When Division III football student-athletes arrive on campus this summer, they may find a much different -- and perhaps safer -- preseason experience awaiting them.

The Division III Management Council, which met April 14-15 in Indianapolis, has voted in favor of enacting immediate legislation changing preseason football activities to minimize health and safety risks for student-athletes. If the Division III Presidents Council, which met April 24 in Indianapolis, ratifies the Management Council's action, there will be immediate changes to everything from when student-athletes can wear full pads to how the preseason practice opportunities are counted on campus.

The recommended model, which is similar to those also approved in Divisions I and II, provides specific guidelines for student-athlete health and safety in keeping with recommendations by the NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports. The guidelines include the gradual addition of equipment and no more than one on-field practice per day during a five-day acclimatization period. Institutions also may not conduct two-a-day sessions on consecutive days. On the days multiple practice sessions are permitted, student-athletes must be provided with at least three continuous hours of recovery time between the end of the first practice and the start of the next practice.

"The Management Council supported the football preseason model related to heat acclimatization and recovery time based on compelling medical data that show changes are needed to ensure student-athlete welfare," said Susan Bassett, Management Council chair and the director of athletics at William Smith College. "Our recommendations were made after reviewing feedback from the Division III Football Committee and the membership and are consistent with legislative actions taken recently in Divisions I and II."

Bassett also noted that the Management Council's playing and practice seasons subcommittee, which reviewed the recommendations of the Association-wide competitive-safeguards committee, also had reviewed and discussed the scientific data, ultimately concluding that immediate changes were warranted.

The data provided by the competitive-safeguards committee included research on heat acclimatization and recovery, as well as statistics from the NCAA Injury-Surveillance System (ISS) that indicated 80 percent of the Division III-specific heat illnesses reported in the 2001-02 in all of the ISS fall sports were in football. The data also showed that heat illness occurred in 40 percent of Division III football programs in 2001-02 and that the Division III preseason practice injury rate of 8.7 injuries per 1,000 exposures was almost four times higher than the regular-season practice injury rate. Also, preliminary data from the 2002-03 ISS indicated that more than 50 percent of all injuries reported in Division III football this academic year occurred on a multiple-session day.

After reviewing the subcommittee's recommendation and a proposed change in the method of calculating preseason practice opportunities that would accompany the health and safety recommendations, Council members agreed unanimously that legislation providing for an immediate change in preseason football was warranted.

"These changes will directly address issues related to heat acclimatization and adequate recovery time, while creating a minimal impact on preseason opportunities and starting dates," Bassett said.

The new method the Council endorsed for calculating preseason practice opportunities establishes a 21-consecutive-day preseason period before institutions' first contests. It allows for the five-day acclimatization period and recovery time and also permits a maximum of 26 preseason opportunities. Under the previous preseason calculations, institutions were permitted a maximum of 27 practice opportunities. Also under the new model, schools may start practice two days earlier (see the accompanying sidebar for all components of the model).

Future of Division III

In other action, the Management Council reviewed results of the recent membership survey on the future of Division III. The Council noted that the 79 percent response rate (335 institutions) for the survey was excellent, particularly since a CEO signature was required. The Council reviewed the entire survey and noted that there was an opportunity for focus groups to discuss some of the items on the survey where responses were closely divided.

Issues on which the membership was closely divided included whether to:

Permit graduate students with time remaining on their eligibility clock to participate in intercollegiate athletics at a different institution than their undergraduate one.

Establish recruiting "dead" periods in all sports.

Consider further limitation to the nontraditional segment.

Limit student-athletes' participation in athletically related activities to a maximum number of hours per week.

Increase the institutional sports-sponsorship minimums.

Eliminate multidivisional classification.

Establish varsity squad size and travel size limits.

There was strong support on other issues, and the Management Council has recommended that the subgroups of the joint subcommittee on the future of Division III examine those areas for possible legislation. Those issues included whether to:

Establish a financial aid reporting process/audit.

Establish a principle that athletics recruitment should comply with established policies and procedures applicable to the admissions process.

Strengthen the transfer contact rule to preclude unsolicited contact and subsequent transfer and enrollment.

Also receiving strong support were all of the tenets of the Division III philosophy, perhaps indicating that there is little disagreement in the division on abstract philosophy but more disagreement on how the philosophy is implemented.

On the question of subdivision, the Council continues to evaluate and analyze information. There were several questions on the survey about subdivision, both in the section on membership and in the section on championships, and support for subdivision in both areas was evident -- though to a lesser degree for championships purposes.

The Council noted that 36 percent of survey respondents indicated some support for the establishment of subdivisions to permit schools to further pursue legislative autonomy while retaining core principles applicable to the entire division. In another question, 17 percent of the institutions responding said that they opposed the current one-division structure, while 83 percent support it. For championships purposes, 84 percent supported the retention of one division and one national championship. Other variations on the championships structure were opposed by two-thirds of those responding.

Many Council members remain concerned that those institutions favoring significant reform may, in absence of that reform, favor subdivision.

NCAA President Myles Brand was present for the Council's discussion on the future of the division, and he encouraged Council members to continue to consider all options of interest to those institutions. Although the issue is challenging, the Association remains ready to assist the division in resolving those issue to mutual satisfaction.

"I think the tent is big enough for everybody," Brand said.

Focus groups discussing the survey were conducted April 17, 22 and 23, and those groups are expected to provide additional direction and clarification of issues and preferences reflected in the institutional survey.

To view the entire results of the Division III survey, see www.ncaa.org, specifically http://
www1.ncaa.org/membership/governance/division_III/d3_future and click on "survey results."

Other highlights

Division III Management Council
April 14-15/Indianapolis

Endorsed a new NCAA Convention schedule for 2004 that should encourage CEO participation and increase the opportunities for membership dialogue and meetings before voting.

Agreed to adopt noncontroversial legislation to permit all Division III medical hardship waiver cases to be heard by the NCAA student-athlete reinstatement staff, and to permit a subsequent appeal, if necessary, to the Division III Student-Athlete Reinstatement Committee.

Finalized team sports selection criteria, which incorporate a consistent strength-of-schedule index, effective with the 2003-04 academic year. See the March issue of the Division III
Newsletter, online on www.ncaa.org at http://www1.ncaa.org/membership/governance/division_III/d3_newsletter/index.html, for a complete listing of the criteria.

Agreed to adopt noncontroversial legislation to formalize the procedure and penalty structure for violation of the NCAA's wrestling weight management program and also recommended to the wrestling committee that it consider enhancing the financial penalty. The Council noted that it believed wrestling weight management is an important student-athlete health and welfare issue.

Endorsed the NCAA Minority Opportunities and Interests Committee report on the use of American Indian mascots in intercollegiate athletics.

Reviewed key discussion points and emerging themes from a Division III planning session March 28 in Chicago that was part of the Association-wide strategic-planning initiative.

Division III football preseason model

The following are the components of the Division III football preseason model, which will become effective subject to approval from the Division III Presidents Council at its April 24 meeting:

Before participation in any preseason practice activities, all prospects and student-athletes shall be required to undergo a medical examination administered by a physician.

Preseason practice shall begin with a five-day acclimatization period for both first-time participants (for example, freshman and transfers) as well as continuing student-athletes.

Practice on Sundays is both permitted and counted during the five-day acclimatization period.

Student-athletes may engage in no more than one on-field practice per day during this five-day period. First-time football participants and continuing student-athletes shall not be required to practice separately during the five-day acclimatization period.

During the first two days of the acclimatization period, helmets shall be the only piece of protective equipment student-athletes may wear.

During the next two days of the acclimatization period, helmets and shoulder pads shall be the only pieces of protective equipment student-athletes may wear.

During the final day of the acclimatization period, student-athletes may practice in full pads.

Institutions may not conduct administrative activities (for example, team pictures, equipment issue, academic orientations, etc.) on any day before the start of the five-day acclimatization period. (These obligations should be fulfilled before or after practice during the five-day acclimatization period.) Any necessary conditioning, speed, strength or agility tests shall not be conducted before the five-day acclimatization period.

All student-athletes, including walk-ons who may arrive to preseason practice after the first day of practice, are required to undergo a five-day acclimatization period (for example, gradual increase in the use of football equipment).

After the five-day period, institutions may begin practicing in full pads. However, an institution may not conduct multiple on-field practice sessions (for example, two-a-days or three-a-days) on consecutive days (for example, two-one two-one format).

Student-athletes shall not engage in more than three hours of on-field practice activities on those days during which one practice is permitted.

Student-athletes shall not engage in more than five hours of on-field practice activities on those days during which more than one practice is permitted.

On days that institutions conduct multiple practice sessions, student-athletes must be provided with at least three continuous hours of recovery time between the end of the first practice and the start of the last practice that day. During this time, student-athletes may not attend any meetings or engage in other athletics activities (for example, weight lifting); however, time spent receiving treatment and eating meals may be included as part of recovery time.

Institutions may only conduct single on-field practice sessions during the six days before their first scheduled contests.

Walk-through sessions may be incorporated in the preseason practice period after the five-day acclimatization period. A walk-through shall not be considered an on-field activity provided protective equipment is not worn, equipment related to football (for example, footballs, blocking sleds) is not used and conditioning activities do not occur. Walk-through sessions shall be limited to one hour, and there shall be a minimum of three hours between an on-field practice session and a walk-through session. Finally, the walk-through sessions may only occur on days with a single on-field activity session and only after the five-day acclimatization period.