3 Credits Short...

[James Foote]

Not sure if anyone saw this on E-lacrosse, but I think it's a pretty good article. Talks about the Colorado State 'predicament' last year as well as what it's like to play club ball.

http://www.e-lacrosse.com/mdiaelig2005.html

[Sonny]

Interesting column from Mr. Kreitz...

Last year, Nick Stanitz-Harper of Colorado State University paid 3,000 dollars to play lacrosse. This sum covered the coach's salary and most of the equipment and travel costs. His perks for spending such a sum, and representing his school on a national level, were limited to lacrosse team-related endeavors. Field time was not guaranteed nor was assistance from the schools athletic department. School trainers were off limits, as was access to less crowded weight rooms. Priority class scheduling was not an option, and given the demands of daily practice and games made keeping up with academic commitments rather difficult. Assistance in such areas would come of his accord though, as tutors allocated by the athletic department were not available. Administrative duties for the team, from travel planning to eligibility checks, were handled mostly by the players, though the coaches helped as much they could.

Despite such obstacles placed before them he and his teammates persevered, and persevered well. They finished their regular season without a blemish, traveling all over the country, beating the top-rated club teams in the land in addition to DIII Colorado College. Narrowly losing to BYU in the finals of the Rocky Mountain Lacrosse Conference Championship, the Rams expected to be the second seed in the national championship tourney. A culmination of their incredible amount of hard work and money expended throughout the year. Unfortunately for Nick and the Rams, National Championship winners in 1999, 2001 and 2003, two of his teammates inadvertently dropped below the 12 unit academic threshold in the middle of the season. As a result, instead of the two seed they were awarded in the initial seedings, the national governing body deemed them ineligible to compete for the national title.

http://www.e-lacrosse.com/mdiaelig2005.html