Orlando Sentinel Mike Bianchi column
By Mike Bianchi, Orlando Sentinel | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
He has given his State of the Program address in the wake of the groundbreaking vote last week that gave the Power Five conferences the sovereignty to create their own rules and regulations.
Not to worry, UCF president
"I'm not totally without concern," Hitt said. "I'm not Pollyanna saying, 'No matter what happens, we'll be fine.' I think the likelihood is that we'll still be able to stay in the game. But I do fear there will be some schools that will not be able to keep up."
Hitt was one of the members of the Division I Board of Governors who voted 16-2 in favor of giving the 65 schools in the five major conferences a level of self-governance never before seen in the history of the
Then again, it's not like Hitt and his colleagues in the less prestigious conferences had a choice. If the Power Five had not been given autonomy; they threatened to take their crystal ball and start their own division. That would have left the non-power conferences in a barren wasteland littered by apathy, neglect and nothing to look forward to except the Idaho Potato Bowl.
Interestingly, Hitt says this isn't just a separation of power between the major conferences and the mid-major conferences; it's also an internal battle among member schools within the Power Five. How much money will be spent annually on supplying athletes with proposed benefits such as full-cost scholarships, insurance and long-term medical coverage is causing some serious anxiety among some of the less-profitable schools within the Power Five.
Example: Whereas Texas can comfortably afford lavishing its athletes with every benefit and luxury you can imagine, fellow Big 12 member
"There is probably a list of top 20 schools that are showing a profit or breaking even on college athletics, but there are a whole lot more that are losing money and having to underwrite the cost with student fees or a healthy list of donors," Hitt said. "The [financial] models being discussed don't reflect the great majority. Each power conference has members that are struggling and aren't doing well financially.
"I'm not saying there's going to be a food fight [among members within the Power Five], but there is going to be some healthy discussion, to say the least."
There will also be much discussion among members within UCF's own league -- the
"If we didn't offer a full-cost-of-attendance scholarship, that would be a competitive disadvantage," Hitt said. "But paying for friends and unlimited family members to come on a recruiting visit, I'm not so sure that is something we need to do."
Even so, Hitt admits that if UCF's goal is to stay in the game, it's going to come with some financial "pain." He realizes the Knights must raise more money in any way they can. This is why athletic director
Stansbury went on to urge fans to donate to the
"We believe we have made the investment and have the capacity to compete at the highest level," Hitt said in his presidential parting shot. "The people who doubt that are probably still wondering what happened at the Fiesta Bowl."
[email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @BianchiWrites. Listen to his radio show every weekday from
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