Just over a month after MSU freshman Eliot Sanford began petitioning online for a men’s soccer program, his efforts had hit a wall: the 37-word law called Title IX.Title IX states, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.”
David Boles, associate athletic director in charge of student services, says that MSU currently offers the minimum women’s sports (9) and men’s sports (7) set forth by the NCAA, and the university is currently in compliance with Title IX regulations.
MSU athletic director Larry Templeton said that that ratio probably would not change anytime soon.
Templeton, whose son transferred from MSU to another school so that he could play intercollegiate soccer, says that he’d like to see a men’s soccer team, but as of now, law just won’t allow it.
“I wish the young guys on our campus could have the opportunity to play soccer here,” he said. “While Title IX is there for a reason, we must continue to move toward federal compliance of equal opportunities for our female students.”
Boles said the aim of the MSU athletic department is to offer a sports slate similar to the slate offered by high schools in Mississippi.
“Every 10 years or so, we conduct extensive social science research, surveying all sports offered by Mississippi high schools,” Boles said. “We like to know what sports draw the most participation as well as what is offered to men and women.
“We want MSU’s sports to reflect our state’s high school sports. As long as we provide what’s in interest, we’re in pretty good shape.”
The enrollment of females has grown approximately 1 percent per year over the past few years, Boles said, so the athletic department must adjust according to those changes.
The athletic department will conduct a new high school study soon, as the last study conducted took place in the 1990s.
However, Boles said that if the study shows an increase in the interest of Mississippi men’s soccer, it doesn’t mean MSU will add the sport to the athletic program.
“What we have to really reflect is what’s offered in women’s sports,” Boles said. “If we threw in a men’s soccer program into what we have now, our numbers would fantastically go out of shape.”
Templeton agreed and said adding a men’s sport would throw compliance numbers off.
“The only issue that we come close to meeting is the percentage of female athletes (39 percent) to female enrollment of the university (48 percent),” Templeton said. “Adding a men’s sport puts that gap in double digits.”
Boles said that adding a women’s program would be more likely than adding a men’s, but then it wouldn’t mean a spot would be available for men’s soccer.
“If you look at athletics programs across the country,” Boles said, “you don’t see many programs adding men’s sports. You see mostly cutting, due to Title IX.
“We have a nice soccer facility. If we were in the 1950s, we would probably have men’s soccer. It seems logical. But with all the restraints put on us by Title IX, we simply can’t afford to add another men’s program right now.”
About three years ago, the athletics department seriously considered adding a women’s equestrian team to the MSU sports lineup, but due to the resources needed for the sport, they decided against it.
“I wouldn’t mind seeing men’s soccer here; it’s a viable program,” Boles said. “We have an obstacle, and that obstacle is federal law. If the law doesn’t change, we probably won’t see a men’s soccer program any time soon. We’re kind of dictated (to) about what we can and can’t offer. I don’t think a bunch of students will be able to change federal law. That’s a major obstacle.”
If MSU decided to adopt a men’s soccer program, Boles said, problems would still arise.
“Even if we did add a men’s soccer program, there would only be three SEC schools that played it,” Boles said. “I know there is some frustration there for the kids coming up through the high school ranks playing soccer. We have a fine club program and have had a fine program for a while.