A law professor at the University of Kansas suggested on Twitter that his university should cut its Division I football program, calling it “an enormous money loser” and mentioning the likelihood of “life-altering injuries.”
“What’s the argument for continuing KU football (serious question)?” Corey Rayburn Yung rhetorically asked Sunday.
What’s the argument for continuing KU football (serious question)? It’s an enormous money loser for a cash-strapped university. Life-altering injuries and cumulative brain damage are inevitable. Wouldn’t this money be better spent elsewhere (e.g. more scholarships)?
— Corey Rayburn Yung (@CoreyRYung) September 2, 2018
Yung went on to suggest the university could leave the Big XII Conference if the conference wanted them to keep fielding a football team.
Certainly, there are Big XII obligations, but shouldn’t KU explore other options? Why can’t we join the 100’s of other Div. 1 basketball schools that don’t have a football team? The basketball team is enormously profitable and can subsidize other sports.
— Corey Rayburn Yung (@CoreyRYung) September 2, 2018
Long considered a “basketball school,” Kansas has had one of the poorest-performing football programs among major conference teams for years. The Jayhawks have gone 15-81 over the last eight seasons, never winning more than three games in a year, and even finishing 0-12 in 2015.
Kansas lost to FCS opponent Nicholls State in the 2018 season opener last weekend, 26-23 in overtime.
Continuing to charge KU students higher fees to support the football team (the biggest drain on KU’s athletic budget) just seems wrong. With yesterday’s loss to Nicholls St., it seems like an appropriate time to ask: why have a football team?
— Corey Rayburn Yung (@CoreyRYung) September 2, 2018
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