The student body is starting to weigh in on the idea of a football program at UNCC. As we’ve noted before, UNCC’s current status as a basketball-only school and member of the A-10 is not exactly a great fit.
This UNCC football issue is being framed correctly, it seems:
Student Body President Ben Comstock said he hopes the discussion will help students and others learn the true costs of bringing a football program to the school. Comstock said that contrary to some people’s beliefs, student fees and private donations — not state appropriations — will pay for a football team.
“Everybody wants to know why we don’t have a football team,” Comstock said. “The reason we don’t have a football team is because it costs money. My question is are students willing to pay what it takes to get a football team.”
Football could only happen at UNCC if students (and their parents) and alumni stepped up to support it. For students that means higher student fees and much greater giving by the local alumni base.
However, do not forget that UNCC Chancellor Phil Dubois has drunk of the Kool-Aid which envisions UNCC as a primarily urban campus, connecting to its $45 million Uptown building/starter set via a $750 million light rail line running up Tryon Street.
Football has no obvious role in that scenario and certainly would not be a priority.