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ABERDEEN, S.D. (AP) — College wrestling supporters are pushing to restore the sport at Northern State University after it was suspended two weeks ago as school officials sought to review the long-term viability and financing of the program.
NSU President James Smith and Athletic Director Josh Moon met this week with Mike Moyer, the executive director of the National Wrestling Coaches Association. Moyer helped to piece together a proposal that has three main principles: make the Wolves more competitive in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, increase the number of wrestlers involved in the sport and create funding to sustain the program.
Moyer said he is "cautiously optimistic" that the Northern State wrestling program can be restored if supporters can find enough funding, reported the American News in Aberdeen (http://bit.ly/1FWwWAl ).
The plan is to raise $70,000 in annual pledges for the next five years, he said, but if the program is to survive, it needs the first funding installment in the next two weeks. Moon, the school's athletic director, reiterated in a statement that the next couple weeks are crucial to helping restore the wrestling program for the 2015-16 season, which wrestling supporters are pressing to have happen.
"We need to hit a funding goal that allows us to retain our athletes, secure a top-level coach and recruit a batch of new athletes to the program," said Moon. "It's really through the outpouring of support from the community that we're able to consider this. But to put a team on the mats in the fall, we need to move quickly to secure the funds to move forward."
School officials announced earlier this month that the program would be suspended for the next two seasons while they review how the program operates and how it could function in the future.
Moyer said the funding mechanism for college wrestling is a three-way partnership.
"The school is contributing, the alumni are contributing and the community is contributing," he said. "The most sustainable programs are where you have all three of those entities. The school has been contributing to this point and it's clear that the program needs more funding in order to be more competitive."
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Information from: Aberdeen American News, http://www.aberdeennews.com
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