The UTM Athletic Department’s budget is a little lacking in some areas, lacking enough that is, to have to cut a program out of the department. Unfortunately this program ended up being the Track and Field team. Many athletes and their families will suffer greatly due to this loss. Many are losing scholarship money that they truly need to continue their careers here at UTM, and many will have to begin tedious searches for new colleges that have a track program.

The head coach of the Track team, Jason McKinney had already began recruiting new athletes for next year’s season and now has to break the news to them that they will have to find another school. Finding another school for the new recruits this late in the year may be tougher than many think; recruits have to go through a “signing” period that is usually limited to certain dates and times.

Three years ago the athletic department made the decision to cut the men’s track program due to insufficient funds. Phil Dane, the Director of Athletics here at UTM says, “In the spirit of trying to maintain a competitive program, this cut is in the best interest of UTM.”

Dane also said, “We are choosing to eliminate the women’s track program just as we did in 2000 when we eliminated the men’s track program. This will avoid across the board reductions in other sports and preserve their ability to compete.”

“We lack a quality facility for the team and we lack scholarships to make the team competitive.” Dane said when assuring that the elimination of the program was two-fold.

The track team has just this current semester already broken four of the school’s long held tack and field records, thus proving that the team is still quite competitive.

Track and Field is one of UTM’s oldest athletic programs. It is also the only sport here at UTM that is in session for two seasons, one being an indoor season and the other an outdoor season. These two seasons are both equally important to building up the overall performance of the athletes, but the outdoor season is without a doubt the most important of the two. The outdoor season is the one in which the athletes prepare for during the entire year.

“The Track a team will be greatly missed, especially since it’s one of the founding sports”, said Alex Britt, a sophomore supporter of the team.