Brown Says the Schedule Is Too Busy

LSU basketball Coach Dale Brown says his team’s 31-game schedule is far too long, and he’d like to see all colleges playing shorter seasons with fewer games.

“We need to limit games. We could easily cut down on the number of games. My feeling is to start after Christmas--the 28th (of December) or something like that. Jan. 1 would be fine,” he said.

The Final Four could be moved back to May 1 and the number of regular-season games reduced to avoid conflicts and ease academic pressure on players, he said.

He also acknowledged that it’s not likely his suggestions will be favorably received, because adopting them would cut the income of schools, the NCAA and television networks.

LSU opens with an exhibition game on Nov. 14, then begins play in the National Invitation Tournament on Nov. 21.

If LSU should advance to the NIT championship game and then go all the way to the championship game of the Final Four, it would play 42 games this season, Brown said.

Two games are scheduled during the week before exams, Arkansas State on Dec. 4 and McNeese on Dec. 6. It’s the week the school refers to as “dead week,” and no extra-curricular activities are supposed to be scheduled then.

Brown said he has scheduled games during dead week for 14 years and never knew it was contrary to university policy. It’s hard to work in nine non-conference games without scheduling a couple of them during that period, he said.

He also said it would be foolhardy for a coach or athletic director at one school to decide to cut back on the season without everyone doing it.

The rule of thumb is that it takes 20 victories to get an invitation to a postseason tournament, so most coaches try to schedule as many games as possible, Brown said.

Nor is it necessary to begin basketball practice on Oct. 15, when schools are not allowed to schedule regular season games until the fourth Friday in November, he said.

Billy Seay, chairman of LSU’s Athletic Council, said his policy-making panel is studying a recommendation that the NCAA shorten the basketball season, reduce the number of games or both.

It’s too late to get anything done about it this year, but there’s a chance such a recommendation could be presented as a proposal for the 1988 NCAA meeting, he said.