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Quote:BGSU eliminates baseball, announces athletics restructuring
12 min ago


Bowling Green State University today announced that it has eliminated the baseball program effective immediately.

This action is being taken as part of a plan for a $2 million reduction to the operating budget of the intercollegiate athletics department.

“This was a very difficult, but necessary, decision,” said Director of Athletics Bob Moosbrugger. “As a baseball alumnus, my heart breaks for the families affected by this decision. We will ensure the student-athletes in the program have support during this challenging time. We will honor their scholarship agreements through graduation and, should they pursue their collegiate baseball career elsewhere, we will assist in the process of finding a new home.”

With the change, BGSU will now sponsor 17 NCAA Division I sports (six men’s sports and 11 women’s sports). The move affects 34 student-athletes and three coaches.

“While we remain committed to supporting Division I athletics programs, we must do this in a financially sustainable approach,” said BGSU President Rodney Rogers. “We have made the difficult decision to eliminate the baseball program due to financial constraints. This decision was not made lightly, and does not reflect the rich history of the program, including five Mid-American Conference championships and four NCAA regional appearances.”

Also today, BGSU announced the restructuring of the Department of Recreation and Wellness to the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics.

“We have spent the recent days identifying opportunities to align functional areas to share resources and streamline practices,” Rogers said. “I have also asked Bob Moosbrugger to assume an expanded role as director of Intercollegiate Athletics, Recreation and Wellness. He will now provide oversight for all athletic facility operations and integrate our student recreation and wellness programs to focus on physical wellness of not just our Division I student-athletes, but each student.”

BGSU Athletics Restructure F AQ:

What sport is being discontinued and how was that determined?

• The sport of baseball will be discontinued. The university is undergoing restructuring brought on by the current financial crisis. Athletics was instructed to reduce its annual budget by $2 million.

•The decision to eliminate baseball came after careful review examining a wide range of criteria, including: financial impact, support services needed, facilities, equity and a comparison of Mid-American Conference (MAC) sport sponsorship.

•The elimination of baseball will result in an athletics budget cost savings of approximately $500,000 annually.

•The elimination of baseball will reduce stress on already-taxed support services including academic, strength & conditioning, athletic training, facilities and game operations whose budgets and personnel will be affected by all decisions.

How many people are affected by this decision? What support are they being provided?

•The entire BGSU Athletics community is affected by this painful decision.

•Those directly affected include: two full-time coaches, a part-time assistant and 34 student-athletes and their families.

•BGSU will honor current athletic scholarships for student-athletes who wish to continue their studies at BGSU.

•We will provide assistance to any student-athlete interested in continuing their athletic pursuits elsewhere. Per NCAA rules, student-athletes who transfer because their athletic program has been eliminated will be able to compete immediately.

•For incoming baseball student-athletes, BGSU will honor the scholarship agreement that was signed with the NLI and honor the terms of that agreement. Per the NLI provisions, the BGSU NLI is “null and void” which will allow signees to accept a scholarship offer from another institution should they wish.

https://www.sent-trib.com/sports/bgsu-el...39547.html