Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Swimming Opportunities

Last week, Saving Sports showed the growth of women's Division-I soccer vs. men's. Catch up here.

Bob Groseth was kind enough to send me the 2006-2007 numbers for D-I swimming.

Schools x Scholarship Limit = Total Scholarships

Division I Swimming (Women)

189 x 14 = 2,646

Division I Swimming (Men)

139 x 9.9 = 1,376.1


According to the latest NCAA numbers (2008-2009 APR report released this month), there are now 198 women's swimming programs in Division I vs. 140 for the men. That would mean there are 2,772 possible swimming scholarships available for the gals vs. 1,386 for the guys.

Yes, mathletes, that means:

Just one out of three swimming scholarships in D-I goes to a male.

This was brought about by a combination of the quota system (proportionality) used to enforce Title IX and excesses in other sports (85 full rides per D-I football squad).

Some say reducing football scholarships will make proportionality "work". Many are actively working to make this a reality.

Honestly, do you really think that's the answer?

If football scholarships were cut by ten (10) per squad, which is the likelier scenario?

Athletic directors would:

A) recommend using those scholarships toward boosting non-revenue sports like swimming, or

B) find a way to cut ten (10) scholarships from women's programs.

Y'all know it's "B". So, why are the gals at the WSF and NWLC pushing so hard for proportionality?

If football cuts ever become a reality, the cuts to women's sports will be directly proportional...

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