SFU alumni push back as university shuts down football program | 24CA News
An group made up of Simon Fraser University soccer gamers and alumni has began a petition to try to reverse the varsity’s determination to finish its soccer program.
The SFU Football Alumni Society issued an announcement by way of a social media submit.
“SFU administration, with zero consultation from key stakeholders, has made the decision to terminate the football program,” it mentioned.
“We, along with many SFU football alumni in the legal profession and many leaders in the Canadian football community, are working as fast as possible to reverse the process.
“We are taking legal action to halt all proceedings.”
The petition has been posted on-line.
“Sign the petition to restore the SFU Football Program before May 1, 2023,” the petition reads.
“SFU Football Alumni Society is taking steps to prevent SFU from canceling the football program.”
Global News has reached out to the group for remark.
A video of SFU’s senior director of athletics, Theresa Hanson, and provost and vice-president educational Wade Parkhouse, saying the rapid termination of this system was posted on Facebook.
After telling the student-athletes they now not have a group, the pair opened the ground for questions.
When requested if there was a catalyst second that drove the choice to finish this system, Parkhouse mentioned there wasn’t, exterior of the uncertainty of getting nowhere to play past the approaching season.
“Money has nothing to do with it … that is not the issue with the football program,” Parkhouse mentioned.
Parkhouse went on to say the ending of the soccer program is because of “not having options beyond the next year.”
The vice-president educational is referencing the choice made by NCAA Division II Lone Star Conference to not renew its settlement with SFU this previous January.
In 2021, SFU joined the convention within the southwestern United States on a two-year settlement.
Players expressed their many issues with the choice, together with its timing, the way forward for their scholarships and what seniors are going to do subsequent.
“It is a very hard decision. The university needed to make a decision because of the uncertainty and the experience of our student-athletes,” Theresa Hanson mentioned.
“We had to make the decision now so we could give those that wanted to move on the time to move on.”
Dino Geremia, a former long-time SFU soccer coach, student-athlete and present B.C. highschool coach, mentioned the announcement was, sadly, not surprising.
“I wish I could say I was surprised but just extremely disappointed that it came to this,” he advised Global News.
“There has been an ongoing pattern of unsupported decisions from the administration, especially impacting football. I think they made this decision… the only thing that makes sense is to save money.”
Geremia mentioned the timing of the choice is “incredibly horrible.”
“I don’t know if you could pick a worse time (to make this decision),” Geremia mentioned.
“Not only in the history and the developments (like the construction of the new stadium) but also with respect to the football calendar.
“They actually had the players go through spring camp and waiting until that camp was over to make this announcement — it is completely stealing away any opportunities that the players might have had to transfer to another university.”
Geremia, who coached at SFU for 17 years, mentioned the present SFU gamers are can have a particularly tough time discovering a brand new group — not to mention discovering a college that may supply them scholarships.
“The other universities are completing their spring camps as well and have scholarship funding already allocated to their 2023 recruits,” he mentioned.
“They are not open to having recruits coming in. For the seniors, this is devastating for their opportunities.”
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