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Arkansas-Fort Smith AD Curtis Janz sits down with MIAA Commissioner Mike Racy and KQ2’s Chris Roush to talk about the position of the conference and DII as he steps into the chair of the DII Strategic Planning and Finance Committee, which just approved the division’s new long-term budget and operating plan that includes more funds allocated to championships, per diem and conferences. Janz: “One of the discussions we had is about the percentages of student-athletes that get to play in NCAA championships, which is not huge. So how do we also impact all the rest of the student-athletes? And I do believe it's going through the conferences to help offset or upgrade conference championships.” Serving on the conference’s strategic planning group, Janz notes the league may put a three-year strategic plan in place, as opposed to a five-year one, given the rate of change in athletics. Racy goes on to state: “It seems like we're at a point in college athletics that Division II needs to go on the offense. It seems like since COVID, we've been playing a little defense. We've been reacting to things going on around us, but now that there's beginning to be this clear demarcation between schools and conferences that want to be part of a more professional model and schools and conferences that want to commit to really the foundational principles of an education-centered model for their intercollegiate programs, I think that gives us a great chance in the MIAA and Division II to really tell our story, to share that it's a place that a student-athlete will have the best experience, teams can have the greatest success, and schools can find a financial model that they can actually sustain and that the math makes sense.” Janz adds: “I think that we have a little bit of time to really put in concrete exactly who we are, know who we are, know what our strengths are, and then be able to promote that with people who are like-minded who may be in a different division.” One way that both agree the division can go on offense is the adoption of a fifth year of eligibility. More. (link)

Southern New Hampshire AD Anthony Fallacaro and Men’s Ice Hockey HC Sean Walsh have been placed on administrative leave. A statement from SNHU to WMUR: “Southern New Hampshire University is committed to fostering a supportive and professional environment that supports the health and well-being of all members of our community. Following recent concerns brought to the attention of SNHU administration, two employees within the athletics department have been placed on administrative leave. This is a proactive measure and does not reflect any conclusions or imply any finding of wrongdoing.” (link)

Yahoo’s Ross Dellenger shares details regarding compromises made between the power conferences and 10 non-FBS leagues during last week’s commissioner meetings in Chicago. “First, you should know that the 10 non-FBS conferences that formed a coalition, which we’ll call the Coalition of 10, requesting portions of the SCORE Act be amended, are now fully supporting legislation with a letter sent to lawmakers on Monday. That support only came after the compromise reached last week. The compromise is two-fold: (1) The power leagues agreed to amend the voting threshold for any proposal that changes Division I membership standards from a majority to a super majority (roughly 80%). This eases concerns for officials in non-FBS conferences, who expressed concern that the power leagues – which make up 65% of the new NCAA governance structure – could collectively change membership standards after a five-year moratorium on standards ends. (2) The SCORE Act requires all Division I schools to sponsor 16 sports, which is the NCAA FBS minimum. However, those in non-FBS operate under a minimum of 14, and 40 of those schools have fewer than 16 sports. The compromise here is that those non-FBS leagues can operate under the NCAA’s standard of 14.” (link)

In a recent appearance on the Coach's Wife Life podcast with Kristen Eargle, D1.relocation COO Ernest Firth III detailed the immense logistical and emotional toll of moving on coaching families, describing it as a "full-blown life reset." He explained how D1.relocation, differs from, and offers much more than, a standard moving company by acting as a single point of advocacy to simplify the relocation process for coaches and administrators. Firth noted that D1.relocation was built by "an empathetic group of leaders" who intimately understand the unique challenges of a career in college athletics and are prepared to assist families regardless of their school or budget. Lots more in the full Q&A. (link)

NCAA Basketball Tournament expansion is moving closer to a reality, reports Ross Dellenger for On3. With potential to begin for the 2026-27 event, “eight games are expected to be added to the current ‘First Four’ played over Tuesday and Wednesday of the first week of the event.” It won’t be called the “First Twelve,” however, as one high-placed executive tells Dellenger: “We’ll call it the opening round.” The new opening round will feature “24 teams playing in 12 games over the two days, with six games each at two sites (Dayton, the current home of the First Four, plus another likely more basketball-centric Western location). Those involved in the negotiations caution that plenty of this could change through the course of continuing talks with TV partners Warner Bros. Discovery and CBS. [...] Why 12 games? The entire goal is to keep the first round of the tournament at 64 teams. [...] In the opening round, the split is expected to remain the same: 12 lower-seeded automatic qualifiers and 12 at-large selections meeting one another. However, that could always change during the course of negotiations. Under this 12-and-12 plan, eight additional teams would be extracted from the main bracket, plus the eight new at-large selections derived from expansion. Basically, eight more at-large teams, previously secure in the first-round field, are now having to play an extra, play-in type game to reach the weekend tournament.” More. (link) 

The NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports (CSMAS) approved its July meeting report on athletic training workforce issues, which convened representatives from the athletic training industry to discuss the current educational, credentialing and workforce landscape; opportunities to collaborate and share resources; and the exploration of potential solutions. CSMAS highlighted data showing challenges across the athletic training profession and trends specific to the collegiate setting, including compensation not commensurate with qualifications and responsibilities, staffing shortages, recruitment and retention issues, work-life balance challenges, increasing workloads and frequent and unpredictable schedule changes. CSMAS supported ongoing collaboration with key athletic training stakeholders to develop potential solutions to these challenges, including mentoring opportunities, summary of health care delivery models, team physician advocacy, and strategies for cultural change. In addition, CSMAS also discussed the impact of increasing transfers on sports medicine staff, noting the process to obtain and review medical records often creates challenges and additional workload of both the departing and the receiving school. These challenges are often compounded due to the timing of a transfer or the receipt of incomplete medical records. CSMAS referred the topic to its Administrative Subcommittee for further discussion. More. (link)

Development & Deals…
➤ Northwest Missouri State brought in over $180K during its Bleed Green Day of Giving. (link)
➤ West Texas A&M teams up with Teamworks Influencer to launch the West Texas A&M Exchange. (link)

USCAH launches its Accreditation Program initiative designed to advance and validate institutional standards of excellence in athlete health, safety, well-being, and performance. With more than 30 organizations already established as candidates, USCAH Accreditation provides colleges, universities, National Governing Bodies, and other athletics organizations with an independent, comprehensive framework to safeguard athletes, while reflecting best practices plus evidence- and consensus-based standards endorsed by leading sports medicine organizations, scientific academies, and sport governing bodies encompassing standards across six core areas: Governance & Leadership, Athlete Health, Medical, and Performance Services, Education & Training, Compliance & Risk Management, Athlete Well-Being, and Data & Continuous Improvement. (link)

West Alabama will launch Women’s Flag Football starting in 2026-27. (link)

Shaw Women’s Backetball HC Jacques Curtis retires after 24 seasons at the helm. Assoc. HC Lou Hamilton will serve as Interim HC for the upcoming season. (link)

Coaches.wire…
➤ American International Women’s Lacrosse HC Jessica Harrison departs for the same position at Albertus Magnus (DIII). (link)
➤ Walsh hires former Malone AC Josh Forsythe as its first Men’s and Women’s Swimming & Diving HC. (link)
➤ Winona State taps Residence Hall Director Xao Vang as Women’s Tennis HC. (link)
➤ This morning’s Coaches.wire is paced by changes to hoops, baseball and track & field/cross country coaching staffs, but plenty of other sports show coaching staff movement from the past few days. (link)

The latest edition of CRO.ticker hit inboxes this morning. If you missed it, Revenue Brew’s Layla Ilchi examines the maturation of the CRO role and why those who hold the positions have shorter tenures than their C-suite peers. This issue also includes a look at TikTok’s ascension as an R&D lab and a checkout lane for F&B brands, the Indianapolis Colts’ implementation of Dormakaba Alvarado UltraQ Pedestals at entry points and more. There’s also this from Spotify Co-Founder/CEO Daniel Ek on balancing personal taste and data-driven analysis when making product decisions: “Sooner or later what ends up happening is you get into the space where you don’t even know anymore because your current feedback loop of where the world is and the customer you're designing for starts becoming a little bit different. And then you need to get to a point where you start incorporating some feedback mechanism. So, for me, taste is sort of judgment plus curiosity. … It’s really a question for me of allowing as much feedback as humanly possible so you can get yourself or your small team to some level of taste.” Not subscribed yet? If you’re not subscribed, you can sign up here! (link)