No Carleton Ravens varsity teams will be joining the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) any time soon, according to Carleton’s director of the department of athletics and recreation, Jennifer Brenning.
Brenning referred to a number of different reasons including the fact Carleton would not be able to offer full-ride scholarships, and that she is perfectly happy with the facilities, coaching, and overall experience in Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS).
And while these are all fair arguments, Brenning — and surely many other CIS teams — seem to be missing the big picture.
Having more Canadian teams join the NCAA would do wonders in keeping Canada’s top amateur athletes in the country. Year after year, Canada’s premier recruits bolt to the U.S., where they play at a higher level of competition and therefore get more recognition.
If more CIS teams start joining the NCAA, the top university sport association in the world, there would be more opportunities for these athletes to stay in Canada, while still getting the benefits of the NCAA. This would have a ripple effect on the Canadian talent pool as a whole.
For example, if Andy Rautins, a Canadian point guard who was recently drafted by the NBA’s New York Knicks, played his university basketball with Carleton, rather than Syracuse, the Ravens basketball squad would be forced to try to play at his level. As a result, their game would improve.
Elite Canadian professional sports athletes are few and far between, especially in sports such as soccer and basketball. Case in point, Canada’s national basketball team lost all five games in the recent FIBA World Championships.
If the top Canadian university athletes stayed in their native country, this could change. And having more CIS teams, like Carleton, join the NCAA would only facilitate this.