The University of Maine dropped a bomb last week that has people all over the state reeling. Effective next year, the school will no longer offer varsity men’s soccer and women’s volleyball at the intercollegiate level.
And while some may chalk this up as a tale of the economic times, I happen to think the ramifications of this decision trascend dollars-and-cents cost saving.
Sure, the school’s athletic department is trying to grapple with an $800,000 shortfall, but that alone is no excuse for cutting the state’s highest level of soccer.
By cutting soccer at UMaine, the state is left with a huge void. I can think of no other sport in the state that can rival soccer in terms of participation, save maybe basketball. And while soccer might not have the same spot in Maine lore that basketball does, its place in Maine’s landscape is undeniable.
From Fort Kent to Kittery, people hit the pitch during the fall, many of them hoping to take their skills to the next level. Unlike the regionalized nature of sports like ice hockey and football, soccer has the rare ability to be prominent across the entire state.
Just look at the recent rise of indoor sports facilities, which, more than anything else, appeals to Maine’s robust thirst for soccer during all four seasons.
UMaine’s latest cut leaves one less option for our state’s best soccer players and it leaves the state without a high-level soccer team to rally around.
In total, five Mainers were part of the Black Bears team.
Maybe in any other state it’d be okay to axe soccer in lieu of other sports. There’s no doubt that soccer’s spot in the national sports landscape is shaded at best. In other states where football is a staple at every high school, soccer often finds itself on the back burner. But here in Maine soccer is alive and well.
Maine should have disregarded the national trends and kept in mind the local implications. Afterall, UMaine – the state’s flagship school – does have the responsibility of keeping the state’s interests in mind.
Why not cut men’s swimming and diving?
Or, better yet, why not market your sports in a more effective way? Why not try to increase revenues before taking down sports?
So far UMaine athletic director Blake James has done nothing by lead a totally inept athletic program, one that’s seen UMaine be totally ineffectual on the field and on the books.
This is just another link in a chain of missteps.
I’m sure the decision wasn’t easy, but that’s no excuse. Someone should have contextualized the decision and employed their brains before their calculators.
Now, while Maine’s not-so-storied swimming and diving team lives to see another day, its soccer program will have to wait for a not-so-probable budget surplus in order to be exhumed.
As for volleyball: that’s a no brainer. Volleyball has long been the most regionalized sport in the state with a fractional following compared to any other sport offered at UMaine.
On the bright side, USM will have a better chance of landing the next class of stellar soccer players from Maine since they’ll have very few other options.
Michael Tardiff is a long-time soccer hater.