Arizona State cuts it's Wrestling program

[ShoriKid]

The ASU announced on Tuesday the 13th that they were cutting the men's Wrestling team, men's swimming and men's tennis teams. The reasons given, and this is quoted from the release at MMA Weekly, “These three sports were selected with the following criteria: financial impact, potential competitive success, conference/regional support and gender equity." This given by the University's VP of Athletics.

It's a shame to see any major university cut a program. Wrestling seems to be a target at times since it doesn't have the ticket draw of the traditional Football/basketball/baseball trio. Interestingly ASU had been turning out good wrestlers who were crossing over into MMA the last few years.

Now warning this is a bit of a very un-PC rant coming up. Change the channle if you don't want to see it.

Enough of a warning? Okay. Breaking down the reasoning for the sports cuts I'm not convience it was anything other than a move to get rid of things not generating ticket sales and PC/lawsuit motivations. Financial impact is nothing here. Universities in general are all uping their tuition fees so any increases in operating expenses are off set. The board of regents of a school runs them just like any other business. They don't let them lose money. If financing were a real concern as far as athletics goes a more even distribution of teams cut would have been more likely, especially if you look at the cost of each sport. Most of the training facilities these teams use are already in existance, and will continue to be maintained, for the sake of other teams. A set of courts of tennis, a pool for the swim team both are likely to exist already as things the general student body also has access to in the off season or whenever they are not in use for practice/training time. Travel expenses etc are incured by all teams. Change your schedule to have more meets closer or cut back on a couple of other programs to make up the cost. This one however, is the only legit reason I can see for cutting the teams. Everything else you can balance out if you put honest effort and time into the problem.

Competitiveness/confrense support can both easily be handled in the same manner. Seek premission to enter another conference with with a different classification at which your teams are more competitive. Go from Class A to Class AA, which is a different conference to start with and will allow your teams to be more competitive.

The one that burns my shorts is the "gender equality" reasoning. I'm sorry, but it doesn't wash as antyhing other than PC. Last time I checked wrestling is an open sport. In highschool girls compete in the weight class they fall into with the guys. I don't believe college is any different. While the men's tennis and swim teams are men's sports, ASU has women's equivalents that were not cut. I know Title iX exists and this may be the basis for the school siting gender equality as a rason for cutting the teams on the men's side and not on the womens. However, and a legal mind may know of a better reading, Title IX does not mandate or enforce an equal number of teams/positions be made available to each sex. Just that there is equal oportunity to participate. Counting the information that ASU has available there are 8 women's only sports, 4 men's only sports, and 3 sports which are intermurial{I can't spell, forgive me please}. The only way I can see this split going like this is the large number of slots set for football takes up enough for other sports. Again though, football is not male exclusive if a woman can make the team. I know, I know, not a lot of ladies have interest in football for even less PC reasons than being upset with "Gender equality" being a justification for cutting a sports.

The initial article I saw was here MMA Weekly

With the information for the team break down and more details NCAA Wrestling

[pittbullJudoka]

You'd never see a basket ball program getting cut even if it were one of the last programsleft. I hate to hear any school nomatter what level loosing it's wrestling program.

[bushido_man96]

I think that Wrestling does get the short end of the stick in these cases. It is unfortunate. Especially since ASU had a decent program.

I didn't think that Title IX applied in college? Am I wrong?

[NightOwl]

I think that Wrestling does get the short end of the stick in these cases. It is unfortunate. Especially since ASU had a decent program.

I didn't think that Title IX applied in college? Am I wrong?

It does. However the program has been brought back through donations:

http://fiveouncesofpain.com/2008/05/24/arizona-state-reinstates-wrestling-program/

[bushido_man96]

That's good to see.