Division II approves football scheduling proposal, pair of championship changes

During the business session of the 2024 NCAA Convention, the delegates responsible for sponsoring football in Division II narrowly passed a proposal. This proposal will allow schools to play their first game one week earlier than they are currently allowed to. The change will come into effect on August 1st.

A different suggestion for football was shot down by a very close margin, which would have provided every football-supporting conference a spot in the championship bracket. Similarly, this idea was only given to delegates who were supporting football.

The entire group of delegates in Division II gave their approval to two more proposals that contain modifications to the regulations governing championships.

The proposal to change the first allowed football game date was approved by member votes. This change will permit teams to schedule games one week before the Thursday before September 6th. The proposal was supported by those who want schools to have more flexibility in scheduling games and to decrease the difficulty of finding nonconference opponents. This amendment will also help ensure athlete safety and health by providing schools with the ability to schedule a rest week during the season. The first day for football practice will be 24 days before a school's first game or 10 days before the school's first day of classes, whichever comes first.

The suggestion was opposed by the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee of Division II due to fears that football players' summer schedules would be shortened, and they would have less opportunity to take part in internships. During the business session, Davaris Cheeks, a former football player at Concordia-St. Paul and Division II SAAC member, contested the safety benefits of the proposal.

According to Cheeks, taking a bye week in football season doesn't really mean a break since coaches might still have practices. The new rule that suggests football players would have a week off is wrong because it would only lengthen the season and require more practices, which could lead to more injuries for players.

Another idea for football was suggested by the Division II Presidents Council, but unfortunately it did not receive enough votes to pass. The proposal aimed to change how earned access legislation works by ensuring that all conferences with a football team in the championship bracket are represented. This would involve selecting the highest-ranked team from a conference that has not yet been included. At present, earned access legislation in football is only applicable if a conference has no teams in the bracket and has a squad ranked within the top nine in a super region.

The representatives for Division II have voted in favor of a plan that will change the regulations on automatic qualifiers. Starting from August 1, every team sport, except football, will be entitled to automatic qualification privileges. These privileges were previously determined by the respective sport committees but will now be granted across the board. The Presidents Council were the ones who put forward this proposal.

Due to the new automatic qualifiers law changes, the Division II Championships Committee will put in place a policy where the number of automatic qualifiers in a bracket will not exceed 60%, ensuring that at-large selections are fairly represented. If a sport goes beyond this 60% limit, the committee has decided that bracket expansion will be considered at the next budget opportunity as long as the sport has reached a 50% threshold. However, if a sport surpasses the 60% limit while undergoing consideration for bracket expansion, the Championships Committee may still keep automatic qualification while figuring out the bracket size.

Regan McAthie, a member of the Division II Championships Committee and director of athletics at Concordia-St. Paul, explained that a new law has been put in place to ensure all team sports conferences (excluding football) are represented in the national championship. This will help encourage sponsorship growth, as conferences with at least six sponsoring members will have guaranteed access to the championship. This new legislation eliminates the obstacle of championship access, which is often a factor when deciding whether or not to add a new sport to an institution or conference.

The Division II representatives have agreed to change the rules regarding the number of schools required to sponsor men's and women's sports championships. From August 1st, the minimum requirement for both will be 35 schools, instead of the current 50 for men's sports and 40 for women's sports. However, a sport that falls below the 35-school minimum sponsorship requirement will have a grace period of three years to regain the necessary number of sponsoring schools before the championship is discontinued. The proposal also removes the exceptions for Olympic sports championships and men's and women's lacrosse that fall below the current thresholds, although these two sports are currently well above the 35-school threshold.

During the business session, a proposal sponsored by a membership was not brought to a vote. The proposal suggested that softball should only play 56 games and scrimmages during the NCAA championship season and should add 8 additional games and scrimmages during the non-championship season. The NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports, the Division II Legislation Committee, Championships Committee, Management Council, Presidents Council, and SAAC formally opposed the proposal last fall.

At the business session of the division, the Division II SAAC chose Roberts Wesleyan as the recipient of the 2024 Award of Excellence. This recognition is granted to institutions that embody the philosophy of Division II through their involvement in the community and the leadership of their student-athletes throughout the previous year.