The Cal Poly swimming and diving teams have been without a program since March.
After the initial despair, the athletes went to work.
The school gave them a chance to raise money to help save the program. Initially it was $10 million by April 15 and $25 million by June.
The Cal Poly team reached $7.5 million by the April 15 deadline. But in a meeting with Cal Poly President Jeffrey D. Armstrong on April 18, according to the SF Gate, the president reviewed the fundraising and the plan the team outlined and the athletes now need to raise $20 million by June – still a daunting task, but $5 million less than originally set by the school.
“It’s a huge win for us, as of now, and we’re going to keep fighting,” Cal Poly swimmer Nick Elliott told the SF Gate.
But according to the SF Gate report, there has been no explanation from the school about why the initial $25 million or why it was cut to $20, leaving athletes to wonder what the breakdown of the money needed is.
Cal Poly cited the upcoming changes coming from the House v. NCAA settlement in its initial announcement about cutting the swimming and diving programs, stating the school will lose “at least $450,000 per year for our programs.”
That fight has been strenuous on 58 swimmers and divers trying to be students as well as athletes in a fight.
It has been tough for recruits as well, who won’t be sure there is a program. Many have switched their commitments to other schools, especially since May 1 is the enrollment decision date for most colleges, so given the timeline, incoming freshman would not know if there is a team or not by the time they have to commit.