UConn proposes self-imposed penalties, an update on Calhoun and value of a basketball education ($678 million)

 February 8, 2012

It's a busy Wednesday here in UConn basketball land.
Three items of interest to check out:
UConn has proposed self-imposed penalties in order to secure a waiver from the NCAA to be eligibile to compete in next year's NCAA tournament, according to an Associated Press report.
Without a waiver, the Huskies will sit out the 2013 post-season as punishment for a sub-par Academic Progress Rate.
Self-imposed penalties include reducing the schedule next season by four regular season games. Also, UConn would forfeit its share of Big East revenue from the tournament and impose recruiting limitations next fall.
For the complete story, go to this link:
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BKC_UCONN_APR?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2012-02-08-14-16-41
UConn issued a statement in response to the AP story.
Here's what school president Susan Herbst said.:
"We believe that we have made a very compelling case to the NCAA and will be deeply disappointed if our request for a waiver, from the 2013 men's basketball postseason ban, is denied. Our team's academic performance improved tremendously in 2010-11, and in the fall 2011 semester. We developed a new long-term academic plan for our team, and it has already shown positive results.

"It is unfortunate that our current men's basketball student-athletes could be punished for the problematic academic performance of other students -- students who have not been enrolled at UConn for over two years. That decision would be unfair to innocent young people, which is baffling to us. Regulatory bodies should not change rules retroactively. The NCAA should focus on the future, so that people have the chance to work toward positive change. They should not dredge up the past, and then hurt innocent parties of the present.

"On a personal level, and as an educator, I would be very sorry to see such harsh punishment of the outstanding young men on our current basketball team. I believe that it would be wrong to punish these students, caught in the fallout from a sudden passage of new rules -- rules that did not exist when they enrolled at UConn. That would be a fundamental injustice to our team and to our university.

"My thanks go out to so many wonderful professionals at UConn who have made great strides in our academic approach over the past few years, as well as to our students, whom we treasure, along with our dedicated faculty and coaches. And I cannot think of many people in this world who have improved the lives of young men more profoundly than Jim Calhoun, our Hall of Fame coach, and highly-valued member of this university community."



-- UConn updated the status of coach Jim Calhoun who's on an indefinite medical leave of absence due to a painful lower back condition.
Not much has changed.
Calhoun has improved but will continue to sit out. He'll miss his third straight game Saturday at No. 2 Syracuse.
He'll visit with some specialists this week to determine a treatment plan.
"I'm feeling better, but as of now, I wouldn't be able to coach," Calhoun said in a release. "I'm trying to get the best assessment in order to find the best solution.
Since Calhoun went on medial leave on Friday, the Huskies are 1-1, beating Seton Hall Saturday and losing at Louisville Monday.
-- What's a basketball education worth at UConn?
Try over $678 million dollars (and counting).
According to the Wall Street Journal, former Huskies playing in the NBA have earned $678,809,430 dating back to 1985. They're ranked sixth overall among college basketball teams.
In what the story calls Basketball's Alumni Loot Index, North Carolina is ranked first at a whopping $852,902,514. Duke, Arizona, Georgetown and Michigan complete the top five.
Here's the link to the Wall Street Journal story: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204136404577209391406607120.html

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