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NCAA mulls changes Dempsey addresses concerns at annual convention
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) -- The president of the NCAA has challenged his own sports organization to make some changes. At the NCAA's 95th annual convention Sunday, Cedric Dempsey said the organization needs to change its culture so its principles and processes are aligned "to achieve success based on the only thing that matters -- the total development of student-athletes." To that end, Dempsey said the NCAA must thoroughly examine its policies on the revenue sports of football and men's basketball, revamp its thinking on amateurism and regain control of outlandish spending. "This may be the most important thing we do in intercollegiate athletics as we approach the centennial of this association in 2006 and prepare for our second century," Dempsey said to the more than 1,000 delegates during his State of the Association address. Dempsey said that in many ways the NCAA has never been stronger. Attendance for football and men's basketball is setting records, more students than ever -- 360,000 last year -- are participating in collegiate athletics, and the graduation rate for students in sports is higher than the rest of the student body. "And yet, as a collective enterprise, critics and even our enlightened supporters would suggest that the times are fraught with issues, problems, contradictions and complexities that threaten to undermine college sports," Dempsey said. "There are those who would argue that the entire endeavor may soon simply implode and cave in on itself." Dempsey pointed out many warning signs, such as how the organization's 970 member schools are bringing in $3 billion annually -- but are spending $4.1 billion. He also decried that progress in gender equity sometimes comes at the expense of men's athletics and pointed out that graduation rates are slipping for players in revenue sports. Dempsey said that the NCAA's review of how it controls football would follow the same format as the organization's recent efforts with men's basketball, which led to legislation addressing graduation rates, sports wagering and recruiting. "As you know, football is the sport responsible for the creation of the NCAA and, to a great extent, it's the sport that shaped the perception of the college campus," Dempsey said. "As one of two sports that help finance all other Division I athletics programs, this association must pay attention to it." However, Dempsey said that a review would not include discussion of a postseason football championship or of how postseason bowl revenues are distributed. In men's basketball, Dempsey said it was crucial that the NCAA regain control over the summer evaluation period, where prep prospects play on teams sponsored not by their schools, but by private companies and individuals. Trimming the regulations on what constitutes amateurism would also help the NCAA, Dempsey said. On Monday, Division II schools were expected to approve a relaxed code allowing, for example, an athlete to play on a professional team before enrolling in college yet retain some college eligibility. Division I schools are currently discussing a similar package, which will receive final consideration by the NCAA in April. Dempsey noted that the number of I-A programs where revenues exceed expenses without institutional support grew from 43 schools to 48 from 1997-99. Also, profits at those schools more than doubled, increasing 124 percent from $1.7 million on average to $3.8 million. But the deficits at the 66 remaining I-A schools increased by 18 percent. As a possible solution, Dempsey offered that the NCAA reconsider its expectation that Division I programs be self-sustaining. In 1978, the NCAA decided that those athletic departments should be financially independent. "Not only has the philosophy been less than effective, it's had the psychological effect of pushing accountability for the athletics programs away from campus scrutiny -- exactly the opposite of what we hoped to accomplish." Fixing the financial problems should not come though simply eliminating scholarships or cutting programs, as the NCAA did in the late 1980s, Dempsey added. "That format was antiquated before it was ever implemented," said Dempsey, who has served as NCAA president since 1994. The convention ends Tuesday.
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