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incUlctjival 11— -.i
January 11,1990 University of Nebraska-Lincoln Vol. 89 No. & 7 ?
I "
Commission cuts basketball season,spring practice
By Victoria Ayotte
Senior Reporter
Measures enacted by the NCAA
this week will have “mini
mal impact” on the quality
of athletics but will gi ve sludcnt-ath
! letes more lime for education, said
the chairman of the NCAA Presidents
Commission.
Martin Massengale, also llnivcr
sity of Nebraska
interim president
and University of
Ncbraska-Lincoln
chancellor, said the
NCAA’s attempts
at reform — based
on Presidents_
Commission pro- Ma™nnalp
posals-arcastep wass©"^1©
to return integrity to college athletics
and return student athletes’ focus to
academics.
The reforms,in part, arc the result
of student-athlete input, according to
Massengale. Student-athletes have said
athletics placed undue demands on
their time and they wanted more lime
to study and participate in other stu
dent activities.
At thcconvention in Dallas, spring
football practice was reduced from
20 to 15 days. Players can wear pads
for only 10 of those days. The Presi
dents Commission had supported a
proposal to cut spring practice to 10
days with no pads allowed, but the
final measure passed was a compro
mise.
The basketball season was cut from
28 to 25 games, and the number of
exemptions — games allowed beyond
the limit — were trimmed. Every four
years, teams will be allowed to par
ticipate in one exempted game, which
arc those in the preseason National
Invitation Tournament, Alaska, Hawaii
or against foreign or club teams.
Although many universities had
complained that fewer games would
decrease revenue, Massengale said
the advantages of the change out
weigh money concerns.
“We have to be, first and fore
most, concerned about the students,’ ’
Massengale said. “That has to be our
first priority over money.’’
Under the changes, preseason
basketball workouts cannot begin until
Nov. 1, two weeks later than cur
rently is allowed, and the season will
not begin until Dee. 1.
Another reform enacted to focus
athletes’ attention on academics re
quires schools to publish the percent
age of students who graduate and the
percentage of student-athletes who
. . ■ " .. .. I .... '
Devaney: NCAA changes wont hurt
By Victoria Ayotte
Senior Reporter
The quality of college foot
ball and basketball will not
be compromised by reduc
ing the time student-athletes may
devote to practicing and playing
their sports, NU athletic officials
said Wednesday.
The NCAA voted this week to
reduce the college basketball sea
son from 28 to 25 games; to cut
spring football practice by five days;
to publish the graduation rates of
student-athletes; to increase the Pell
Grant allowance for student-ath
letes from S1,400 to SI ,700; and to
change Proposition 42 to allow
student-athletes to receive finan
cial aid even if they don’t qualify
for athletic scholarships under
Proposition 48. Propositions 42 and
48 set minimum college entrance
requirements for athletes.
Nebraska Athletic Director Bob
Devancy said that although he does
not agree with the changes made
by the NCAA at its annual conven
tion this week, he docs not think
they will hurt the football program.
Five fewer days of spring foot
ball practice will shorten the lime
for assessment of younger players,
Dcvancy said, but he was glad the
NCAA met the coaches’ wishes
halfway with a compromise.
The NCAA Presidents Commis
sion had proposed that only 10>
days of non-contact spring football
practice be allowed, but a compro
mise proposal pul the spring prac
tice time at 15 days with 10 days of
contact practice.
“It’s not what everybody
wanted,’’ Dcvancy said, “but it
was a compromise.’’
The change in basketball also
will not decrease the quality, De
vaney said, but will hurt the ath
letic department’s coffers.
Three fewer games will cut down
significantly on income, he said,
although he did not know by how
much. Some universities had said
they could lose as much as $250,000
with the shortened season.
Devaney said he is not opposed
to the proposal to disclose student
athletes’ graduation rates but is
concerned that the figures would
be misleading because they could
be manipulated by some universi
ties. —
Nebraska football coach Tom
Osborne said he doesn’t think the
shortened spring practice will make
a lot of difference but will make
the sessions more compact.
”1 don’t think it will be a real
See COACHES on 6
graduate. The student-athlete total will
be broken down by sport and the
basketball and football graduation rates
will be broken down by race.
Proposition 42 also was adjusted
to allow partial qualifiers under Propo
sition 48 to apply for need-based stu
dent financial aid. Proposition 48
prohibits student-athletes from receiv
ing scholarships their freshman years
if they don’t meet academic stan
dards.
The Pell Grant allowance for stu
See MASSENGALE on 6
V
Sen. Frank Korshoj of Herman listens to Lincoln Sen. David Landis during debate on the
legislative floor Wednesday.
/
Deficit request tops
university legislation
I By Victoria Ayotte
Senior Reporter
r H^ he University of Nebraska’s
E emergency deficit request for
$12.6 million and the higher
education restructuring report will
dominate the spotlight for NU at the
Nebraska Legislature this session, said
Lee Rupp, vice president for univer
sity relations.
Many other issues arc important,
Rupp said, but won’t4 ‘see the light of
day.” The backlog of bills and the
short legislative session, 60 days this
year, will make time “of the essence.”
But the budget request and higher
education restructuring arc sure to
find places on the agenda, said Rupp,
the university’s chief lobbyist.
No bill has been introduced on
higher education restructuring, Rupp
said, so the university has not yet
formulated a strategy for lobbying.
The Legislature s Appropriations
Committee will hold a public hearing
Jan. 29 on the budget request, which
proposes more money for retirement,
health insurance, asbestos removal,
instructional equipment and a family
practice program for the Lincoln
Medical Foundation.
A public hearing will be held Jan.
30 for the revised request for a tele
communications system, according
to Rupp.
Overall, the university is request
ing $5.1 million for 1989-90 and $7.5
million for 1990-91, increases of 2.3
percent and 3 percent over the origi
nal 1989-91 biennial budget approved
last year.
The retirement plan will exceed
projected costs by about $ 1.5 million
See BUDGET on 3
^ -u
hour abortion-related bills
on Legislature’s agenda
By C.J. Schepers
Staff Reporter
At the onset of the 1990 legisla
tive session, Nebraska lawmak
ers will have to deal with four
abortion bills - three that would re
strict abortion and one that would
expand abortion rights.
The U.S. Supreme Court opened
the door for the introduction of abor
tion bills in state legislatures with its
July ruling in Webster vs. Reproduc
tive Health Services.
LB 1054, a pro-choice bill intro
duced by Lincoln Sen. David Landis
on Tuesday, would, among other
things, allow public employees to be
covered by health insurance for abor
tions performed in health-threatening
cases. Current Nebraska law only
allows insurance coverage for an
abortion if the woman’s life is threat
ened.
LB854, sponsored by Omaha Sen.
John Lindsay, would require a 24
hour waiting period from the time a
woman agrees to have an abortion
before it could be performed. It also
requires that a woman be informed of
ihc “anatomical and physiological
characteristics of an unborn child” at
the lime the abortion is to be per
formed.
LB889, introduced last week by
Sen. M.L. “Cap” Dierks of Ewing,
would prohibit public employees from
participating in abortions. It also
bans using public funds and facilities
for abortions.
A third restrictive measure, LB769,
would require parental notification
before performing an abortion on a
minor. The bill, sponsored by Omaha
Sen. Bernice Labedz, was earned over
from last year’s session alter it stalled
during first-round debate.
Lindsay, co-sponsor of the other
two bills aimed at restricting abor
tion, said the intent of the 24-hour
waiting period required by LB854 is
to remove the woman from a “high
pressure situation” when making her
decision.
“We’re not talking about a deci
sion like whether or not I should go to
the grocery store, or whether or not I
should get my cars pierced,” he said.
See ABORTION on 5
