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A second school in the Colonial Athletic Association has succumbed to economic pressures and has elected to cut its football program.
Hofstra University voted to eliminate their football program immediately following a unanimous vote by the school’s board of trustees Wednesday evening, citing high costs and the need to invest further in academic programs.
Last Monday, Northeastern University ended their football program after 74 years. Hofstra, based in Hempstead, N.Y., has fielded a team for the past 69 years.
Following a two-year review of the sports programs at the university, university president Stuart Rabinowitz recommended to the board to cut the program, saving approximately $4.5 million.
“The cost of the football program, now and in the future, far exceeds the return possible for an FCS program, which does not generate significant national interest,” said Rabinowitz in a statement.
The Pride finished this season 5-6 and 3-5 in conference play. They wound up tied for third in the CAA North after their season-ending 52-38 win over the University of Massachusetts Nov. 21.
Hofstra’s program had an overall record of 403 wins, 268 losses and 11 ties.
With the elimination of both Hofstra and Northeastern, the North Division now has only four teams, including the University of Maine. The other teams that remain in the North are the University of Massachusetts, the University of New Hampshire and the University of Rhode Island.
The conference now has 10 teams, with six of those schools playing in the CAA South.
Due to the loss of teams, CAA Football Commissioner Tom Yeager said in Thursday’s conference call that the league would scrap the divisions and realign next season.
“We will go forward with a single league, no divisions and play eight conference games,” Yeager said.
In 2011, Old Dominion University will join the CAA and Georgia State University will become a conference member in 2012.
Despite the termination of two programs in the Northeast region, UMaine Athletic Director Blake James assured the Black Bear football program is safe and will not be eliminated, according to the Bangor Daily News.
CAA teams fight for
championship
Despite the news that two programs will no longer field a football team, the CAA still remains the top conference in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).
Four teams were selected for the 16-team national tournament, with both Villanova University and the University of Richmond receiving two of the top four seeds. The College of William & Mary and UNH also advanced to the playoffs.
Following the first round games last weekend, all four teams advanced to the quarterfinals, which were held on Saturday.
William and Mary defeated the University of Southern Illinois on the road 24-3 and moved to the semifinals where they will face Villanova, 46-7 winners over UNH.
Richmond, the defending national champions, was upended by Appalachian State University 35-31 on a last-second touchdown.
With two teams left and playing each other in this weekend’s semifinals, the CAA will once again have a team in the national championship game for the fourth straight year. UMass and the University of Delaware advanced to the title game in 2006 and 2007, respectively.
