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Horizon schools vote to add stipends for hoops
By Joe Scalzo
YOUNGSTOWN
Basketball is about to get more expensive at Youngstown State.
The Horizon League board of directors unanimously passed cost-of-attendance legislation on Friday, meaning the schools will provide extra money to cover expenses that go beyond tuition, room and board and books.
Horizon League schools will be required to fund men’s basketball but can choose which women’s sport to fund, provided they provide for an equal number of female athletes. They are not required to cover other sports.
YSU will choose to fund women’s basketball and the other eight Horizon League schools are expected to do the same. The stipends are projected to cost between $2,000 and $4,000.
The “Power Five” conferences — the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac 12 and SEC — passed the measure in January. With most mid-major conferences expected to follow suit, the Horizon League felt it needed to pass the measure to stay competitive in its most high-profile sport.
“Although we strive to develop and manage a well-rounded athletics program, the Horizon League through its Strategic Plan is committed to competing on the national level in the sport of basketball,” YSU athletic director Ron Strollo said in a statement. “As a member, we fully support this goal and understand the importance of the sport on all our campuses.”
The mandate will allow schools a four-year phase-in period.
“That will enable institutions to identify external sources of funding to support this initiative,” Strollo said.
YSU’s football conference, the Missouri Valley, has not adopted the measure and is not expected to, Strollo said.