Recent rule changes for athletics at Mississippi Association of Community and Junior College member institutions are roughly a month old.
However, the buzz hasn’t died down. Instead, it has gotten louder.
East Mississippi Community College President Dr. Rick Young admits the criticism has been mighty loud from coaches who work at the state’s 15 junior colleges. As the voices grow louder, the association will be ready if alterations have to be made to the rule changes.
“As things play out, I hope there is some tweaking to the system so everybody is happy,” Young said. “The objective and spirit of the changes were to bring more parity to junior college athletics around the state. The goal is to favor our in-state student-athletes. However, I don’t think anyone wants that to happen as a sacrifice to our programs competing well on a national level.”
In the final week of September, Mississippi community college presidents voted 13-1 for two major rule changes, both effective with the 2012-13 school year.
First, all schools would only be allowed to offer one-half of the present number of scholarships for out-of-state student-athletes. For example, the 14 football-playing institutions (Meridian C.C. doesn’t have a football team) would be allowed only four out-of-state scholarships instead of the present eight.
Second, the protection list would be eliminated. In its 20th season, the protection list allows coaches to protect a number of student-athletes inside their district. For example, a protected student-athlete at West Point High School would have to attend East Mississippi C.C. if the EMCC coaching staff placed that player on its list of protected players. The numbers vary per sport. Football coaches can protect 22 players per school year.
The rule changes mean athletic rosters would be filled with more in-state athletes. Additionally, in-state players would be allowed to play any of the 13 MACJC-sanctioned sports at any school in the state.
“A year and a half ago, our presidents were asked by the legislature to give a report on the spending on athletics,” EMCC fourth-year football coach Buddy Stephens said. “With this decision, that figure is going to go way, way up. If everyone turns in the right numbers, there is no way those figures won’t go up. The purpose of the reports was to help cut costs. Instead, we are going to go in the other direction.”
EMCC’s recruiting district includes Lowndes, Oktibbeha, Clay, Noxubee, Kemper, and Lauderdale counties. Thirty-nine players on EMCC’s football roster are from its district. That number would shift if the state becomes open to all recruits.
“We will travel statewide to recruit the best athletes for our program,” Stephens said. “I can’t imagine any football coaching staff not feeling the same way with their respective programs.”
Young arrived in Scooba in 2004. Since that time, he said he has listened to parents’ concerns. Many of these parents have asked for junior college equality. The driving force behind change appears to be the desire to make the junior college experience similar to the senior college experience. The thinking is a prospective senior college student-athlete gets his/her choice of college or university to attend. The same should hold true for student-athletes who attend two-year schools.
“This gives these parents a choice,” Young said. “They have said they wanted a choice for their sons and daughters. As a parent, I understand that. When I first came here, I talked to a lot of parents who didn’t want their children to come down here. These kids were playing at new facilities at Columbus, Starkville, and West Point. We were protecting student-athletes out of high school programs and telling them they had to come to East Mississippi.
“We had so many negatives. Now, we are beginning to eliminate them one by one. We want student-athletes from anywhere who want to come here to be able to come here.”
Under Young’s guidance, EMCC has implemented a master plan for improving its facilities for athletics. The school’s third-ranked football team is playing its first season in the $4.7-million Sullivan-Windham Field. Complete with chairback seating, a double-deck press box, and a mini jumbotron in the end zone, Sullivan-Windham could be the state’s best junior college football facility.
Next up for the EMCC administration is a renovation of Keyes T. Currie Coliseum, home of the men’s and women’s basketball teams. EMCC men’s basketball is ranked seventh nationally in the preseason.
“For so many years, we had facilities that were sub-standard to the high schools and other colleges,” Young said. “Our old (football) field had the worst lighting in the state. That lighting was installed in the 1960s. We had drainage issues. The sidelines were too close to the stands and that was a major liability issue.
“We know the values of the sports programs. People come back and make contributions in time and money. Sports programs enable us to produce leaders, teach discipline, and grow the aspect of teamwork. I don’t see any changes going forward that would jeopardize that.”
Mississippi Senator Terry Brown is one of those leaders. Brown played on the 1968 and 1969 East Mississippi Junior College football teams — two of the most successful in school history. Now in his third decade of state politics, Brown is disappointed major changes could be coming to the junior college system.
“Mississippi plays the best junior college football in the nation,” Brown said. “I really don’t know why they would want to change that. I understand the spirit of the rule, and you always have to be receptive to change. However, what we do here is really good. I am hoping in the end they will make a tweak or two and not go through with the wholesale changes.”
There are 130 out-of-state athletes at the state’s 14 football-playing community colleges. If the changes hold true, that number would drop below 60 next year.
“Essentially, they are taking the community out of community college,” Stephens said. “Even if they do it for one year and then decide to do something different, it will never be the same. There will be hurt feelings, which will take a long time to get completely over.”
What has confused coaches most is the overriding need for a change. If parity is the goal, it will be hard to top the past two decades.
Since the protection list was initiated, 11 of the state’s 14 schools have made the postseason, 13 have been ranked in the national top 20, and nine have made bowl games. Five teams have won the South Division, while four have won the North Division. In the past 20 seasons, five Mississippi schools have helped the state win seven national championships.
“The community college system is set up and takes a lot of pride in that 97 or 98 percent of our students are native Mississippians,” Young said. “We look at this opportunity as a chance to increase the opportunities for those native Mississippians. Our goal is to serve the communities we surround.
“Education should be a matter of choice. The things that set you apart should be your academic excellence and your athletic excellence. Since the schools do the same thing from academic and vocational standpoints, it only makes sense kids should be given a choice.”
Brown understands the notion of equality. He also understands the success Mississippi junior colleges have had on the national stage. Like many coaches, he is afraid the changes might benefit one group and adversely affect another.
“Junior college football is something we have always done very well on a national stage,” Brown said. “I am afraid we are going to get into a richer get richer, poorer get poorer situation. Who is to legislate who spends what on athletics? Now coaches will travel all over the place to get the best athletes possible.
“The out-of-state athletes have been the ones who have placed these athletic programs over the top. EMCC has never won a national championship. If they achieve that this year, the exposure for the school will be enormous. I don’t know how these schools will compete on the national level if these changes go through.”
Stephens already has voiced multiple concerns to Young, who said those concerns haven’t fallen on deaf ears.
“When you look at Bo Wallace, he is an out-of-state player (transfer from Arkansas State) and he may be the best quarterback in the nation,” Young said. “We have had great success due in part to his play. Coach Stephens pointed out to me that every time a senior college comes to look at Bo, they are also looking at several talented in-state players, who are also on our roster.
“Those are the concerns we are looking at. Those are the things we are working our way through. It is all about recognition and having people buy into your program. No one wants to see any of our schools not competing on the highest level possible.
“So the question is do you place more value on having sports teams being comprised of almost all native Mississippians or do you strive for more competitiveness, which is provided with additional out-of-state athletes? Those are the things we have to answer during this process.”
While EMCC’s house appears to be in order, the rule changes could serve as a death blow to the athletic programs at other state schools. Mississippi schools close to a state line have out-of-state counties or parishes considered part of their recruiting district. Those schools are allowed 14 out-of-state scholarships. That number would drop to four next year.
In an interview with The Clarion-Ledger, Pearl River C.C. President Dr. William Lewis said Mississippi was the only community college football-playing state that used recruiting districts. However, for some programs, such as winless Mississippi Delta C.C., which will shift into a search for a new football coach in the month ahead, the built-in support system of in-district kids is vital to continue to have a program every year.
“This could be the end of football at Southwest and Coahoma and some others,” Stephens said. “Had this happened 10 years ago, before our new stadium, I have no idea if EMCC would have survived. How about the track programs? How about the soccer programs? Are there really going to be enough in-state athletes to fill those teams?
“I don’t want to be negative. Those are the things you have to ask before you can go through with something like this.”
These are the questions that have been emailed to the junior college presidents, too. Young insists he and his fellow presidents are receptive to everything that has been asked.
“Our baseball coach (Chris Rose) made a very good point to me the other day,” Young said. “With 15 schools playing baseball, he asked if I thought there were enough arms around the state to fill everybody’s roster. It is a good question. It is something we need answered. There may not be enough pitching in this state to keep everybody healthy and to put a good product on the field.”
Typically, junior college baseball teams play Tuesday and Friday or Wednesday and Saturday doubleheaders. Most weeks, teams have to provide 28 innings of pitching in less than 96 hours.
The bottom line could be financial. In professional athletics, the more a team spends, usually, the more it wins. Unfortunately, this parallel could hit closer to home.
“I have heard concerns about some of the smaller schools being afraid they will not be able to be competitive,” Young said. “What makes you competitive is how committed you are to athletics. This involves the local board of trustees and the administration. What value do you place on sports? It is up to each school to re-assess their priorities when athletics are involved.”
One point all parties can agree on is the success of the state’s junior college athletics and the need for that success to continue.
“A winning sports program carries over to everything you do on campus,” Young said. “It creates an excitement in the student body. There is a cohesiveness that exists only through sports. We don’t want to hurt what we have. We have the most respected and revered junior college program in the nation. What has to be weighed out is the competitiveness of our junior colleges on a national level against what the people of the state want.”
Young said no timetable is set for revisiting the rule changes, and said presidents are still gathering feedback. As the initial month has worn on, Stephens has become more optimistic each day.
“I played in the junior college system in this state,” Stephens said. “I met my wife while I played. My father-in-law played for the famed Dobie Holden (longtime coach and athletic director at PRCC). Junior college football is what I have done all my life. This is my baby. It is real special to me.
“When I heard the rule changes were official, I was sad, depressed, bummed out. It was the saddest day I had since my mother passed away 16 years ago. They were coming in and trying to destroy something that I love dearly.
“In the past month, I have grown optimistic. We are closer to getting this thrown back out. We just have to keep it a hot topic. What we had in this state was really good. If we keep the pressure on, we have a chance to keep it as it is now. That would be really special and a big win for all of us in the end.”
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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