Cuts in funding force college to compromise
By: Spencer Gleason
-Sports Editor-
With sports being consolidated into district-wide teams, the athletic departments on each campus will merge its teams together to represent STLCC.
In July 2010, STLCC reduced each campus to five athletic teams. Now all athletic fans, players and employees alike, are facing the reality of having eight athletic teams eliminated from the three STLCC campuses.
This concept would cause STLCC-Meramec, STLCC-Forest Park, and STLCC-Florissant Valley to combine their individual sports teams into seven district-wide teams. Although it would allow the STLCC-Wildwood campus to engage in athletics, there would be no more Magic, Highlanders or Fury. Just one STLCC team would represent STLCC in each of the seven sports: baseball, softball, men’s and women’s basketball, men’s and women’s soccer and women’s volleyball.
“I believe [the name Magic] would go away,” Bob Bottger, manager of physical education and athletics, said. “This reduction in opportunities for the student athlete is quite regrettable. We have run a quality, ethical program for years.”
The consolidation of intercollegiate athletics becomes necessary because the college must reduce its operating budget by approximately $3.3 million by the next fiscal year which begins on July 1, 2011. The reduction in athletics will save the college nearly $685,000 according to a press release.
However, on Jan. 30, Bob Nelson, former men’s basketball coach of 25 years at Forest Park, went on KMOV-TV’s sports program, “Sports Sunday” and shared his feelings.
“I don’t like it. I don’t like it at all,” Nelson said. “It’s one thing not to like it and the fact that they occurred, but the process under which they did occur is suspect.”
Nelson, 72, who has spent more than half of his life with STLCC, continues to explain how the process worked and how the leadership team, made up of the college presidents, vice chancellors and the chancellor, came to this decision.
“The leadership team together secretly devised this system where there was going to be one team that represented STLCC and that was all that was going to happen,” Nelson said. “They were going to eliminate a whole lot of positions… secretarial positions. For example, they have one trainer after these cuts have been made.”
When these cuts go into effect on July 1, only 142 total players will be allowed to participate in sports for the district-wide teams. For the current academic year, Meramec has 91 student athletes, and nearly 60 percent of those student athletes are in their first year.
For any student athlete who had a scholarship, however, STLCC will still recognize them even if they don’t play next year.
“If they choose to remain and maintain their academic eligibility, they will retain their scholarships,” said STLCC Public Relations Spokesperson Pat Matreci.
Ryun Davis, men’s Magic basketball player and first-year Meramec student, is one of many first-year student athletes who have a scholarship.
“I am not a decision maker,” Davis said, “but I do not think they should put all the players, athletic directors and trainers in this type of predicament. People will have to lose their jobs. I do not really think that is fair.”
On Wednesday, Feb. 23, the lady Magic and men’s Magic basketball teams will play their final regular season home game. It will be the last time these teams known as the Magic take the court.
“We have talked to our team about the information we received,” said men’s basketball coach Randy Albrecht. “There’s not much we can do about that right now except try to finish our season as strong as we can.”
