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Apparently Tulane is dropping its women's soccer program. Wonder if any of its top players will transfer to SMU? Several are from the Dallas area.

will the NCAA waive any kind of transfer rules for these kids or are they going to have sit out a year like other Div. I transfers would?

they can play immediately

I wonder if some coaches might not take them -- seems almost morbid, isn't it? This devastating storm alters everything about a school, and the coaches hover like vultures, looking for players?

Also, I have no idea how good the Tulane players are, or if Coach Cossaboon has any available scholarships -- he has some stud recruits coming already, doesn't he? Anyone know?

It may be morbid, but life goes on, and any coach that wants to be successful is going to take advantage of the opportunity, plus what are these kids supposed to do, not play their sport just because a hurricane forced their school to drop their program, to me that seems worse.

i think tragic would be a better description of what is going on there......and i think that since the school has made a public announcement that they are dropping those programs that should allow other coaches the opportunity to recruit those players.....i really feel for those coaches that just lost their jobs.....and the players who lost their sport

I checked the roster and several of the players have pretty good club credentials although I have no idea how they have done at the college level. I also do not know how strong the Tulane team was. We beat them 2-0. I also do not know how we stand scholarship wise. I believe that both men's and women's soccer break up most of the available scholarships among the players although a few would get a full ride. Some players make up the difference with other kinds of scholarships. I assume there are also invited walk-ons who are non-scholarship. According to Rivals, we only have one 2006 commitment at present. I do not know how accurate this is.

Rivals is now listing SOCCER recruits?

Yes, many soccer players are on partial scholarships, and there are walk-ons on both teams.

Yes Rivals has a subscription based web site devoted entirely to college soccer.

As stated earlier they can play immediately for another school if their program is dropped.

Having spoken with a parent of one of the players with local ties, the Tulane women were looking forward to a competitive season, and showed well pre-Katrina. But with the relocation to tamu they really just did not get it going. I think they finished last in CUSA.

The SMU women only had one senior this past season and with only 4 seniors rostered for next year the bulk of the 2006 roster will be Juniors and Sophmores so I do not think there is a huge pot of scholarship money available this coming year. However, the Tulane players may still want to play college ball and SMU should not dismiss adding quality depth to their roster even if a former Tulane player will have to walk on for the first year. The downside, walking on at SMU is a bigger pocket book hit than walking on at tamu, ut, or unt (insert any state supported institution here).

Friday's Marketplace Section page 2 of The Wall Street Journal indicates that Tulane will slash 20% of its faculty, do away with 22 programs of study, and suspend 8 sports. Tulane plans to put a greater emphasis on undergraduate education. The restructuring was necessitated by $200 million in storm-related damages to the university and a projected budget shortfall of $60 million in 2006. Tulane had annual revenue of about $700 million, approximately a third of it from tuition. The university has an endowment of $850 million, but only about $65 million is unrestricted.

Tulane will eliminate eight sports, affecting about a third of its 300 student-athletes. Targeted sports include men's and women's golf and tennis, women's swimming and diving, women's soccer, and men's track and field. Tulane said it had been assured by NCAA officials that, despite the cuts, it will receive waivers that will allow it to continue to compete at the Division 1 level.

Tulane wil restructure undergraduate education around a newly created undergraduate college. In the future, undergraduates will be required to live on campus for 2 years, and community service will be mandatory. Tulane's management is using the Ivy League for its model. Tulane has 6,400 undergraduates, 5,000 graduate and professional students, and about 1,100 medical students and residents.