EXCERPT:The SWAC is getting crushed.
I’d like to tell you no one anticipated the third point, but that wouldn’t be true. It was a primary concern in my APR column from August 2011, when the new rules went into place and a combined 18 of the 21 SWAC and MEAC schools would have been deemed ineligible had there not be a transition period for the new system.
The problem with the way the APR system works is it’s systemically biased against cash-poor programs that don’t have the academic support staff and facilities to match bigger-conference programs. The issue is exacerbated by the way some schools have operated their programs, using the nonconference season as a cash-generating national beatdown tour. The players are away from campus a lot during the season, which doesn’t help.
Obviously, there’s a bigger-picture question of whether HBCUs (and other small programs) should be allowed to operate this way to fund their athletic departments, but since no one’s stepped in to stop it, NCAA rules have to be able to account for all different types of Division I programs, not just those with money and conference power.
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