We forget the WAC, in survival mode, took on two schools not sufficiently resourced and facing institutional challenges in UTPA and Chicago State.
Four years later and UTPA is now UTRGV with more than triple the athletic budget, having merged to almost double its resources, and has improved its academic standing. It has met all the conditions of membership, added non coaching staff to 20 (league average is 22), upgraded facilities, added sports, and they made it's last payment to the WAC last year. They passed their probation period in flying colors, and are now a pretty solid member. Good leadership, planning and focus. Hurd has nothing but praise for them, and you don't hear a peep of complaint around the league about them. There is no drama. They even participated in expansion meetings with CBU, which tells you they are permanent now, fully accepted, respected.
Chicago State is sadly not the same story. Enrollment has dropped to under 40% of the 7,000 they had when they signed the WAC contract. They have fewer than 3,000 students now (President Lucy ordered the release of weekly enrollment at staff meetings ended, "bad press"). At this point the drain is over $1000 per student for athletics. A realistic stabilizing number with full reforms is likely the low 2,000 range as they slowly rebuild the trust and expand slowly back. A modest $4m budget, which would allow travel and modest expenses - nothing extra- and modest facilities work to meet WAC safety requirements, would put the bill at over $2000 per student for athletics. Any sane person would look at that and say, there is zero chance this school will have the resources to fulfill any contract at the D-I level, and it's an abuse of the students to even try to do so.
The graduation rate is just 11%, which translates to more than $2.5 million spent per year per graduate. It would be 75% cheaper to identify the best 1000 students and send them to Harvard and pay for them, room & board too. I guess Tex's argument is dropping sports would only add 1 or 2 more graduate. Or they can actually pay their legal expenses.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local...story.html
When you look over the WAC it is very hard to find six votes to retain. Chicago State was not asked to participate in the expansion search. That alone tells you their fate, as the other seven schools were. I seriously doubt there is even one vote to retain Chicago State. But I think it's moot; the new Board and the President they choose to replace Mr. Lucy will not request a renewal, and the school will voluntarily leave, just as they did the Mid-Contenent (the Summit) in 2006 to avoid being dismissed.