St. Cloud State to drop football program

St.Cloud State University is dropping its football program effective with the 2020 season. The University made the announcement Tuesday after a meeting with coaches, players and athletic department officials. St.Cloud State has been struggling with budget problems which in 2016 led to the elimination of men’s and women’s tennis, women’s Nordic skiing, men’s cross-country and men’s indoor/outdoor track and field. The 2016 cuts also forced the football program to trim its roster size in order to meet Title IX’s federal gender-equity rules.

Along with football, men’s and women’s golf are also being eliminated and men’s soccer is being added.

Photo by Josh Deer  CSP

St. Cloud State is a Division 2 football program that competed in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). This season the Huskies, under 12th year head coach Scott Underwood, finished with a 4-and-7 record in the NSIC, and finished in 5th place in the the NSIC Northern Division.

The following is a press release from the University:

— St. Cloud State University has announced changes to its intercollegiate athletics program to ensure Title IX compliance, and to address the financial sustainability and success of the university and its teams.

The University will eliminate football, men’s golf and women’s golf, and will add men’s soccer. This will take the overall athletic program offerings from 19 to 17 – six male and 11 female sports – at the beginning of the 2020 academic year. The changes directly impact about 115 students, seven head and assistant coaches, and two graduate assistant coaches.

“We made this extremely difficult decision because St. Cloud State faces a convergence of circumstances that required us to change our athletics offerings,” said St. Cloud State President Robbyn Wacker. “This will have a profound impact on our committed student-athletes, our dedicated coaches, and the passionate alumni and supporters who have followed our programs throughout their proud histories. Our student-athletes and coaches approach every day with incredible devotion and desire to be their best and represent St. Cloud State in the classroom, on the field, and in our community. We are grateful for their commitment and will assist them as they move forward.” 

St. Cloud State is committed to providing high quality and equitable athletic opportunities for all students. The current structure inhibits the University’s ability to address the Aug. 1 Federal District Court Title IX ruling, and the fiscal situation of both the University and Huskies Athletics, with a growing athletics deficit of more than $1.6 million over the past 4 years.

Under the new structure, St. Cloud State will focus on a smaller footprint of 17 NCAA Division I and Division II programs. This will reduce overall athletics expenses and allow for strategic program reallocation to better support our student-athletes’ development and competitive success. The addition of Men’s Soccer will allow SCSU to comply with NCAA sport sponsorship legislation, and acknowledges soccer’s growth and popularity, as well as its lower staffing, scholarship, and operational resource costs.

“As someone who believes in the athletics experience and its positive impact on student-athletes and has watched and valued our players and alumni throughout my tenure at St. Cloud State, this decision weighs heavily on me,” said Heather Weems, Director of Athletics. “I believe this decision provides the best pathway for Huskies Athletics and a future that sustains a healthy and competitive overall athletics program.”

The decision has support from Minnesota State Chancellor Devinder Malhotra.

“In the context of the challenging fiscal environment that higher education faces today as well as federal and NCAA requirements that athletic programs are required to meet, many colleges and universities are being forced to make very difficult decisions in order to preserve their financial and programmatic sustainability,” said Malhotra.  “Although I understand that this action will be disappointing to many in the St. Cloud State community, I endorse this decision, as it strategically positions the University to secure its future and be more effective in promoting student success, and the vitality of the communities and the region it serves.”