Small Colleges / Alan Drooz : Three CCAA Schools Eyeing Division I

Has the California Collegiate Athletic Assn. become too good for its own good?

That’s the question several CCAA schools are studying as they ponder moving to Division I.

The eight-member conference has won Division II national titles in nearly every sport in the last decade and has been particularly dominant in such warm-weather sports as swimming, baseball, softball, volleyball and cross-country.

The larger state schools--Cal State Northridge, Cal State Los Angeles and UC Riverside--have been relatively successful against Division I opponents and are becoming restless for a variety of reasons, both athletic and financial.

The three are studying the feasibility of moving to Division I, and at least one will probably apply formally by the end of the school year.

At the other end of the spectrum, the conference’s smaller schools, such as Chapman and Cal State Dominguez Hills, are just barely competitive in many sports and have no inclination to move up in class.

So although it takes two years after application to be accepted in Division I, it appears that by 1990 the CCAA will have a different look.

At Cal State Los Angeles, which already competes in Division I in soccer and women’s track and field, the athletic board is considering bringing all sports into compliance with Division I standards for the next school year, and applying for full Division I status. On that timetable Cal State L.A. would be Division I in the fall of 1989.

UC Riverside, pending its own study, could be on the same timetable. Athletic Director Chris Rinne said the administration began studying the idea last year and hopes to decide this winter. “We may make a commitment as of June,” he said. “We could set up a longer timetable or we could remain Division II.”

Cal State Northridge, with an enrollment of 28,000, has been perhaps the most dominant CCAA school and concluded a study this fall that recommended applying for Division I standing. Athletic Director Bob Heigert, who is also CCAA president this school year, said: “Things will come rather quickly when things get put into action. . . . We’re ready to move quickly.”

At Cal State L.A., Gary Hunt, the liaison between the faculty and athletics, said: “A lot of people here would oppose it. . . . We’re looking at a lot of things. Everything is very preliminary now. I think it does make sense.”

Clearly, they’re breaking up that ol’ league of theirs, slowly but surely.

One official at one of the smaller schools, who asked not to be identified, said: “The rest of us are a long way off--years” before upgrading. “But every time we have a meeting it comes up. I think they’re all crazy.”

It was pointed out that, with the possible exception of Northridge, none of the CCAA schools has been dominant in many sports and might have trouble playing continuously on the level of the Pacific Coast Athletic Assn. or West Coast Athletic Conference, not to mention the Pacific 10.

Hunt said: “In water polo and track we’re competitive (with Division I) already. CCAA baseball is competitive with Division I now. Volleyball is improving. We’re not dominant but I think we’re competitive in most sports.”

Heigert offered several reasons for making the move:

--Division II is by far the smallest of the three NCAA divisions, making scheduling difficult. The latest breakdown shows 793 NCAA members, 281 in Division I, 185 in Division II, 317 in Division III.

--Division II is still the poor relative in many cases, and Heigert said Division II national tournaments often don’t pay for themselves. It ends up costing qualifying schools--like Northridge--to compete for the title.

--Division I schools are becoming less amenable to scheduling Division II teams because it makes their programs less attractive, and Division III schools are reluctant to take on the stronger Division II teams. “We’re running out of people to play in the area. They’re freezing us out,” Heigert said.

“With all those things, and our being 26 years old, and with our student base and location, it was probably time to reassess and look down the road.”

One of the details the three hope to effect is the formation of a conference, probably with some out-of-state schools. None wants to be a Division I independent.

Division I schools also have to meet different grade and scholarship requirements. In a newsletter to athletic boosters, Athletic Director Dennis Keihn of Cal State L.A. said that the school hopes to increase grant-in-aid and scholarship funds from the current level of $72,000 to $325,000.

Rinne said: “We’re trying to find out what all the ramifications are. We could declare tomorrow but without a change in resources, we would be a Division II school in Division I clothing.”

Small-College Notes Senior forward William Alexander of Cal State Dominguez Hills scored 16 points over the weekend and became the school’s career scoring leader with 1,344. Alexander, averaging 20 points this season, also became the all-time leader in field goals in the CCAA and needs 207 points to break the CCAA’s career scoring mark. . . . David Rodi, the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference soccer player of the year, was named a Division III All-American. . . . Brent Kane, an offensive tackle at Whittier College, was named a first-team academic All-American by the College Sports Information Directors of America. . . . Dennis Hochman, a kicker at Sonoma State from North Hollywood High and Valley College, was the No. 1 field goal kicker in Division II, making 19 of 22 with a long one of 54 yards, and was the third-rated kicker in college ranks. He’s an alternate choice for the Senior Bowl in mid-January. . . . The Cal Lutheran men’s basketball team beat Cal Poly Pomona for its first victory over a Division II team in two years, 96-95. . . . The Cal State Northridge women’s basketball team won two games last week despite committing 63 turnovers. Their opponents also committed more than 30 turnovers each game. . . . Becky White, an eight-time All-American in volleyball and basketball at Biola, was recently hired as women’s basketball coach at The Master’s. . . . Fran Buckless, women’s basketball coach at Cal State Los Angeles, recorded her 100th collegiate victory this month.