Akron’s baseball loss could result in gain for YSU
Some former Zips
could end up with
Gillispie’s Penguins
By Joe Scalzo
YOUNGSTOWN
Within minutes after the University of Akron dropped its baseball program, Youngstown State baseball coach Steve Gillispie picked up his phone.
Ten hours later, he was finally able to put it down.
“It was non-stop,” he said. “Emails, phone calls, texts, whatever.”
The decision, which was announced July 10 as part of a $40 million cost-cutting measure by the school, will cost the Penguins two games per year but could potentially bring them a half-dozen players.
Gillispie said he’s been in contact with between 15-17 of Akron’s players — either current players, incoming freshmen or incoming junior college transfers — and said the Penguins have “legitimate interest” in five or six of them.
“If we end up with a couple of them, that’s good for us and good for them,” said Gillispie, who has either recruited or competed against the majority of Akron’s players. “I’ve spoken with their coaches or their summer league coaches and I’ve talked to some of their players. And some of their players called me or my assistants. Everybody is trying to help the kids and that’s the neat thing. There’s a lot of things going on behind the scenes, including Akron honoring scholarships if they can’t move on. It hasn’t been totally heartless, but it’s definitely an anxious time.”
Per NCAA rules, baseball teams are limited to a 35-man active roster, but teams are allowed to carry extra players, provided they’re not on the active roster. Gillispie prefers to stick to that limit, but may make an exception.
“I like a smaller roster because we’re more about player development, but with them being a neighbor school with a whole lot of Ohio kids, we’ve made the decision that we will go above if [necessary],” he said. “We have very similar programs, so most kids can transfer and not lose a bunch of credits. Hopefully we can help these guys make the best of something that’s not very positive.”
Akron is the second northeast Ohio school to drop baseball in recent years, joining Horizon League member Cleveland State following the 2011 season. (CSU also tried to drop wrestling in March, only to reverse that decision in mid-April.)
YSU’s baseball program is not in danger since the Horizon League’s bylaws require teams to carry at least two of these three men’s sports: baseball, basketball and soccer. Also, the NCAA requires schools to carry at least six men’s sports and YSU is already at the minimum with football, basketball, baseball, golf, tennis and cross country/indoor track/outdoor track. (The latter three count as one sport.)
“Any time you’re reducing opportunities for kids, it’s something you don’t like to see,” Gillispie said. “But those are decisions made at high levels and it doesn’t get less expensive to operate the program each year.
“It’s a credit to our administration that in the past four or five years, we’ve been able to strengthen our program. We’ve been blessed with the opportunity to supplement our budget thanks to great support from the public and our alumni.”
Akron to the FCS?
Earlier this week, the chair of the University of Akron’s Faculty Senate said the Zips should drop from the FBS to the FCS. Akron moved from I-AA to I-A in 1987.
“We are spending millions upon millions of dollars every year in a vain attempt to compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision level,” said William Rich in a story in the Akron Beacon Journal. “We ought to be competing at a lower level and at a much lower cost — and perhaps doing it more successfully.”
The Zips spend an estimated $8 million on football, compared to about $700,000 on baseball. Akron opened its $65 million InfoCision Stadium in 2009 but had the lowest FBS home attendance in the country last season, drawing 55,019 fans for six games, according to the Beacon Journal. The Zips have not finished with a winning record since 2005.
YSU, which competed in the FCS, spends about $4 million per year on football. The Penguins drew 84,669 fans over seven home games.
Akron’s overall athletic budget was just under $26 million in 2013-14, according to information supplied to the U.S. Department of Education. YSU’s athletic budget was just over $14 million.
While the trend in the NCAA is for teams to move from FCS to FBS, YSU athletic director Ron Strollo said he would like to see the Zips drop down, since it would potentially give the Penguins a geographic rival. YSU’s closest conference rival is Indiana State, which is more than 400 miles away.
“I think every institution of higher learning is dealing with some financial struggles right now and I don’t know if Ohio is much different, especially in a lot of states in the Midwest,” Strollo said. “Any time you get in those situations, there’s some difficult decisions to be made, so it doesn’t surprise me in some sense to hear [calls for Akron to drop down].
“It’s an expensive sport and, fortunately, I think the level we’ve chosen to play on is a more efficient or cost-effective way to do that. More and more institutions are going to see that. The question is, will they make that move to our level?”