FLORENCE - Presidents of the Ohio Valley Conference universities spent part of Sunday and Monday acquainting themselves with the University of North Alabama and its athletics program just in case there is a relationship between them down the road.

The conference requested the information before their scheduled meeting in Nashville the past two days. Expansion is a topic the 11-team conference is exploring as part of its future plan. The conference has nine football-playing members.

UNA President William Cale said in an e-mail the information provided was not a formal application for admittance into the OVC, a Division I athletic conference.

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“(It’s) not an application, just a reply to their inquiry, presumably so they could know us better since they are aware of the study we are doing and that they are in our published report as a possible place to affiliate,” Cale states in the e-mail.

UNA is in the final stages of exploring a possible move from its home in NCAA Division II to Division I.

Presidents representing OVC members did not vote on an issue related to UNA during their meeting. The topic could be revisited at the conference’s summer meeting.

A student referendum at UNA continues through Wednesday to gauge their interest for a move that would require a sizable increase in the student fee to support athletics. It’s part of the university’s research in the decision-making process.

A move cannot be made until the NCAA lifts its moratorium on movement — expected to happen in August. Time is ticking away for UNA to make a decision. If the Lions plan to leave the GSC without penalty in time for the 2012-13 school year, they must serve notice before the June conference meetings.

“We provided (to the Ohio Valley Conference) some basic statistical information about our athletic programs, such as sports we offer, numbers of scholarships, attendance, number of student athletes, and we explained the history of how we came to be examining whether a move to D-I was right for UNA,” Cale said.

According to one person with knowledge of the OVC, at least one other school has expressed interest in joining the league, which includes former UNA rivals Jacksonville State and Tennessee-Martin. The name of that university has not been released.

UNA’s Board of Trustees could vote on whether to make the transition to Division I as soon as March 14 at their quarterly meeting. An upward move would require a sizable financial commitment from the university. The estimated NCAA application fee is $1.3 million, and the athletics budget would have to increase by about $4.5 million to be on par with other OVC members.

Committees reviewing the possibility of switching are looking at various aspects of such a move, including how to pay for it, possible increasing team offerings at UNA and additional expenses.

Ohio Valley Conference seeks information on UNA athletics
By Gregg Dewalt, The Florence Times-Daily (AL)
http://www.timesdaily.com/article/20110208/NEWS/110209802/1011/NEWS?Title=Ohio-Valley-Conference-seeks-information-on-UNA-athletics