It'll be an interesting national championships next fall, as Louisville hosts yet another NCAA Division II social engineering experiment, the National Championships Festival.
Last held in Houston (where some rasslers rioted) and previously (I think) in Tampa, Fla., next year's festival should prove problematic for some due to its date: Nov. 30 - Dec. 4. Unless the powers-that-be do something really whacky, like race in the middle of the week, the championship will be on Saturday, Dec. 4. That would be two weeks after this year's traditional weekend.
Aren't the D2 presidents trying to limit the length of season through their "Life in Balance" initiative? Other thoughts?
Do you know if conference and regional championships would be pushed back 2 weeks as well? I wonder how coaches will handle their regular season schedule and peaking format because of this.
ReplyDeleteI don't know, but that's exactly what I'm wondering. It's going to be a trick...not to mention potentially colder conditions in the Atlantic, Central, Midwest and East regionals.
ReplyDeleteregionals are all pushed back two weeks (to the date when nationals are usually held). conferences will be deciding what to do on a conference by conference basis.
ReplyDeleteAlthough the "Life in Balance" doesn't affect cross country much, this is somewhat related (from the NCAA DII council):
ReplyDelete"Council representatives from the Northeast-10 and Pennsylvania State Athletic Conferences, which compose about 80 percent of the Division II sponsorship in the sport, asked the Council to consider delaying the effective date for the reduction in field hockey contests in the fall-sports proposal in the Life in the Balance package to August 1, 2011, reasoning that since the reduction in contests was based on a shorter season – and the fact that the 2010 season would actually be longer – a delayed effective date for the reduction in contests would be in the best interests of the sport.
The full Council, though, voted to defeat the amendment, noting the opportunity that institutions have to delay the overall start of the field hockey season."