Few championships issues in Division III have generated as much discussion in recent years as automatic qualification. After the legislation was adopted by the membership in 1999, the Division III Presidents Council and Management Council stipulated that there would be no significant changes for at least two years, a requirement implemented in order to see what parts of the legislation would work as intended and what might need revision.

If the Management Council and Presidents Council approve the recommendations -- some of which may require legislation and some of which may not -- 2002-03 would be the first year that any significant changes to the current automatic-qualification process would be implemented.

The committee also expressed support for the concept of bracket expansion, with an ultimate access-ratio goal of 1:7 (from the current 1:7.5). The committee recommended that the proposed 2002-03 increase in championships per diem be delayed indefinitely to free up funding to pursue bracket expansion.

The committee also expressed its desire that future bracket expansion should place special emphasis on more access for at-large (Pool C) participants. In that regard, the committee recommended that a minimum of two Pool C berths be established in all team sports during 2001-02. If the recommendation is adopted, it could result in immediate Pool C expansions for men's lacrosse, women's lacrosse and men's ice hockey, with Pool C expansions in other sports -- including women's ice hockey and women's rowing -- during future years.

In a related action, the committee recommended prohibiting conferences that met automatic-qualification criteria from opting out of AQ in favor of the conference's members going into Pool B (as independents). The committee concluded that such a prohibition would be consistent with the original intent and principles underlying AQ.

In a related discussion, the committee noted that it continues to be opposed to multiple automatic bids for large conferences.

The committee supports the concept of expanding the definition of a "region." That might entail including a definition with a mileage radius or perhaps a certain number of institutions surrounding a particular school. The committee plans to request additional input from the sport committees as to how best the region definition might be expanded.

The committee also plans, as a first step, to ask sport committees governing individual team sports with a team component (golf, tennis and cross country) for their reaction to applying the automatic-qualification principles to those sports.

The championships experience

The subcommittee has been reviewing feedback gathered from the membership at the 2001 NCAA Convention -- as well as additional comments submitted by the membership since the Convention -- regarding site-selection philosophies and procedures, hosting championships and the student-athlete experience at championships.

On the advice of the subcommittee, the Championships Committee plans to create a championships manual to assist Division III institutions in hosting a championship.

A fan festival would be an opportunity to conduct multiple championships in or about the same time and around the same place. The fan festival would have many advantages -- albeit on a much smaller scale -- similar to that of the Olympics or Goodwill Games, in that it would create a festive atmosphere with several events clustered together. Student-athletes could stay or participate in activities in an "athletes' village," thus enhancing their interaction with athletes from other schools and other sports.

The subcommittee would like to gauge the interest in such a concept, particularly from sports committees, since many changes affecting them would need to be made in order to pursue it.

Other highlights

Division III Championships Committee
June 25-27/San Bernalillo, New Mexico

Recommended that the men's and women's soccer championships be conducted on the same dates and conclude on Thanksgiving weekend. The committee had reviewed the issue at the request of the Management Council, which had expressed concern about the logistical difficulties of hosting a championship coinciding with the Thanksgiving holiday. The Championships Committee surveyed the membership and found that members were in favor of play on Thanksgiving weekend in the interest of minimizing lost class time. The membership also was interested in the possibility of predetermined sites for the soccer championships, and the committee endorsed that concept as a way to minimize logistical challenges related to the holiday weekend.

Requested that the Management Council direct its Playing and Practice Seasons Subcommittee to review the length of seasons in all sports concurrently.

Moved the field hockey championship one week later so that it would conclude the weekend before Thanksgiving. With the introduction of automatic qualification, more institutions are competing in conferences in the sport of field hockey, and the committee thought this adjustment was necessary to accommodate the additional conference tournaments.

Approved rally scoring in volleyball.

At the request of the Division III Management Council, reviewed the role of Management Council members on the committee. The committee supported the concept of a reduction of Management Council members from five to three, but recommended that the Management Council members who serve on the committee retain voting privileges.