This isn't exactly on the subject, but I feel it relates and is worth
posting.
 
Before 1965, UofI at Chicago was named the UofI at Navy Pier, a 2 year
undergraduate division of the UofI at Urbana-Champaign.  Navy Pier had a
football team, the Navy Pier or Chicago Illini.  The decision was
made to open an independent, 4 year university in Chicago in 1965, the
UofI at Chicago Circle, a commuter school.  Around this point in time the
nickname was changed to the Chicago Chicas, rather than the Chicago Illini.
 
The Chicago football program was dropped in exchange for the future building
of a stadium to house both Chica basketball and hockey.  The UofI
administration wanted to concentrate all of the football money on the
older, downstate campus, and at the same time compensate the new Chicago
campus by providing funding for the stadium and the basketball/hockey programs.
 
In 1982, the UofI at Chicago was born, consolidating the Medical school
and the old Circle campus.  The UIC Pavilion was also completed in the Fall
of 1982.  I'm not sure exactly when, but both UIC basketball and hockey
beacame Division I sports after this.  The nickname was renamed the
Flames, in honor of the Great Chicago Fire.
 
I know I probably gave a lot of extra information here, but this is my
best guess as to why UIC does not have a football program, and UIUC does
not have a Div. I hockey program.  I doubt UIUC will get a Div. I hockey
team anytime soon, lacking a large enough facility, and I doubt UIC will
ever get a football program, let alone a stadium.  (They used to use
Soldier Field years back.)  Everything all comes down to money, it seems.
 
And speaking of the 60/40 rule or whatever for the men/women
participation...this now affects the pep band here.  We used to play for
nearly all home Flames men's basketball and hockey games.  Now, they have
cut us from the hockey games, with the exception of about 4 games.  The
rest of the time we will be playing for home women's basketball, rather
than hockey.
 
This really disgusts and angers me.  The band had a great time at the
hockey games, and men's basketball was fun too.  I believe that the women
should have their own basketball team, but let's face it: it's not
exciting to watch.  There are only a few hundred people in a nearly
10,000 seat stadium for those games, so there is no crowd to get into the
game.  There are always at least a couple thousand fans at the men's
basketball and hockey games, making it exciting and fun for us.
 
I talked to the associate AD here, and explained to me his hands were
tied in this matter by the NCAA.  At least we still have men's basketball to
play for.  There is simply not enought time to play for three varsity
sports, so the hockey pep band was basically cut.
 
Of course there will be several of us from the band (myself included) still
going to the hockey games, but just as spectators.  We'll have to suffer to the
canned National Anthem and music during stoppage of play.
 
Just my *FRUSTRATED* $0.02 worth.
 
-Mark
                   ________________________________________
                  |           Mark B. Czarnowski           |
  GO              |    University of Illinois at Chicago   |              GO
FLAMES!           |     Internet Email: [log in to unmask]    |            ILLINI!
                  | WWW: http://www.eecs.uic.edu/~mczarnow |
                  |    Campus telephone: (312) 413-3543    |
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