Special of the week; Issue 23-70

And our national educational radio network presents special of the Week this week the rising cost job at a collegiate athletics and addressed by Stanley Jay Marshall athletic director at South Dakota State University. Here is Lester Marshall rising costs of intercollegiate athletics constitutes a major issue before this convention. Seems like each year something comes to the fore is the key topic such as freshman eligibility or the one point six rule and it seems to me a personal opinion that this is the overriding thing that we're concerned about this time yesterday Sam Barnes commented that rising costs are for the greatest threat. He used the word crap to intercollegiate athletics. I recall an old timer telling me one time about a comment by bobs up he ends up he said very few football coaches survive two losing seasons and very few athletic directors survived

two losing football coaches and possibly in this day and age we might say very few athletic directors survive to deficit budgetary years. It may be a little strong but I think we have a responsibility sometimes we try to duck it but it's there. I recall the first convention that I attended and Jim Corbett down of Dallas you talked about their program which is completely different than any of ours. But he had an interesting comment there at that time at least tempted to carry a million dollar surplus in their football budget to handle rain outs and poor seasons and those kinds of things. And he talked about the time when he came there for the interview for the job. And they went over everything with the interviewing board. And finally Jim asked them I understand the thing quite well I believe. What happens if we go in the red. And Mr. Corbett said

I looked down the longest four THING I'VE EVER SEEN IN MY LIFE AND A banker pointed to me and said Young man that is your responsibility. Well those kinds of situations aren't quite that severe I don't believe in the college division and I know that many of you operate from a general budget and you may say those kinds of comparisons are ridiculous in my situation. We're an educational institution we do not operate that way. If you do operate out of the general budget I think it's still your responsibility. And I suspect your president views it that way. And I think your problems may not be quite that severe but they are similar. One of my administrators one of my superiors has referred to athletics on our campus as a hungry monster and I would have to agree that he's correct. I'm always over there seeking funds and ways to finance new programs and to keep going what we have and he managed in a you know nice way I'm certain but he's right. We have an

insatiable appetite for money and we must have a tiebreak. I get the idea however that the rising cost situation is severe to the point that if we do not come up with answers and solutions someone will and we may not like the result. I believe that the NC Double-A cost survey is a step in the right direction. If you have filled it out you know that it's extremely time consuming and difficult to fill out I spend three weekends in a couple of evenings myself and wound up estimating a great portion of it. I hope it's sufficiently accurate to contribute to the result and I might put a plug in here if you haven't got yours in I think they can still use your survey in the group I believe they now have some over 400 return. I'd like to center my brief remarks this morning. Is my reaction to this cost survey study as I filled it out. Some of the things I thought of in my

situation as I attempted to answer the questions that they asked. I think the first thing that struck all of us is the fact that costs had gone up even more than we had realized until we begin to sit down and compare and write it down year by year and look back five years and 10 years as was suggested. That cost it gone up even more than we anticipated. Let's look for a moment into the why of this. Why have costs gone up. Well certainly we can blame much of it on to inflation. Got a second cup of coffee had dinner last evening and that brought home to mine and with the cost of a cup of coffee has done over the last few years the first dairy and capital improvements again I'm going back to my situation which is really all I know very much about and our alumni aren't certain I know too much about that but in the area of capital improvements were attempting to build a physical education center we worked on it for four years

and we could have built four years ago. A fine structure that would have cost roughly three million that same thing today would cost at least four million. So we have lost a million dollars in four years on our project and I've been told that that's a reasonably conservative evaluation. That is with us no way of around it. And second of course is travel food and lodging and the fact that along with the travel increase we have a tendency to all want to go to first class and improve our mode of travel as well as go farther. Equipment that will be discussed later costs much more especially because of the specialty aspect in our equipment purchase specialty items medical and insurance that will be touched on later. And I think one point here in the area of insurance we are assuming a greater responsibility than we have in the past because of feelings

of moral responsibility because of legal concerns and just plain what is right for the student athlete. I got a letter the other day from a lady saying My husband and I attended your basketball game last week. A player came up into the crowd to retrieve a ball struck my husband he has a bruise Rigby's unable to work. Do you carry liability insurance. And they were getting more and more of that sort of thing and consequently spending more for insurance. Salaries of course have gone up probably not enough. Someone said the other day that the American teacher was best off in 1939 increases since then which have been great. I have really not kept up with the inflation I don't know if that's correct. But if you're trying to hold a staff together it is an increase cost item. Except in the case of your own salary possibly. I think sometimes top administration puts us in the position of feeling like our area is the only thing that has had any increase

but us on the defensive a little bit and possibly they do that in all areas I don't know. Inflation the other departments but I think it's logical that there's a qual percent inflation and factor over a given period of time. The cost of the athletic program will go up at least that much. And I think we've got to constantly make that case with our administration. Another factor that brought about increased cost has been the addition of sports for many years I think many of the college division institutions operated a small staffed program of really three sports at least in the Midwest a football basketball track and field and a little golf and tennis possibly with the a history professor handling the golf and that sort of thing. But we had a small program to three man staff. And now we've added Of course baseball wrestling cross-country gymnastics swimming soccer in many cases ice hockey water polo and volleyball especially on the West Coast. And we've added staff we've improved the

program. Another point we have assumed responsibility for providing a financial support at least in part for women's competition. In many cases. Another point we have assumed greater responsibility in the area of Intramuros and we've improved the intramural program doubling and tripling the expenditure in many cases. The advent of sports clubs coming under under miracles many of us have found ourselves supporting reluctantly or by design these kinds of programs. Some of us have gotten responsibility for at least part of campus recreation relatively new thing. Some of us have assumed responsibilities in new areas such as for the cheerleading squad for pep squads for travel for the band and those kinds of new or added responsibilities. Some of us have joined a conference or been members of a conference where we've added a supervisor of

officials or a full time commissioner with an office and very necessary items but again cost items. Some of us have had other things shifted over into our budget. Or by We've had to assume a greater responsibility possibly in the area of salaries or equipment purchase or have capital improvements and those kinds of things. I would hasten to add in fairness to administrators across the country that the reverse is been true also on many campuses as our programs have had difficulty administration has picked up. Let us say the salary aspect or a part of the salary aspect or the final two positions that they were not funding or they pick up the responsibility for equipment or some of the staff travel such as attending conventions and that sort of thing. Another thing that I believe has contributed tremendously is the recruitment cost expansion no question about it. The first place the geographical expansion has been tremendous with

more and more institutions seemingly feel feeling that they've got to recruit practically from coast to coast or at least in a much broader geographical area than previously. And it seems to me there's got to be a bit of a fallacy here that there must be some state in the country where these student athletes are good enough to win with. You know it can't be that all of us live where you've got to go someplace else to get people that you can win with. And it's a little ridiculous if you go around the country and look at newspapers in different cities and see coaches say we can't win with a blank state lands we've got to get out. And at the same time a plane is coming in with a coach from another area coming into that area to get somebody. So this can't be all valid I don't believe it's a fact of life. I certainly travel for recruitment has changed. With full expenses allowed them flying first class many cases the rent a car sort of thing that campus visitation and the costs that are involved there

especially when the mother and father come along and seems like no good student athlete anymore. Exists he doesn't have a friend who is not a good athlete but a fine lad who comes along and the telephone cost I think was sighted yesterday and what he's twenty seven thousand dollar phone bill. You can move the decimal place over wherever you want and come up with yours which I'm sure has increased. Then I would mention the increased cost of the grant N Aid Program and some of you say well that's not my concern we don't have them as such. Then you're not concerned with this one True but many of us are at my institution again in one thousand forty nine are granted aid program which was largely a work program cost approximately ten thousand dollars to day one thousand sixty nine ball season. Our grant nade program approximated one hundred thousand dollars. We are still in the same conference competing at the same old level and

with about the same result. And it appears to me that the winner in this particular case is a student athlete. In other words we are now granting assistance to lads that we've got to come because of educational opportunities and other reasons. Twenty years ago and now we're extending aid to him. And of course many coaches operate on the theory that they must have a full scholarship or a full ride in order to successfully recruit especially in football and basketball and more so and a good top prospect for crack and for wrestling in our area and many of course will stand on the position that they must have the same number of grands at least as their competition. And if at all possible more. You next area of increase I think of those the increased cost to put long and I don't believe there's any question but what it has cost

more and I know at the time of the debate and voting. Pros and Cons were advanced relative to cost but I think that in our case in our conference at least there is no question that football has cost more than the single with football certainly in terms of staffing the Odai of the head coach with the backfield coaching allowing coach is passe and our level of competition when we have defensive and often see specialists and it's a must if we're going to compete in our conference it's not just a friend. We've got to have a lot to stay with the other people in our caliber of competition. Possibly the size of the travelling as wide as increased some although we do control that and possibly more grants are needed and wider recruitment responsibility is. And creased Another thing I think as this business of going first class as I mentioned in the upgrading and little areas and I'd cite just one example. At our place we have to find student

athletes. Track members good students both on a nice Grant. Not quite full grants but good grants in track and field both pole vaulters flirting with 16 feet which is very good in our area. And as they practice these winter days and I watch them with a $70 pole that seems to break three or four times a year running down a runway I'm planting the bowl in an indoor box that cost me approximately $200. By the time I got it installed into the floor and recessed vaulting over a set of standards it cost four hundred eighty five dollars knocking off a ten dollar cross bar and landing in a 20 $400 portable. I realize that things have changed from the days of the. Sawdust pit and the aluminum hole. So not only do we still have the pole vault we've increased the flame to the point where the more wall of activity at our place is greater than our total track budget

probably was 25 or 30 years ago and I decide that as an example of trying to go first class trying to do things right I'm not criticizing it it's a fact of life and a specialty equipment cost. OK then with a second thing that strikes me as I fill out my questionnaire is that income has increased. In my situation but not in anywhere near the same degree has cost a cost has gone up markedly and the income only slightly. And I ask myself why. Are we not winning. Yes we're winning in about the same ratio as we were 20 years ago and we've done a poor job of promotion. Possibly but we're working harder at it and doing more things or what. One of the reasons and I try to come up with a few. First I think we've been reluctant to raise our admission prices. I know I have for several reasons will have a bad year most say we can't raise for next year so we skip like

when we have a championship and we'll raise it but we don't really raise it. In keeping with the and rising costs we've been reluctant to go to our studios. If as I must go to them with a vote to get the student and greased. For some of the same reasons the season wasn't too good without a little problem so we'll say we'd better not ask them to carry any more of the load they just got a tuition increase and so they have not picked up the same portion of the load as they carried 20 years ago. Now if we're operating out of a general institutional budget I suspect there's a reluctance to go in there with a hard fisted case for increasing at the same rate as our costs of increase especially if your institution is running a deficit as many private institutions are. Becomes difficult you possibly couldn't get it no matter what kind of a case you made but the point is the income has slipped back. I think another thing is the pro sports influence and you might say well out where you're at in South

Dakota that's not a factor I think it is. It may be that I've got a case of paranoia on this I don't know but I'm two hundred and sixty miles from the Minnesota Vikings the Minnesota Twins and I do know this when I go downtown on Monday morning for coffee and I with my self-appointed board of directors a group of businessmen that have coffee daily in a certain place I notice that the conversation is different from 10 years ago and I'm certain from 20 years ago. This past Monday morning I'm certain Much of the conversation was about the Minnesota Viking Kansas City Chiefs game as it was throughout the season and with the twins earlier or 10 years ago the Empire conversation was devoted to South Dakota State University athletics. Now you might say wow I was just a little but I believe where the interest is the money and the people will fall. And I do believe that the pros have made it difficult for all of us not just the person in the

city where they have a professional team or teams right in the area. And again I can be wrong on this but I really think it's a problem I don't have the answer to that. But I do think it's a problem I do think the Kansas City Chiefs help me a little bit. I don't believe the Minneapolis Tribune will be quite as full of the front for information as they were prior. I think we have been guilty of poor promotion of poor promotion. We have sat on our programs and said we have a good program and people supported and done it the same way year after year. If the public wants it come and get it. That sort of thing in our stadiums have become run down in many cases. Our approach is to the whole idea of intercollegiate athletics have become a little arcade. Now you might say well this is not educational. I did not get into the educational field or into intercollegiate athletics to become a P.T. Barnum. I'm not a promoter I'm not a businessman if I had wanted to go

that way I would open up my own shop. Well I think that's fine and I think possibly some of you can afford to stand on that I cannot. I must come up with some ways to further finance my programme. And I think sometimes a sad attitude of I was not hired to do promotional work is really an excuse to avoid something that is difficult. Promotion it's kind consuming and it takes a lot of thought and effort. It's hard work. And I think many times we ducked under the guise of being non-educational. Just a few wrap up salmon again personal thoughts based on my situation relative what we might do about the problem. The first thing I think of is that all of us need to learn more about business techniques budgeting practice. I think I have some information of substance to support that I participated with nack done in a survey that many of you filled out

came back from five hundred sixty three athletic directors and one of the questions are relative to the athletic director ship asked this. I made this comment in what areas of professional competency Did you consider yourself mostly fish and upon your appointment as director of athletics and the area checked most three hundred forty three times was legal knowledge second insurance knowledge. Third fund raising for finance and accounting. Now here are four areas in business administration if you like that apparently people in our profession feel that they were deficient. And I think that tells us a little something. I think we need to do some things about it I think NAC and NZ Double-A are both attempting to do something about it but not act as main thrust as in the educational area and their continuing education committee has done some marvelous things an in-service training in this area.

Some institutions have awakened to the problem. The first one that I know of Ohio University at Athens has a masters program in athletic administration. I am a physical educator by background I have my doctorate from Springfield I think that's a pretty fair physical education school and I believe and I've said this to the National Labor people in Boston that if physical educators believe that intercollegiate athletics is a part of physical education and want to see it continue that way. I am in the profession of H P E R has got to do a better job of preparing people to administer intercollegiate athletics as over against a physical education side the recreation side the health side and the interviewer side. And these areas that I point to in the business administration area especially are areas where we are woefully weak. And I throw that challenge to any of you who are physical educators and have anything to say

about a graduate program because if we don't do a better job in this area again someone else will take it over. And I think to the detriment of the total program. So better business and budgeting practices are lost. Second we need to consider limitations through legislation in our conference the North-Central we limit the travel squad for football to thirty eight and for basketball to 12 for many reasons but one of the prime one finance I think of much of the legislation before Snow in terms of recruitment control the number of visits I think this is necessary. Grant named limitations once again in our conference primarily for financial reasons. We limit football grants to 45 and basketball to 15. That's total for the program. We define our grant as room board wish and fees you know $15 a month for expenses and no books. All of those measures were

taken to hold down our costs. I think the 1.6 rule has helped some of us to reduce costs of making errors on the marginal students. I'm very proud of my basketball coach he's a fine coach he's been with us five years. He has not put one cent into a grant in aid for a basketball player that didn't pay out. If you want to put it that way every single one that he's recruited and started it some time and he's very efficient at it and he's helped us. I think the freshman eligibility thing eventually centered around finance on it and the letter of intent. We have a nor simple conference letter of intent and this has helped to reduce costs of traveling back in the summer time for that third and fourth and fifth visit. So all those kinds of legislation I feel are necessary and I think we've got to continue to explore all possibilities in that area. The third thing we can do is curtailment our priorities. Check her temperament

and priorities. Divisional play you're probably aware of the fact that the Big Ten has voted to go east and west divisional play in the non-revenue sports. I'm not certain what your That's effective but they did officially approve that at the athletic directors level and east and west breakdown so you know that they're concerned we can drop activities I personally hate to see that happen. I at our place I will never be a part of dropping anything that we're doing that is good for our program and good for our students as long as I can figure out some way to finance it and I might get spread a little too thin as a result. The idea of a closed conference such as a Midwest conference where you have a larger lead of 10 people for example 10 institutions and control things from an academic point of view as well as from financial point of view. You know as athletic directors were in a schizophrenia sort of position we have to represent our staff and their needs to the president and we have to represent the president to the

staff. And so far I've tried to maintain the position of trying to be a staff man if you want to put it that way. Now all you can say wow the president called you in and said either or why you would some make a decision the other way you might be right. But at least I try to tell the same story in both camps. Make the case for our staff needs to the president the hardcase make the president's position known to our staff make the hard case and not the easy one the reverse. We need to seek new sources of income and new ways to get more money from the sources I mentioned the promotion. And I think of some things for example one Midwestern state recently enacted legislation on waivers you probably saw the publicity that went with it to the tune of over a quarter of a million dollars as I recall annually for scholarships on a state basis. This can either be one of the greatest boom use to athletics at our level across the nation or it could be the end. I noticed one of the

stories reporting this one of the papers reporting this said and at the same time the legislature refused to approve additional funds for ghetto areas of a certain city in that state and were matched up against that kind of priority this may not be the right route to go. That I think is about what I have to say by way of a new review on and I certainly thank you for your attention again I don't presume to have answers for your institution this is the way I see it. I'd be happy to answer questions if there are. Thank you. You have been listening to an address by Stanley J Marshall athletic director at South Dakota State University on the subject of the rising cost of medical aged athletics. Later in response to a question Mr. Marshall spoke of the revolution and at a collegiate athletics. I think another thing too and this is this. There is a revolution in intercollegiate athletics I don't mean there's any question about it. The day of King Football being football and then a

lot of other things that don't really amount to much is passed. We know in our conference talk about our 10 major sports and we attempt to treat them in similar fashion insofar as possible and we talk that way on our campus and try to act on that talk as well. We attempt to provide things with this that they feel they want to participate and I mention the sports club thing and I really feel that the athletic director and the athletic department that tries to stifle this sort of thing when it's a legitimate request is on the wrong track in my opinion. Again we're faced with a budgetary problem. But we're trying to have a good dinner coming to the program but still be responsive to your interests in terms of support club activities your murals and recreation and the whole thing and I think your computer your computer breaks. I think we've got to be with that part of the leader and not being forced and dragged into those areas. Stanley J Marshall athletic director at South Dakota State University

speaking on the subject of the rising cost of intercollegiate athletics. This has been special of the week featuring highlights of the recent meeting of the National Collegiate Athletic Association in Washington. This edition of special of the week was produced for an E.R. at WFTV. Wake Forest University with special assistance from the staff of W am you in Washington. This is an E.R. the national educational radio network.