodation ignores the interests of other schools that may have policies regarding the religious or cultural observance of Saturday -- or any other day of the week.

Proposal 98-32 is one of 22 Division I legislative proposals adopted by the Board in April. The 99 override requests are the most generated by any one legislative proposal since the Association restructured in August 1997.