The Wisconsin men's rowing team is coming off the most successful season in team history after capturing the 2008 IRA National Championship. Even more amazing is that they accomplished the feat without any scholarship players. In contrast, the UW football team spends over $900,000 on scholarships and has far less to show for it recently. So how did rowing head coach Chris Clark build a national champion team without the ability to offer scholarships?
Rower's that want to succeed know to come here,"" Clark said. ""These guys work awfully hard for little tangible benefits, but the less people get, the more grateful they are, and they show that gratitude in their worth ethic.""
Aside from scholarships, there are still plenty of benefits for being a Division I athlete. All the players have access to tutors and academic advisors, which is a nice and necessary perk if you want to play for Clark.
""You're working hard in practice, but you're expected to work hard at school,"" Clark said. ""There's a lot of pressure on them, but they have tutors and advisors. I don't tolerate bad grades.""
Clark downplays the importance of scholarships because the university still has plenty to offer potential recruits, particularly the state of the art Porter Boathouse.
The 52,000 square foot boathouse is an example of what Clark describes as a great support system for the rowing program. ""Our programs here are supported better than any other program in the United States,"" he said. ""The whole community has embraced us. It's a great thing and we are very fortunate.""
Another reason scholarships don't make or break a rowing program is that often, many of the recruits have little to no experience in rowing. Clark estimated that about 10 rowers come with experience, and the rest are recruited based on size and athletic ability.
A big part of the recruiting process involves sending letters and literature about the program to high school basketball and football players in the Wisconsin and Minnesota area who are unable to play those sports at the collegiate level but have the size and athleticism to potentially be formidable rowers.
The absence of scholarships is a result of the fact that men's rowing is not sanctioned by the NCAA but is ruled by the Intercollegiate Rowing Association. Scholarships under the IRA are unregulated, and many universities that Wisconsin competes against give scholarships, but Wisconsin has yet to follow suit. Currently, there is a nationwide movement to try to get men's rowing sanctioned by the NCAA, but any official change would still take a few years.
Whether or not scholarships can be offered in the near future, one thing that will definitely help recruiting is being able to say, ""We won the national championship in 2008. How would you like to come row for a champion?
