Photo courtesy of NCAA The NCAA’s Cedric
Dempsey discussed various issues with The Bruin.
Cedric Dempsey, president of the NCAA, spoke to the Daily
Bruin in a telephone interview on Sept. 18. Dempsey answered
questions on a wide range of topics, including Title IX, student
athlete unions and a football championship tournament.
DB: What are the most pressing issues facing college
athletics?
CD: Certainly the expenses of athletic programs, regarding
stadiums and coaches that are tied into winning is a great concern,
and also maintaining the balance between admissions and graduation
rates for the student athletes. We have to balance the business
enterprise with the education issues.
DB: What is the NCAA’s position regarding the regulating
of Title IX?
CD: First of all, the NCAA has no legislation regarding Title
IX. It is the NCAA’s position to advise universities in ways
to comply with the legislation. Certainly the greater opportunities
for females has been a positive benefit. It certainly has enhanced
participation, especially in the last decade. But I wouldn’t
say we are there yet.
DB: Has the NCAA spoken to the NBA regarding the idea of a
development league?
CD: We’ve had continuing conversations with the NBA and
David Stern. We have discussed several options. The players’
union is a critical part of any discussions. So if there was any
kind of collective bargaining, the players association and the
NBA’s management would have to be a part of the
discussions.
DB: What is the NCAA’s stance on student-athlete
unions?
CD: I think most universities would not be in support of the
unionization of student athletes, since they are not paid to be in
school. It begins to change the mission of college sports.
DB: What is your stance on SAT requirements?
CD: We have had continued dynamic discussions on that matter. I
feel it is still the best indicator of success for the freshman
year, along with GPA.
DB: Has the NCAA considered banning summer workouts?
CD: Well, certainly we don’t control what the athletes do
on their own time, and athletes obviously get together on their own
time and workout. One of the areas that student athletes have
expressed concern about is that the most common violation they face
is the extending of practice season through “voluntary
workouts.” They’re encouraged to attend these, but
there’s nothing voluntary about them.
DB: Why didn’t the NCAA outright suspend all activity in
wake of the Sept. 11 tragedy?
CD: We don’t have the legislative authority to do that,
and I don’t think it was the right decision to make. Every
institution has unique circumstances they have to look at before
they make their decisions. We felt it was something that would be
best handled at the institutional level.
DB: Will we ever see an NCAA football tournament?
CD: I don’t think so. At this point in time our membership
has no interest in having a championship tournament
DB: What sport will catch basketball and football as the next
revenue sport?
CD: Those two are obviously our big revenue sports, but several
of our championships are self-supportive, like ice hockey in
certain sections of the country has high visibility. Lacrosse,
wrestling and soccer championships are also self-sufficient there.
However, none of these sports have the popularity of football and
basketball at this point.
With reports from Scott Schultz, Daily Bruin Senior Staff.