University of New Orleans Returning To Division I

The Times-Picayune, Lyons Yellin

http://www.nola.com/sports/index.ssf/2012/03/uno_athletic_program_to_return.html

After more than two years in purgatory, stuck between NCAA Division I and III, UNO’s athletic journey appears to be over.

UNO President Peter Fos will announce today that the university’s athletic programs will remain in Division I, according to sources.

Fos, however, is not expected to announce a new conference affiliation today. The logistics of the move still are being worked out, sources said.

Former UNO standout and 10-year NBA veteran Ledell Eackles is thrilled with the school’s decision.

“I think (Fos) made a perfect choice,” said Eackles, who lives in Maryland and led the Privateers to their first Division I Tournament berth in 1987.

After months of studying each classification of competition, the Privateer Athletic Foundation recommended a move to Division II in early 2010.

Athletic Director Amy Champion, who previously was women’s basketball coach, was a strong proponent of the move down. Champion, who is out of town, will not attend today’s announcement at Lakefront Arena. Her future as athletic director, according to sources, is uncertain.

Four years after Hurricane Katrina devastated UNO’s campus and the surrounding areas, the school faced a harsh reality of declining enrollment and steep budget cuts.

Before Katrina, enrollment at the commuter school was 17,300 students. It had dropped to 11,700 post-storm.

The university’s problems reached a tipping point in 2009 after the state trimmed $1 million from UNO’s overall operating budget.

UNO tried to soften the blow of a $600,000 cut to its athletic budget by having students double their athletic fees to almost $200. The measure, rejected by students, would have better funded athletics and allowed the school to remain in Division I.

In an effort to keep athletics a part of university life, the Board of Regents approved then-Chancellor Tim Ryan’s 2009 request to move the university’s athletic programs to Division III, a level without athletic scholarships.

Ryan, who had been the dean of the school’s college of business before he was hired as chancellor in 2003, left his post in Sept. 2010. His departure came just days after he made intemperate remarks to faculty members at a forum.

LSU System President John Lombardi conducted a national search to replace Ryan, and in Dec. 2010, Fos was hired.

Since he arrived on campus, Fos, a 1972 graduate of UNO, stressed he had yet to make a final decision on the future of the university’s athletic programs.

“It’s very encouraging to hear that UNO is going to stay Division I,” former UNO standout and Kansas City Royals second baseman Johnny Giovatella said. “I’m very proud of where I went to school. UNO was very important in my career.”

Historically, UNO has been a hotbed for Division I student-athletes. The men’s basketball team qualified for four NCAA Tournament berths between 1987 and 1996. In 1984, the baseball team became the first Louisiana university to reach the Division I College World Series.

“UNO was a key part of my success in baseball, and I’m willing to help in any way possible,” Giavotella said. “I’m usually (at UNO) in the offseason working out and talking to some of the players, so I’d like to continue that and continue my support.”