 TOLEDOROCKETS.NETYour source for information on Rocket Football! |
TOLEDOROCKETS.NETYour source for information on Rocket Football! |
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By Brian Nowicki Tomorrow the University of Toledo and the Medical University of Ohio officially merge into one great institution that will be known as the University of Toledo. At that point the University of Toledo becomes more than just your average institution. UT will have colleges of business, education, engineering, law, medicine, and pharmacy. Counting the University of Toledo, there are only 17 institutions in the country that offer each of those six colleges. Further, The University of Toledo will become the third largest University in the state of Ohio in terms of operating budget. The budget will be near $650 million, with only The Ohio State University and The University of Cincinnati having a higher operating budget. Enrollment at the new University of Toledo will consist of approximately 23,000 students. Over 7,000 faculty and staff will be employed. Research funding will be near $60 million. The University Medical Center at The University of Toledo (formerly MUO) is the only academic health center in the region. Further, it is a Level 1 trauma center and the only area hospital with an accredited primary stroke center. The hospital is licensed for 319 beds. Along with St Vincent Mercy Medical Center, the University Medical Center operates an air-ambulance service known as Life-Flight. Part of The University Medical Center is the Kobacker Center, which is the only hospital in Northwest Ohio that is devoted to treating the emotional needs of children and teens. There is also a rehabilitation hospital that is part of The University Medical Center at The University of Toledo. So the question now becomes "does it still make sense to be part of the Mid-American Conference?" Last year Bowling Green State University's operating budget was approximately $255 million. This year should be a similar figure. Their enrollment is just over 20,000. Ohio University had a budget of approximately $303 million last year. Ohio has an enrollment of about 19,000. Ball State had a budget of about $250 million last year. They have an enrollment of just under 18,000. The only University in the Mid-American Conference with a similar operating budget to the University of Toledo is Miami University, who recently approved an operating budget of $626 million for the 2006-07 fiscal period. This is approximately $25 million less than the University of Toledo's budget that was recently approved for the same fiscal period. The new University of Toledo is simply one of the finer institutions in the Mid-American Conference and it should not be out of the question to consider membership in a more prestigious conference. I know many people think about athletics with conference association, and that is a major part of being a member of a certain conference. However, the look and feel, and the prestige of a University is also a huge factor in conference affiliation. There is no doubt that the merger gives the University of Toledo prestige and the building blocks needed to look into membership in a more prestigious conference. However, athletic facilities are not on par for such a move. In my opinion, there is a lot of potential right now for The University of Toledo and the time has come to position itself for a move in the future. There is work to be done though. Sure the Rocket football program has been very good on the field. However, even Mid-American Conference schools are passing UT up in terms of facilities for football. Bowling Green is in the process of constructing the Sebo Athletic Center, which is a more state of the art version of Toledo's Larimer Athletic Complex. Nothing against Larimer, but the technology today is better than it was in 1990 when that complex was built. Northern Illinois is also in the process of building their version of Larimer, called the Academic and Athletic Performance Center. UT needs to extend Larimer to increase the size of the weight training room. Some new equipment needs to be purchased for the weight room as well. Another thing that UT is lacking is an indoor practice facility, which head football coach Tom Amstutz has wanted for quite some time. Again, there have been talks about building one or including one in a renovation of Savage Hall, but the plans need to procced at this point. Several MAC schools either already have one or have firm plans to build one in the next few years. With Toledo playing in four bowl games in the last five years, an indoor practice facility is vital. And a facility of this sort would be used by multiple sports, so it would benefit more than just football. One more thing that needs to be looked at for football is Glass Bowl Stadium. It is one of the best, if not the best stadium in the Mid-American Conference. However, to position the University for a possible move to a more prestigious conference there needs to be an expansion. Just a small expansion that would bring the seating capacity to 36K, or preferably 40K, would do the trick. The current size, official seating capacity of 26,248, is just too small when looking to move up. Toledo has had several games in recent years with attendance over 30,000 so expanding to 36K or 40K only seems logical. Looking at basketball, Savage Hall is in need of some serious work. There have been talks of either doing a major renovation to Savage Hall or moving men's and women's basketball to a new arena in downtown Toledo. I don't know which solution is better for the University of Toledo, but a decision needs to be made very soon. Savage Hall was once the premier arena in the MAC, but it is old and worn now. Something has to be done. So all of this costs money and The University of Toledo is not made of money and they are also in need of paying for the merger. However, you have to invest money in order to make money. An investment in athletic facilities at The University of Toledo right now will aid the institution in getting into a more prestigious conference. And doing so would bring in a ton of athletic revenue that the school is not seeing in the Mid-American Conference. It's tough. You have to keep the institution financially afloat and you have to remember that the focus is academics. However, it is possible to put some effort in athletics and see that positively affect academics. And that is what would happen in this case. Dr Lloyd Jacobs is taking over as the President of the new University of Toledo. He needs to remove the barriers around UT Athletic Director Mike O'Brien, and let him do some fundraising for the facility upgrades that are needed. President Daniel Johnson recognized O'Brien as an "outstanding fundraiser" when he hired him in January of 2002. Now is the time for President Jacobs to allow him to do just that. Do the fundraising, commit to the plans, and position The University of Toledo for a move to a more prestigious conference down the road. And if the Mid-American Conference raises its own prestige and it is logical to remain in the conference, UT is still going to need to do the things mentioned above to keep from falling behind to the middle of the pack or worse. Have a question or comment for Brian? Email |