<p>I guess the 20-year experiment is over. UAB is a very good life sciences university. Creating a top tier basketball program 30 years ago raised the school’s profile a bit. But being in the state of Alabama, football is king and UAB could never realistically hope to come close to U Alabama-Tuscaloosa or Auburn U when it comes to football. Should it keep trying, or simply close the football program?
<a href=“UAB reportedly set to shut down football program”>UAB reportedly set to shut down football program</a></p>
<p>Well, it’s probably never could approach the success of Bama or Auburn, but UAB is bowl-eligible this year. </p>
<p>There are several other schools in the state that field football teams. </p>
<p>Would it be correct to assume that UAB football is a money loser, unlike some the better known college football teams?</p>
<p>Not sure if they are a money-loser or just cover their costs. An issue will be that if UAB stops fielding a team, then likely 2-3 girls teams will disappear because they only exist there because of Title 9. </p>
<p>Like I said, the state of Alabama has several other college football teams. They’re not well-known like the Crimson Tide or the auburn Tigers. They’re probably not profitable either. I think UNA, USA, AL A&M, Troy and JSU all also have football teams. There may be others.</p>
<p>The school doesn’t have to lose women’s teams. It is not a 1 for 1 with title IX. The school might decide to offer fewer scholarships on some women’s teams or just have more women’s scholarships than mens. It happens. I disagree that women’s teams ONLY exist because of Title IX; some schools actually like women’s teams!</p>
<p>A much better article on the subject:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/writer/jon-solomon/24806444/is-the-alabama-board-of-trustees-finally-ready-to-kill-uab-football”>http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/writer/jon-solomon/24806444/is-the-alabama-board-of-trustees-finally-ready-to-kill-uab-football</a></p>
<p>It looks like the Alabama board of trustees has been trying to kill the program for years.</p>
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<p>I think that if a school has 50/50 gender balance than the number of full scholarships has to be the same… (some can be split scholarships), but I think the total full scholarships has to be the same. </p>
<p>No one is saying that women’s sports wouldn’t exist at all w/o Title IX…and no one is saying that schools don’t like women’s teams. My kids’ undergrad surely loves some of its women’s teams ~ gymnastics and softball, in particular. And it just built a super-fab boathouse for its women’s crew team. </p>
<p>But, the fact remains that women’s teams are money-losers to schools and if a school gets rid of a money-making or neutral mens’ team, then likely some women’s scholarships will be on the chopping block as well. Fielding teams is extremely expensive. There aren’t just scholarships to consider…practice, training, and game venues are expensive to maintain, uniform gear is very pricey and some teams get new uniforms for every game, travel costs are pricey (getting people and equipment to Away games), coaches’ salaries, and so forth.</p>
<p>If Alabama (not UAB) ever lost the Crimson Tide football team, which funds EVERY team, EVERY coach, ALL uniforms, ALL equipment, ALL sports scholarships, ALL travel, ALL practice, training, and game venues…then the entire sports program would collapse.</p>
<p>Most college football teams lose money. A relative handful (like Alabama) make money.</p>
<p>If you include costs of stadiums, even more lose money. College sports accounting has a long and honored tradition of carefully capturing all the revenues, and conveniently ignoring many of the costs.</p>
<p>Gator88NE, thanks for the link. That article is much more in depth; provides more background on the issue.</p>
<p>UAB might be able to make a go of it, a la Boise State, but fan enthusiasm is critical for such a program to succeed. Also, the article seems to indicate that the leadership of UAB is not crazy about FBS football.</p>
<p>I wonder if those who are opposed to UAB football just think that with Alabama an hour to west and Auburn an hour away in the other direction, that they just can’t ever get the fan-base they would need to really support the team.</p>
<p>I know that many UAB students travel to Tuscaloosa to attend games, and likely the same for some going to Auburn games.</p>
<p>Another thought…the Trustees, such The Bear’s son, probably thinks that UAB could drain some big donor support away from Bama. Always follow the money trail.</p>
<p><a href=“Debunking the Myths About Title IX and Athletics - National Women's Law Center”>http://www.nwlc.org/resource/debunking-myths-about-title-ix-and-athletics</a></p>
<p>The spending doesn’t have to be even, and it is very unlikely UAB football is paying for itself, never mind the other sports. My daughter goes to a school that has a lot of sports, and none of them are moneymakers. It is a cost the school has decided is worth it to the school, to attract good athletes and students, to entertain the students and provide healthy activities. In fact, there is very little revenue to the school as all students can attend all sporting events for free. Sort of like high school.</p>
<p>My other daughter plays club sports at her school. Hockey is about $300/yr (much less than I paid for her to play in high school) and the school has to be subsidizing the team as that wouldn’t even pay for ice practice time and the teams travels 2-3 hours by school van a few times a month. It is a D-1 school (also with free admission for students to all sports events) but I’d be surprised if the football team covers its own expenses. Stadium is probably a WPA project from the '30s, they travel to at lease a few conference rivals by bus, and don’t have a coach who is paid more than the college president, but a football team is still expensive so there isn’t extra to fund other teams.</p>
<p>There are a few schools that do okay with non-football sports, but again they probably just pay for themselves or at least lose less than other teams. DU has good, nationally competitive hockey, lacrosse, and gymnastics teams, but I’m sure the school is still paying some of their expenses as travel is expensive, even for swimmers who don’t have to check those big equipment bags at $25/each!</p>
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<p><a href=“Gov. Robert Bentley says he'll look into UAB football question; says this season cause for optimism - al.com”>Gov. Robert Bentley says he'll look into UAB football question; says this season cause for optimism - al.com;
<p>Having lived in Birmingham at one time, it definitely has a big fan-base in the city. Birmingham, until it’s passed up by Montgomery, has the biggest population of any city in the state. More-so when the greater metropolitan area is considered. The football facilities at UAB are ‘shabby’, so it’s no surprise the program isn’t successful. But that’s to be expected; besides Bama and Auburn, there aren’t really any other football programs that make money. And, theoretically, the purpose of having a football team goes beyond direct profits - they provide incentives for alumni, foster school spirit, and unite the city.
The water color gossip among the AU, UA, and UAB students I know is that the BoT has decided to - unfairly - cut the program to direct funds to UA’s football team instead. Wouldn’t surprise me, the BoT has been called beyond corrupt more times than I can remember.
However, the students and surrounding community aren’t letting this go down without a fight. There have been a few rallies the past week or so downtown, and #FreeUAB has been trending on Twitter in B’ham. I can admire their resilience. </p>
<p>[Also, y’all, it’s not UAT or UA-Tuscaloosa, it’s just UA]</p>
<p>Sadly, it’s now official: </p>
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<p><a href=“http://nyti.ms/1FLLIXy”>The New York Times - Breaking News, US News, World News and Videos;
<p><a href=“http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/writer/jon-solomon/24860405/the-day-uab-football-died-a-painful-death”>http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/writer/jon-solomon/24860405/the-day-uab-football-died-a-painful-death</a></p>
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<p>And to the question that UAB may cut women’s sports(scholarships) due to the lost of football…</p>
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“After U.A.B. Program’s Death, Outcry Raises the Possibility of a Quick Resurrection”
They reversed the decision. The coach is re-signed. Football will return in two years.