One of the better small schools for soccer eliminated its program on Thursday. (From AP story): "With cost increases in the areas of travel and tuition, we were faced with either eliminating the only sport not aligned with the Sun Belt Conference or reducing budgets in all of our sports, which would eventually erode the competitiveness of our program," FIU athletics director Rick Mello said.
FIU just started a football program. this is why they have to cut soccer. Sad to see them go, especially at a school where the majority of the students are immigrants or children of immigrants that come from countries with soccer traditions. Very sad.
although things changed a bit in the last 3 years with them joining a weak soccer conference, they traditionally played one of the hardest schedules in the country. they would host at least one tournament per year that would have 1 or 2 top ten teams in it. this is pretty sad to hear.
Steve Ralston, Robin Fraser, Tyrone Marshall, Daouda Kante, Jeff Cassar, Greg Vanney (for a year before transferring to UCLA). This school produced some players.
Man, that REALLY sucks! This team was in the NCAA final in 1996, losing to St. John's. Hard to believe. And, they'll now be some good players looking for a place to play. Among them --- Mark Stephenson is a very good sweeper, Allen Handy is a big stud of a man-marker - both have 2 years of eligibility left, and Emanuel Hendrix is a good D-mid. He'll be a senior next year.
Conor Collins also attended FIU. He is not as notable, but he is playing professional soccer in the Czech Republic.
Did you read the story? They just started a football program. And Title IX has been around since the school's founding in 1972. I'd like to know why Florida International's administration believes it has any business being a football school.
Paging Mr. Flannigan. Paging Mr. Thomas Flannigan, Esq. Please pick up the white courtesy phone. Your attentions are needed post haste. Mr. Thomas Flannigan, Esq. Please pick up the white courtesy phone.
HOPE The only potential bright side of this may eventually be if football does well and brings in some money perhaps they can afford soccer again in the future. I'm really looking for something good here because it sure sucks for now.
Florida INTERNATIONAL University, those new internationals on "football" scholarships are sure going to be confused when all they bring to tryouts is a pair of boots and they're asked to put on a bunch of padding and a helmet.
Fla and Hartwick Sad day for college soccer. Obviously the folks in Fla have made a bad decision getting rid of the mens soccer program. It was one of the successful programs in the country that played good attractive soccer. I also have heard that Lennox was fired from Hartwick.....is this true. If so what happened there? I have heard stories about a move to D 3 and a story about an incident in a bar where a player stabbed a football player. what s the real story behind the firing? lennox has been there for over 25 years. Soccerball
. . . And now its back! At least for next year. http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/sports/4975816.htm
Hopefully people will do a good job this year supporting the program to help save it for years to come..
They aren't going to save this program now. If you were a recruit that had commited to FIU how long would it take you to contact the next school on your list? If it was my son he'd have been on the phone immediately. A verbal is a verbal--and having something like this happen puts every commited player back on the block. I'd just talked to a player from Charleston Southern two weeks ago, and had asked him where he was transferring. His answer, FIU. How bad does that suck? What these schools do to these kids is a crime!
Local non soccer writer blasts FIU http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/college/fiu/sfl-fiuscoccer24jan24,0,1189209.story?coll=tf-fiu Barnes has been with the paper for years and is not a soccer guy,IIRC.Does seem to indicate both football and its resulting Title IX impact are factors!
Program safe... For now... I lived close to that school for a while and I enjoyed watching them play, better level (competition) many times more than MLS. Let's hope it is for good. http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/sports/5045816.htm