WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.307 >> MUCH OF THE FOCUS ON DRAMATIC CHANGES IN COLLEGE ATHLETICS HAS BEEN ON HIGH PROFILE UNIVERSITIES, CONFERENCES AND 2 00:00:07.307 --> 00:00:14.080 ATHLETES, BUT WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR THE SO-CALLED MID MAJORS? BILL BENNER HAS MORE IN THIS WEEK'S INSIDE INDIANA SPORTS. 3 00:00:14.080 --> 00:00:18.351 BILL? >> THANKS, GERRY. AS THE SO CALLED POWER 5 CONFERENCES CONSOLIDATE THEIR 4 00:00:18.351 --> 00:00:26.226 POWER AND ASSOCIATED REVENUES, WHAT IMPLICATION DOES THAT HAVE FOR INSTITUTIONS SUCH AS IUPUI OR PURDUE FORT WAYNE IN THE 5 00:00:26.226 --> 00:00:32.565 HORIZON LEAGUE, BALL STATE IN THE MAC, EVANSVILLE, INDIANA STATE. FOR PERSPECTIVE, WE TURN TO 6 00:00:32.565 --> 00:00:38.972 JULIE ROE LACH, COMMISSIONER OF THE HORIZON LEAGUE AND FORMER ENFORCEMENT EXECUTIVE WITH THE NCAA, JULIE, WELCOME. 7 00:00:38.972 --> 00:00:44.177 THANK YOU FOR BEING ON THE SHOW. >> THANK YOU. GOOD TO BE WITH YOU. >> AND YOU BRING A REALLY 8 00:00:44.177 --> 00:00:52.552 INTERESTING PERSPECTIVE. YOUR PAST DUTIES WITH THE NCAA IN ENFORCEMENT, AS WE'RE GOING TO BE ENFORCING AN ENTIRELY 9 00:00:52.552 --> 00:00:59.826 DIFFERENT SET OF RULES, WHO KNOWS, BUT ALSO WITH THE SO-CALLED MID MAJORS, OF WHICH THE HORIZON LEAGUE IS A 10 00:00:59.826 --> 00:01:06.032 COLLECTION OF, NON-FOOTBALL-PLAYING, MOST OF THEM. AS THIS ALL SHAKES OUT AND THE 11 00:01:06.032 --> 00:01:13.506 NCAA LOOKS TO A CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION OVERHAUL IN NOVEMBER, WHAT DO YOU THINK SOME OF THE IMPLICATIONS ARE FOR YOUR LEAGUE 12 00:01:13.506 --> 00:01:18.845 AND LIKE SCHOOLS? >> SURE. AND I THINK YOU NOTED, THERE'S REALLY TWO PARALLEL TRACKS OF 13 00:01:18.845 --> 00:01:25.452 CHANGE HAPPENING, RIGHT? THE FIRST IS JUST THIS NOW REALIGNMENT AT THE POWER FIVE LEVEL AND SOME QUESTIONS AS TO 14 00:01:25.452 --> 00:01:32.859 WHETHER OR NOT THE POWER FIVE WILL BECOME A POWER FOUR. AND WILL SOME OF THOSE CONFERENCES FURTHER CONSOLIDATE. 15 00:01:32.859 --> 00:01:38.631 THE IMPACT ON THE REST OF US, SO TO SPEAK, IS SURELY THERE WILL BE SOME SORT OF DILUTED IMPACT DOWN THE ROAD. 16 00:01:38.631 --> 00:01:46.706 THINK IT'S ALSO, THOUGH, A LARGER MENTALITY MINDSET POTENTIAL CHANGE OF IS EXPANSION APPROPRIATE FOR ANY CONFERENCE, 17 00:01:46.706 --> 00:01:53.513 ARE MEMBERS IN THE RIGHT LEAGUE, AND TO ME, THAT'S REALLY A CALL FOR UNITY AND LOOKING AT WHY ARE THE CURRENT 12 MEMBERS IN THE 18 00:01:53.513 --> 00:02:00.186 HORIZON LEAGUE AND WHAT WILL ARE OUR KEY ATTRIBUTES THAT WE REALLY DO FIND IN COMMON AND UNIFY AROUND TO BRING THESE 19 00:02:00.186 --> 00:02:06.526 OPPORTUNITIES? SO I THINK IT'S FRANKLY AN IMPORTANT INFECTION POINT WHICH CAN BE THE RIGHT POINT, 20 00:02:06.526 --> 00:02:10.597 ESPECIALLY IF YOU'VE ALREADY GOT THE GROUNDWORK LAID AND KNOWING WHAT YOUR COMMON DENOMINATORS ARE. 21 00:02:10.597 --> 00:02:15.134 AND THEN -- >> GO AHEAD, JULIE. >> I WAS GOING TO SAY, THE SECOND BIG ISSUE, WHICH AGAIN IS 22 00:02:15.134 --> 00:02:23.910 A PARALLEL TRACK, IS THE NCAA HAS ANNOUNCED THIS REALLY LARGE OVERHAUL PROBABLY TRANSFORMATION IN TERMS OF THE WAY THE 23 00:02:23.910 --> 00:02:30.383 ASSOCIATION IS STRUCTURED AND WHAT SERVICES THEY DELIVER. I'VE HEARD THE WORD DECENTRALIZATION MENTIONED SERL 24 00:02:30.383 --> 00:02:39.125 TIMES. SERL -- SEVERAL TIMES. TWO IMPORTANT POINTS THERE, WE'RE REALLY GLAD THAT WE'RE 25 00:02:39.125 --> 00:02:44.497 GOING TO HAVE A REAL POINT OF INFLUENCE IN THE ROOM WITH PRESIDENT KRIS HOWARD FROM ROBERT MORRIS UNIVERSITY 26 00:02:44.497 --> 00:02:49.969 SERVING, AND THEN TWO, I THINK DECENTRALIZATION MEANS MORE OPPORTUNITY FOR CONFERENCES TO LEAD. 27 00:02:49.969 --> 00:02:56.075 IF THE NATIONAL OFFICE IS DOING LESS, THAT MEANS CONFERENCES NEED TO DO MORE. SO I WELCOME THIS OPPORTUNITY. 28 00:02:56.075 --> 00:03:05.385 >> OF COURSE DIVISION I IS SUCH A LARGE TENT WITH SO MANY VARIED INSTITUTIONS OF ALL SIZE AND SCOPE AND MISSION, BUT ALL OF 29 00:03:05.385 --> 00:03:13.693 THEM, INCLUDING THE HORIZON LEAGUE, ARE DEPENDENT LARGELY ON THE REVENUES GENERATED BY MARCH MADNESS AND THE NCAA DIVISION I 30 00:03:13.693 --> 00:03:23.002 MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT. WOULD YOU SEE, WOULD YOU SEE DOWN THE ROAD THAT THE TOURNAMENT REMAINS PRETTY MUCH 31 00:03:23.002 --> 00:03:27.006 AS IS? >> I DON'T KNOW THAT MY CRYSTAL BALL IS VERY CLEAR THESE DAYS, BILL. 32 00:03:27.006 --> 00:03:34.380 IT'S A LIG FOGGY. BUT I DO THINK FUNDAMENTALLY, THE NCAA REALLY NEEDS TO DO TWO THINGS REALLY WELL, RIGHT? 33 00:03:34.380 --> 00:03:40.486 PROVIDE INCREDIBLE CHAMPIONSHIPS, OF WHICH THEY PROVIDE 90, MANY PEOPLE FORGET THAT, BUT 90, ONE OF WHICH -- 34 00:03:40.486 --> 00:03:47.827 REALLY TWO OF WHICH ON THE MEN'S WOMEN'S BASKETBALL SIDE WE HAVE BECOME A HALLMARK, AND THEN TWO, THEY SEARCH FOR THAT AND PROVIDE 35 00:03:47.827 --> 00:03:53.299 THAT PROVERBIAL LEVEL PLAYING FIELD THROUGH THEIR REGULATORY FUNCTIONS. I THINK OF ANY CHAMPIONSHIP THAT 36 00:03:53.299 --> 00:03:59.072 WORKS INCREDIBLY WELL AND WE JUST EXPERIENCED ALL OF IT RIGHT HERE THIS PAST MARCH IS THE MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT. 37 00:03:59.072 --> 00:04:08.481 I REALLY THINK THAT WOULD PROBABLY BE THE LAST TO CHANGE, AND THE REASON WHY IS BECAUSE WE DO SEE THE CINDERELLA STORIES 38 00:04:08.481 --> 00:04:18.758 STILL HAP HAPPENING ON ANN DELAL BASIS. SO IF THERE'S ANY CHAMPIONSHIP THAT IS MORE INSULATED FROM 39 00:04:18.758 --> 00:04:24.030 OTHERS FROM POTENTIAL CHANGE, IT'S THAT ONE. >> JULIE, TALK ABOUT REAL QUICKLY, AGAIN, YOUR ROLE IN 40 00:04:24.030 --> 00:04:32.438 ENFORCEMENT AND NEW RULES COMING DOWN THE ROAD AND NAME IMAGE LIKENESS AS QUICKLY AS YOU CAN, HOW DO YOU SUM UP HOW THE NCAA 41 00:04:32.438 --> 00:04:38.444 OR MEMBER INSTITUTIONS WILL BEGIN TO ENFORCE THAT RULE AND MAINTAIN THAT LEVEL PLAYING FIELD? 42 00:04:38.444 --> 00:04:45.685 >> WELL, I THINK THE REAL WILDCARD HERE HAS BEEN THE SUPREME COURT DECISION WITH ALSTON, WHICH REALLY HAS 43 00:04:45.685 --> 00:04:54.427 CHALLENGED THE NCAA TO SAY, HEY, ANY TIME YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE A NATIONAL RULE THAT RESTRICTS ANY SORT OF ACTIVITY LIKE NAME IMAGE 44 00:04:54.427 --> 00:05:01.434 LIKENESS, YOU NEED TO HAVE A PRETTY DARN GOOD REASON FOR IT AND THAT'S WHY THE NCAA BACKED OFF RESTRICTING THAT JULY 31 OF 45 00:05:01.434 --> 00:05:06.139 THIS YEAR AND SAID WE'RE NO LONGER GOING TO RESTRICT THAT. I THINK THAT'S GOING TO BE THE MOVE, SO FRANKLY WE'RE GOING TO 46 00:05:06.139 --> 00:05:14.781 SEE LESS REGULATION, NOT MORE. AND THAT IS WHY I THINK CONFERENCES WILL NEED TO SAY WITHIN OUR FOOTPRINT, WITHIN OUR 47 00:05:14.781 --> 00:05:23.189 MEMBERSHIP, ARE THERE CERTAIN RULES THAT WE WANT TO UPHOLD, PERHAPS MORE SO THAN OTHERS. AND ALL OF THAT HOPEFULLY WILL 48 00:05:23.189 --> 00:05:30.430 STILL HAPPEN UNDER THIS BIG DIVISION I TENT THAT WE ARE ALL PROUD TO BE A PART OF >> JULIE, THE HORIZON LEAGUE, 49 00:05:30.430 --> 00:05:37.637 THE MEN'S AND WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT TAKING FAIR AT THE STATE FAIR GROUNDS. YOU HAD A PRESENCE, A NASCAR 50 00:05:37.637 --> 00:05:42.608 PRESENCE DURING THE STATE FAIR. THAT WAS PRETTY COOL. >> WHAT AN INCREDIBLE OPPORTUNITY. 51 00:05:42.608 --> 00:05:49.782 WE DID THAT BECAUSE IT CAME TO US THROUGH RICHARD CHILDRESS RACING AND AUSTIN DILLON, OBVIOUSLY A TOP NASCAR DRIVER, 52 00:05:49.782 --> 00:05:55.121 BUT THEY GAVE US AN OPPORTUNITY TO DO HORIZON LEAGUE WRAP. YOU DON'T SEE ANY OF THE DIVISION I CONFERENCES DOING 53 00:05:55.121 --> 00:06:04.230 THAT, BUT WE ARE COMMITTED TO THE INDIANAPOLIS COMMUNITY, WE LOVE OUR CHAMPIONSHIP BEING HHERE, AND AS PART OF THAT WE 54 00:06:04.230 --> 00:06:09.035 WANTED TO PROVIDE THIS PHOTO OPPORTUNITY FOR FANS. I'VE BEEN OUT THERE A COUPLE DAYS WORKING AND PEOPLE LOVE IT. 55 00:06:09.035 --> 00:06:12.105 PEOPLE JUST WANT TO LOOK IN THE CAR. SO IT WAS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO 56 00:06:12.105 --> 00:06:16.809 CONTINUING TO JUST PARTNER WITH THIS COMMUNITY IN ANY AND EVERY WAY WE CAN. >> JULIE, WE CERTAINLY 57 00:06:16.809 --> 00:06:23.683 APPRECIATE YOU BEING ON THE PROGRAM. GREAT PERSPECTIVE AND WE'LL SEE HOW IT ALL UNFOLDS AS WE MOVE 58 00:06:23.683 --> 00:06:25.785 AND TURN THE PAGES OF THE CALENDAR.