National Collegiate Athletic Association |
The NCAA News - News and FeaturesThe NCAA News -- September 27, 1999 Soccer bracket plays waiting game
Proposal to expand to 48 teams denied, but committee to try again for 2000
BY VANESSA L. ABELL Many in the men's soccer community are asking why the Division I men's soccer championship bracket hasn't been expanded since 1993. The Division I Men's Soccer Committee proposed expansion of the 32-team tournament to a 48-team field for the 1999 season, but despite meeting most of the criteria necessary to warrant an increased bracket, the request was denied because the bottom line -- funding -- got in the way.
The committee already had researched and garnered support for the proposal by requesting feedback through the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA). "The coaches have engaged in a lot of discussion at their convention," said Thomas A. Jacobs, senior assistant director of championships at the NCAA and staff liaison to the soccer committee. "The committee has taken this positive feedback and discussed multiple formats and different implementations in preparation for the proposal." Actually, the committee submitted three separate proposals for the cabinet's consideration -- expansion models that provided for fields of 40, 42 and 48 teams -- hoping that the 48-team expansion would be the one approved. The cabinet during its review compared the sports sponsorship numbers of Division I men's soccer to other championships with similar sponsorship numbers. Among the 310 Division I schools in 1998-99, men's soccer had the seventh highest sponsorship (191, 61 percent) behind those sports with team championship field sizes of 48 teams and greater. Because softball, with a 74 percent sponsorship total -- and a newly expanded bracket (from 32 to 48 teams) -- had the most comparable sponsorship numbers, the men's soccer community was hoping the cabinet would adjust the soccer bracket accordingly. Initial support The cabinet did in fact support the 48-team expansion proposal, along with expansion requests from four other sports committees, but the decision was far from being final. The Division I Management Council in April also supported the cabinet's request, but that was before either group was aware of the budget constraints that were to be in place for 1999-00. The Division I Budget Subcommittee had allotted $800,000 for 1999-00 championships initiatives, but the total amount included $550,000 in championships enhancements that the cabinet had asked for on an annual basis. Those enhancements were included for one year only in the 1998-99 budget from year-end Division I monies that were intended to become part of the championships budget allocations in subsequent years. Because the cabinet's initial requests exceeded the remaining $250,000 of the 1999-00 allocation, the cabinet was asked to go back to the table to prioritize its requests to fit the boundaries. Some of the prioritizations were absolutely necessary, such as $52,000 for officiating expenses that resulted from brackets that had been expanded the previous year in baseball and softball. The cabinet also ranked as a priority an increase in officials' fees in women's basketball in order to equal those fees paid for officials in men's basketball. That took up another $38,775. As for the five championships bracket expansions, the cabinet prioritized them in the following order:
Knowing that the soccer expansion did not fit under the new financial umbrella, the cabinet had proposed an alternative funding plan that involved reallocating funds for officiating-improvement programs as Association-wide expenses, but the Council noted that officiating-improvement programs already were budgeted as Association-wide expenses and were not part of the Division I budget, which rendered the alternative plan moot. Thus, the Council supported the cabinet's prioritization as far as the budget would allow and, further, recommended that the expansion for soccer be placed on the cabinet's front burner for 2000-01. "There was a lot of support for the men's soccer bracket expansion, but unfortunately, the dollars weren't available," said Robin Green, assistant chief of staff for Division I and staff liaison to the Division I Management Council. "We thought we had a pretty good chance of it going all the way through the Executive Committee," said Charlie Slagle, soccer coach at Davidson College and chair of the NSCAA's Division I men's soccer committee. But despite the optimism for expansion in 2000-01, Green said it might be risky to expect that the proposal will be passed, even though it has taken on a high-priority status. "The Council decided to make it a high priority for next year, but there is no guarantee that those funds will be available." Ready for growth Jacobs said that a majority of Division I coaches have been interested in increasing the field size primarily because of the increased parity in the sport. "Not long ago, the stronger soccer teams were concentrated in the heavy population areas. But today, strong programs reach across the country to all areas, both urban and remote," Jacobs said. That increase in skilled soccer players has challenged the men's soccer committee when it comes time for championship selections to be decided. "There are years that the 33rd team, the team that doesn't get picked, would have a legitimate chance to win the whole thing," Slagle said. "There is precedent for that with teams that were one of the last selected making it all the way to the semifinals and finals.With that kind of parity in college soccer, it makes it very difficult for the committee members to pick all the correct teams. They do a great job at it, but with 48 you can be pretty sure that more than likely the 49th team isn't somebody who is going to be an actual championship contender. " Jacobs said it has been argued that a cut has to be made somewhere and regardless of where the cut is made, qualified teams will not make it into the bracket. But the men's soccer committee's proposal is based on the belief that if a team is strong enough to contend for the championship title, it needs to be included in the field. In filling the last few teams of the bracket, the committee often is left with only subtle differences between qualified teams. Jacobs also said that it is hard for those teams on the bubble that aren't selected to understand why they have been left out of the bracket, especially when teams with similar success are selected instead. "The committee hopes that with a suitable bracket expansion, no team adequately qualified to fight for the title would be excluded from future championships," Jacobs said. Proponents also point to the championship's annual financial success as reason to expand. "It's one of the few tournaments that is actually in the black," Slagle said. "And with our move to Charlotte (Ericcson Stadium) this year, we would continue to be in the black even with a bracket increase. So financially, it shouldn't be a factor." However, as was the case this year, funding is a factor, perhaps even the deciding factor. Green said she expects the issue to come back to the Council in time for the committee to prepare for the 2000 tournament, if expansion is approved. She also said, however, that ultimately the Executive Committee has the final say. "We won't know about the 2000 championship until next August, when the Executive Committee meets," she said. Division I championships (% of sponsorship) Men's basketball 100% Women's basketball 98% Women's volleyball 96% Baseball 88% Softball 74% Women's soccer 80% Men's soccer 61% I-AA Football 38% Field hockey 23% Men's lacrosse 17% Men's ice hockey 17% Women's lacrosse (I/II) 15% Women's rowing 12% Men's volleyball 7% Men's water polo 4% |
The committee began looking at a 48-team bracket several years ago in anticipation of the Division I Championships/