As the former sports editor, after PUC was accepted into the GLIAC conference in January, I wrote a column titled “Despite GLIAC acceptance, PUC is not ready for the NCAA.” Now that PNW has been accepted into NCAA Division II on appeal after initially getting rejected by the organization in July, I’m going to revisit what I wrote in that column.

The first and most critical point I brought up in my column was PUC being mired in a scandal involving the dismissal of former men’s basketball coach Dan Voudrie, who had made threatening comments to a player, which I also wrote a story about in the same issue. Initially, his departure was labeled as a mutual resignation for personal reasons by the PUC athletic department. I argued that the unusual circumstances of Voudrie’s departure and the athletic department’s handling of the issue raised a number of red flags given it happened during PUC’s acceptance into GLIAC and the application process for NCAA as well as unification of PUC and PNC. I still stand by that statement and personally believe it was a factor in the NCAA’s initial decision to deny PNW membership into the NCAA.

Lack of game attendance was another point I brought up, which I believe is still an issue. Despite free admission for students, attendance is still lacking. I don’t see this changing upon entering the GLIAC/NCAA aside from an initial surge due to the novelty of being accepted. Average attendance for an NCAA Division II men’s basketball game during the 2014-15 season was 710, while PUC’s was 262 that same season.

A lack of school spirit, especially when compared to Purdue West Lafayette, was mentioned as an issue relating to attendance and I still believe that is true. Due to PNW’s nature as a regional campus of Purdue West Lafayette, I can’t see PNW ever developing a consistent attendance record and fan base, even for NCAA Division II standards, due to most people preferring the Boilermakers to The Pride.

The size of PNW’s student body is a major reason why school officials desired GLIAC and NCAA acceptance. PNW Chancellor Thomas Keon and Athletics Director Rick Costello have said that PNW should compete among similar institutions, citing the CCAC’s smaller, mostly private membership as being too dissimilar to PNW’s reported 15,000 students, making PNW a better fit for the GLIAC.

However, enrollment has declined after PUC and PNC unified, and while the official numbers have yet to be obtained, the 15,000 number is reportedly inaccurate. According to information presented by Carmen Panlilio, vice chancellor for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs, at the PNW faculty senate meeting on Sept. 9, the enrollment of new, incoming students is down 6 percent at the Hammond campus and down 15 percent at the Westville campus, while 15 percent of full-time, returning students is down at the Hammond campus and down 29 percent at the Westville campus. Overall, enrollment is down 33 percent from last year.

One point that I brought up which I was off-base on was television contracts. Apparently television contracts are not much of a factor for NCAA Division II, so that point does not tie into why PNW is still not ready. PNW’s lack of a football team was also a point I addressed, as all but one GLIAC school, not counting PNW, has a football team.

However, I think the biggest current issue is our record and performance against CCAC and NAIA opponents. If PNW cannot consistently compete at the top of the CCAC in most sports, then it’s going to take a minimum of five years before PNW will even be able to be respectable within the GLIAC. PNW will most likely be able to recruit some better players than what they currently have due to the prestige and benefits of being an NCAA Division II school, but even so, if we can’t consistently win in the CCAC/NAIA, it will be a long time before we can do so in the GLIAC/NCAA.

I still don’t think PNW is ready for the NCAA, and we’ll see why throughout the coming months and years as PNW competes in the GLIAC beginning next season.