Strategic Plan for Intercollegiate Athletics

University of Wyoming
(April 11, 2003 Revision) 

Introduction

The University of Wyoming is proud of its winning tradition in intercollegiate athletics.   During our 37-year participation as a member of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC), we were the second most successful program in the conference, capturing 24 championships and having been selected for 7 bowl games.  In men’s basketball, our accomplishments include the 1943 national championship, advancement to the “Sweet Sixteen” of the NCAA tournament in the 1980s, the 2002 Conference Championship, and advancement in that year to the second round of the NCAA tournament.  Our women have also experienced success.  In the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, our women’s volleyball team reached the NCAA tournament four times, with their highest accomplishment being an “Elite Eight” appearance.  In addition, our programs have achieved numerous conference championships, including, but not limited to, wrestling, cross country, and women’s basketball.  We have also produced many individual champions on a conference and national level, particularly in the sports of men’s and women’s track.

Notwithstanding this proud winning tradition, it remains the case that there has been a decline in the competitiveness of the majority of our programs over the past few years.  As Table 1 so clearly demonstrates, in 2000-2001 only three of UW’s sixteen teams finished their seasons in the top half of the Mountain West Conference; in 2001-2002, we placed only one team in the top half.  (Wrestling is not included in MWC statistics because it is not sponsored by the MWC).

Obviously, there is cause for concern.  Our current level of performance means that we are not able to take full advantage of the benefits of being a Division I-A institution, principally public and legislative support within the state and enhanced regional and national exposure.  As the Director of Athletics at Kansas State University has observed:

“[A]thletics can be thought of as the front porch of a house.  People will often see the university through the athletic program in a way that they might not otherwise see the university. . . .[I]f you drive by a house and you see a front porch that is not well-kept, with shingles falling off, you are likely to draw the conclusion that the rest of the house must also be in bad shape.  Conversely, if you have a well-kept front porch, the rest of the university will take on the same image.  So when it is done right athletics gives people all across the country the chance to draw very positive conclusions about the rest of the University.”         ¹

Or, as put in another way by a commentator for the Association of Governing Boards, “[a]thletics is by far the largest and cleanest window through which the public views the University.”²

Whether there are tangible positive consequences that attach to a positive institutional image in athletics has been much debated.  Increased student enrollments, enhanced school spirit and state morale, strengthened academic reputations, and stronger alumni attachments and private fundraising are among the benefits said to result from successful Division I athletic programs. 

The national debate in recent years over the future of intercollegiate athletics in America, including concerns expressed over the costs and governance of Division I programs, has spawned a range of claims and counterclaims regarding whether all of the attention and money devoted by colleges and universities to their athletic programs really produce the broader set of institutional benefits often asserted.  It is probably fairest to say that there is no systematic evidence one way or the other.  Rather, whether and to what extent an athletic program will produce positive ancillary benefits depends upon the history and institutional values of the institution, the setting and culture within which it operates, the interest and involvement of key external constituent groups in the life of the university (including alumni and friends, elected officials, the media, and the public at large), and the timing of athletic successes. 

The example of Kansas State provides perhaps the most promising model of the positive consequences that can accompany investments in a successful Division I-A athletic program.   Within the decade from 1989 to 1999, Kansas State made strategic and focused investments to convert one of the nation’s worst Division I-A football programs into a consistent contender for championships in the Big 12 Conference, participation in major bowls, and appearance in national rankings.  What Sports Illustrated magazine once dubbed “Futility U” became transformed as a football program able to boast doubled fan attendance and budget surpluses generated for the Athletic Department.  The institution as a whole enjoyed increased morale, academic reputation, student interest, and private fundraising. Although Kansas State’s institutional development and enhanced public reputation could not be attributed solely to improvements made in football and other athletic programs, there seems little doubt among those involved with those decisions that the investment in athletics paid major dividends.³ 

Quite apart from the question of whether the University of Wyoming should and can make a major investment in its athletic programs, it is important to realize that every Division I-A institution needs to remain ever-vigilant in the dynamic world of intercollegiate athletics.  To fail to do so could mean that external conditions or the actions of others could result in the University of Wyoming losing control over its own destiny. 

As individual institutions attempt to better position themselves in terms of financial return and public exposure, conference realignments are possible at any time. Within the Mountain West Conference, the most significant strength that the University of Wyoming brings to the conference is a tradition of strong competitive rivalries with several other institutions, notably BYU and Colorado State.  We do not bring the market appeal of the urban-located institutions, such as San Diego State and UNLV, while the recent performance of the football program robs us of the opportunities for television exposure that are afforded winning teams. Because post-season competition opportunities in many sports are affected by the quality of competition played during the regular season, low “power ratings” for Wyoming in key sports (e.g., football, men’s and women’s basketball, women’s volleyball) adversely affect the post-season fortunes of other Mountain West teams attempting to better themselves.  In short, in many fundamental ways, the University of Wyoming could be perceived by some as becoming a net liability for the Conference rather than a net asset. 

For the security of our position within the Conference (and, therefore, within the NCAA) to be assured, we simply must strengthen our record of competitive success.  We cannot afford to maintain the status quo.  The Mountain West Conference was formed as a result of many factors, but largely because of a concern held by the five founding institutions (Air Force, BYU, Colorado State, Utah, and Wyoming) that the old Western Athletic Conference had, as a result of ill-considered expansion, compromised the academic and athletic excellence of the membership.  If the Mountain West Conference should, at some point in the future, conduct a similar reassessment, we do not want to be one the schools left on the outside looking in.

To be sure, part of the reason for the decline in our competitiveness relative to the other teams in our conference is that the nature of our conference competition has changed.  The eight-member Mountain West Conference is, quite simply, composed of institutions with stronger athletic programs than was the case within the old sixteen-team Western Athletic Conference.

Additionally, it is not hard to identify some of the most important reasons why we have become less competitive in certain sports.  In football, for example, we have experienced a high rate of turnover in the coaching staff.  Recently-hired Head Coach Joe Glenn is the fourth head coach at Wyoming in the past seven years.  Glenn’s offensive coordinator is the seventh in seven years.  Compare this to the recent success of the men’s basketball program and the recent stability that has been made possible under the guidance of Head Coach Steve McClain and most of his staff.   Winning programs are built on continuity and tradition.

In other sports, particularly the team Olympic sports (e.g., track and field, swimming), our competitiveness has been affected by our institutional approach to compliance with the gender equity requirements of Title IX.  By fully funding each of the women’s Olympic sports with the maximum number of scholarships permitted by the NCAA and encouraging nearly unlimited “walk-ons,” we are better positioned not only to compete at the individual level but also to have the “depth” necessary to win team points that determine the outcome of such events.  On the men’s side, however, (and this is true in all of our men’s sports), we have been forced to limit our squad sizes to the maximum number of NCAA scholarships and a smaller number of “walk-ons”; in sports such as men’s track and field and swimming, this means that we have fewer athletes to enter into each event, thereby reducing our chances of picking up team points.   

We also know that our competitive posture has been limited in many cases by the condition of our facilities. Prospective student-athletes (and their parents) carefully consider whether an institution recruiting them has the array of facilities and competition venues that will enable them to be successful, athletically and academically.  Although the construction of the Rochelle Athletics Center and recent renovations in the offices and team rooms in several sports can be expected to improve our ability to recruit high-quality student-athletes, the reality is that several of our major facilities are substandard when compared to other institutions.  The football stadium has a host of deferred maintenance and cosmetic problems. We have no outdoor track.  We have limited capacity to support indoor tennis practice and competitions.  We have no indoor practice facility for sports like football and soccer during the months of inclement weather in Laramie. 

It is also the case that the recruitment of high quality student-athletes to the University of Wyoming has been adversely affected by the lack of diversity at the University, in our athletic programs, and in the community.  While we have improved our efforts in the recruitment of minorities and have significantly overcome the detrimental legacy of the Black 14 incident, renewed attention needs to be placed on the recruitment and retention of minority students, faculty, coaches, and staff.  We are missing out on an important pool of quality athletes due to our inability to consistently attract minorities and to create the “critical mass” of non-white faces necessary to make minority student-athletes feel welcome and supported within the Laramie community.    

Finally, as this Plan will demonstrate, our competitive posture has been adversely affected by budgetary considerations.  Recruiting and retaining high quality coaches and maintaining competitive facilities are just the tip of the budgetary iceberg.  In our leading revenue-producing sports (e.g., football, men’s basketball), financial demands have required us to schedule “guarantee games” with high profile programs.  A guarantee game is a one-time road game for which we receive revenue.  As shown in Table 2, UW ranks first in the Mountain West Conference in revenues received from game guarantees.

Game guarantees serve as a powerful incentive for UW to accept a road game, but these arrangements often do not necessarily mean that we will receive a home game in return from a particular opponent.  Our ability to “buy” home events is also limited due to our lack of financial resources, particularly since other institutions insist upon higher-than-average guarantees to play in Laramie.  Laramie a difficult and expensive travel destination for most teams, and opposing coaches are well aware of the competitive advantage we enjoy at our 7,200 foot altitude.  As shown in Table 3, UW ranks last in the Mountain West Conference in expenditures made to secure game guarantees and spends only one-third for this purpose when compared to the average Division I-A institution  

These financial considerations, when combined, have a great impact on our ability to be consistently competitive.  We must have the opportunity to schedule more home events for our high priority programs and be less dependent upon “money games” away from home.  This will afford our athletes the opportunity to achieve greater success overall and minimize the need for extensive travel.

This plan is organized into several sections. First, we discuss the philosophical values that undergird the operation of our intercollegiate athletic programs and the specific proposed actions incorporated in this plan.  In subsequent sections, we present the principal goals and objectives we believe seek to achieve in several specific areas:

·        Assumptions and Values

·        Restoring Competitive Excellence

·        Ensuring Academic Success

·        Maintaining Gender Equity

·        Achieving Ethnic Equity and Diversity

·        Promoting Student-Athlete Welfare

·        Improving Fundraising

·        Strengthening Marketing

·        Addressing Facility Needs

 

                                                           

¹Tim Weiser, Director of Athletics at Kansas State University, quoted in Robert J. Shoop, A University Renaissance:  Jon Wefald’s Presidency at Kansas State (Manhattan, Kansas:  Ag Press Publishing, 2001), p. 194.

²John R. Gerdy, “Facing Up to the conflict Between Athletics and Academics” AGB Priorities (Summer, 2001):  p. 12.

³See Welch Suggs, “Wins, Losses, and Dollars:  What is football prowess worth to Kansas State and Oklahoma,” The Chronicle of Higher Education (October 15, 1999).