My apolgies to Mike and others for perhaps a word misused... I did not
mean to imply that other schools don't have high standards, but let's face
it, playing in a league with mostly state supported schools is a lot
different than playing in a league which is more selective.  It is simply
a matter of the structure of the schools, nothing to belittle a school
for, but at most state supported schools, including the one I currently
teach at, all you need to be is in the top third of your class, with about
1000 (in some majors considerably less) on your two college boards, andyou
are in.  At some state schools and most private schools, which can afford
to be more selective (I didn't say this necessarily meant better, MIke!)
you need over 1200 on the boards just to be considered, and for example at
Cal Poly here the engineering school is so impacted that the average
 incoming freshman needs over 1200!
 
To me it didn't make athletic sense for RPI to switch to a league in which
some of the schools are able to recruit more easily... simple as that...
and it meant that I agreed with RPI's decision to stay in a league with
similar academic standards in which the recruiting table is more level.
Of course, I still relish them beating the big state schools, but I am
realistic to know that, on average, this will not happen.  That is not to
say there is anything wrong about the state schools, or that RPI people
are snobs, it is just a fact of academic life that recruiting for
athletics is most certainly easier at certain schools than others. Period.
 I will not back down on that point. I have seen recruiting go on at RPI,
Univ of Illinois and in the middle here at Cal Poly, and like I said, I
wish that all college sports were played by Div III rules, but I believe
it impossible to go back!!
 
Having said that, I will apologize to Mike (I think he does a great job on
the net) and anyone else that was possibly offended.  If you read the
above, maybe you will get a sense of what I was trying to say from a
faculty viewpoint mind you!  Let's move on to hockey!  ;-)
 
Tony Buffa
RPI'64
U of Ill '66 and PhD '69
 
Physics Dept, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo
 
"Wish people here knew what ice was, so we could field a team!"