BEAUMONT, Texas — When the NCAA granted spring athletes another year of eligibility, they were applauded. But now comes the tough part, finding a way to finance that extra year.
Lamar University Director of Athletics spoke with 409Sports Director Ashly Elam about that issue.
"We will have to fund raise for those. We don't have that money available in our budget necessarily at this point. The coaches have been very understanding and having those conversations with the student athletes and donors."
The need for additional scholarship funding is just another example of challenges being caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Well we crunch numbers every year quite frankly, I'm sure you guys do to. But yeah this is certainly a unique situation. I think it was the right thing to do by the NCAA, to allow that extra year of eligibility for sure. But certainly there's a lot more things that go into it. Not only this additional year of eligibility, but the impact of the cancellation of March Madness has had. Losing seventy percent of the revenue that's usually coming in from the NCAA is something that is certainly going to play a big role in how we're going to make decisions in the next year and years to come. So certainly an unprecedented times and interesting, in the way we communicate these days. Today is a good example on FaceTime and zoom and you name it. So it is certainly interesting and I don't think something any of us thought we would have to do."
