WEST HAVEN, Conn. — It was the opening-week matchup that had many double-checking the itemizing and scratching their heads.
Penn State, these Nittany Lions of the royal and regal Massive Ten Convention, have been enjoying a street recreation in opposition to … New Haven?
What’s New Haven?
The College of New Haven is the 365th/latest NCAA Division I college after starting the transition course of from Division II only a few months in the past. And the Chargers, although 0-3 by means of the primary six days of the season, have been as outstanding as any low-major within the nation, due to a decent debut Monday at No. 4 UConn (a 79-55 loss) mixed with pulling off the near-unthinkable.
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Gary Parrish
What transpired right here Saturday afternoon was fairly seemingly a primary in NCAA historical past: a power-conference basketball program enjoying at a low-major college in its first week of Division I membership. Penn State agreed to do it and isn’t any worse off in consequence. Mike Rhoades’ Nittany Lions received 87-43.
As for New Haven, the varsity will take the sport ball, paint the date and ultimate rating on it and proudly show the 44-point loss in its athletic services.
Here is the story of how New Haven satisfied a Massive Ten college to play in an 867-seat-capacity fitness center — and why Penn State opted in.
New Haven: ‘We’re taking the NCAA by storm’
New Haven’s Hazell Middle is as no-frills because it will get. The third-smallest fitness center within the sport, it has no video board, and except for a number of banners and a CHARGERS painted on one finish, the 4 concrete partitions are bare-white. I am a Connecticut resident, and in a former life I lined highschool athletics across the state. Belief me once I let you know there are a minimum of two dozen highschool gymnasiums inside 75 minutes of New Haven’s campus which might be bigger than what the Chargers play in.
Getting Penn State to come back was an absolute coup for a college of this measurement, however the accomplishment pales compared to the unlikelihood of New Haven moving into Division I for 2025-26 to start with. UNH athletic director Devin Crosby has spent 23 years in faculty athletics, together with stops at Virginia, Houston and Oral Roberts. He is been at New Haven for simply 16 months, however the final six have been an all-out dash. In late April, he received phrase that the NCAA was about to place a freeze on new candidates for Division I.
He had 4 days to decide.
Crosby met with UNH president Jens Frederiksen, and in lower than 96 hours they decided they may fundraise and rally to use. The associated fee to depart Division II could be $300,000. The price simply to use for Division I membership was rather more costly: $1.9 million.
Crosby and Frederiksen subsequently and miraculously raised $9 million over an 18-day interval, Crosby instructed CBS Sports activities, which included million-dollar donations from a few of the college’s richest alumni, together with David Beckerman, who most famously based Starter (the corporate synonymous with team-apparel jackets within the Nineties). The most important donor is UNH soccer participant Jeffery Hazell, who struck it large as a restauranteur and seafood entrepreneur shortly after graduating from the school in the 1980s. Hazell has donated $14 million to UNH in whole. The college’s main athletics constructing bears his title.
Matt Norlander, CBS Sports activities
Crosby prides his profession on marrow-deep friendships greater than something. As soon as New Haven cleared the Division I barrier in the summertime, he made many a name to his associates on the Energy 5 degree, hoping one would say sure to christening UNH’s Division I debut. All besides one stated no. After some preliminary resistance, Penn State athletic director Pat Kraft agreed, with an uncommon stipulation connected.
Sometimes, when a high-major program hosts low-major faculties, they should “purchase” the sport — actually paying out tens or a whole lot of hundreds of {dollars} in an effort to make the seemingly street loss worthwhile for the smaller college. However on this case, Crosby and Kraft labored out a deal: Penn State would come to New Haven within the first of a four-year settlement, however for the gesture, New Haven’s street journeys to Penn State in 2026, 2027 and 2028 could be freed from cost.
“It was an enormous skilled favor,” Crosby stated. “I’m very indebted to Pat, who’s a pacesetter in our business.”
Saturday’s recreation was a fast turnaround, tipping off 22 hours after the Chargers’ 71-53 residence opener in opposition to Columbia.
All the pieces is altering round right here. Chargers coach Ted Hotaling has one participant again from final 12 months. He recruited a completely new crew understanding it was going to be a mountain of losses in 12 months 1 and fairly probably in 12 months 2. (Due to the transition guidelines in Division I, New Haven is not eligible to play within the NCAA Event till 2029.)
Not one New Haven participant is earning profits by means of NIL this season. Income-sharing does not exist at faculties like this. To beat it, UNH will attempt to play each high-major conceivable to right away improve its visibility.
“We’re making an attempt to ascertain ourselves as a distinct program,” Hotaling stated. “It is very intentional to play UConn. I assumed that was actually good for our college, for our program, for our division. To have Columbia within the fitness center, and now Penn State within the fitness center, all these items can elevate consciousness to what we’re making an attempt to do. It’ll take a while to get there. I feel everyone knows that. I feel we now have inner expectations within the basketball program which might be very excessive, and I’ve to watch out to observe these expectations, as a result of these expectations must be real looking.”
For Crosby, he does not need Saturday’s alternative to be a one-and-done. He stated he is working arduous to get one other high-major in for a recreation subsequent season and believes it would occur. If it does, the scene must be even higher. Subsequent summer season, the Hazell Middle will endure retrofitting, with upgraded capability, some luxurious suites and a redesigned primary degree to increase the appear and feel.
“It’s a masterplan for us to be some of the recognizable establishments in the entire nation,” Crosby stated. “We’re taking the NCAA by storm. We do not have [all] the cash, however we now have the creativity.”
Penn State: ‘You have to be totally different, artistic’
If there was one program and one coach on the high-major degree who would actually be open to doing one thing as unorthodox as this, it is Mike Rhoades. The 53-year-old performed at D-III Lebanon Valley and thrived in gyms like this all through his enjoying days — and even when he was a coach at D-III Randolph Macon.
When Kraft approached Rhoades in regards to the 3-for-1 — no cost included — he was in. A brief flight to Connecticut to play a college virtually nobody heard of did not faze him in any respect … and neither did the sudden pivot of getting to remain an hour away from campus Friday night time. As a result of the sport was scheduled in late summer season, there have been no satisfactory resorts accessible in a 30-mile radius of New Haven due the huge Yale Clean Energy Conference that booked the area up months upfront.
No complaints allowed.
“I am a D-III man,” Rhoades instructed CBS Sports activities. “So I stated to the blokes … if we’re gonna bitch and moan about it, it is in all probability gonna have an effect on us once we play. That was my large factor. … If you are going to complain about it, you are going to blame all people else, and you are going to make excuses, it is in all probability going to get you beat. So we’re simply not doing that. I am at Penn State. It is a actually arduous job. It is a powerful state of affairs. I like my AD. He is making an attempt actually arduous to assist me. We’ll attempt to determine this out the most effective we are able to. However it doesn’t matter what, we’re not complaining, we’re not blaming anyone, we’re not making excuses. And since whenever you step on the courtroom, that stuff cannot provide help to. That is the mentality that we have had.”
Matt Norlander, CBS Sports activities
Penn State basketball is close to the underside within the Massive Ten from an NIL/rev-share perspective, as a result of soccer’s outsized significance at that faculty. There are 79 packages Energy 5 faculty basketball faculties. Rhoades does not have the hardest job of all of them, however Penn State in all probability ranks someplace within the 70s. To be able to construct one thing that may be sustained, Rhoades believes he will should take some possibilities — and never be apprehensive about what others would possibly say about his scheduling philosophy.
“We did it strategically for our program and for our funds and the chance we now have to come back right here, and they will come play us a number of occasions,” Rhoades stated. “And never everybody needs to do it. … It is new occasions, man, you gotta assume outdoors the field. You have to discover other ways to alleviate your funds. There’s some coaches stated to me, together with coaches within the Massive Ten, ‘Are you loopy?’ However yeah, I’m. Why not? So I feel it was nice. It was an important street journey for our guys. We have got to do issues like this. You have to be totally different, artistic.”
Penn State has a recreation vs. La Salle in Philadelphia subsequent week, then will return to Connecticut to play Windfall at Mohegan Solar on Nov. 22. A month later, PSU will receives a commission six figures to play in Hershey, Pennsylvania, in opposition to Pitt. Rhoades is open to doing extra 3- or 2-for-1s at a cut price with low-majors transferring ahead, too. He is pragmatic, optimistic and unapologetic about all of it.
“I am not apologizing for what we’re making an attempt to do and the way we go about it,” Rhoades stated. “I instructed the blokes, there’s solely so many occasions in your faculty basketball profession you get to place the uniforms on. Does not matter if it is on the blacktop, filth or at Indiana, Purdue, Michigan or Penn State. Let’s at all times respect it.”
Amid a gap week that had an exquisite unfold of ranked-on-ranked matchups, must-watch freshmen and All-American candidates instantly wanting the half, one other worthwhile story emerged right here in West Haven. This tiny fitness center in the course of Connecticut performed host to a recreation that served as a reminder to varsity basketball that great issues can nonetheless be attainable, you simply want individuals who care sufficient to make it occur — and rattling the cynics who’re too afraid to strive it themselves.
