The Minnesota university that was booted out of Division III play for winning too many games, has now been offered a spot in Division I athletics.
The University of St. Thomas was removed from the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) division in May over its wild success after coach Glenn Caruso led the team to six MIAC football titles since 2010 as well as reaching the finals in 2012 and 2015.
The university reported that the conference was so intent on removing the school from the division that they said they would disband the whole league if St. Thomas fought to remain.
Now the school has been invited to jump up to Division I even in the face of rules that should ostensibly prevent such a move, ESPN reported.
Universities are supposed to be barred by NCAA rules from jumping divisions, but St. Thomas has applied for a waiver in light of the circumstances of its removal from its division.
Even if the NCAA waives the rules to allow for the move, the school will have to seriously up its spending. According to ESPN, St. Thomas spends $1.1 million on its football program, but the other schools in the divisions it is considering — the Pioneer League and the Missouri Valley Conference — spend substantially more.
South Dakota State and North Dakota State, for instance, spend $4.1 million and $5.6 million, respectively, on their football programs.
If the NCAA approves the move, St. Thomas would become only the second Div. I team in the state, joining the University of Minnesota’s Golden Gophers.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.