AN OCCASIONAL COLUMN
Amy Dames Smith, NCAA Compliance Officer

Any coach or athlete will tell you to gain an edge on your competition, you have to practice in season and out of season. With Linfield being an NCAA Division III school, there are some limitations as to how much activity can take place out of season. In the past, “Captain’s Practices” were one way for a team to get together for a workout once the season was over.

A Captain’s Practice is essentially a workout organized by team captains, rather than a coach, and held outside of the regular season.
NCAA Division III allows for workouts outside of the sport season to take place if they are voluntary. However, any mandatory activity outside of the sport season is not permitted. The NCAA also does not allow coaches to give their athletes specific workouts to perform in the off season. Coaches can, however, give their athletes a general workout without specific expectations for specific days.

Why are these strict guidelines now in place? The main reason is many Division III student-athletes were reporting these “volun-datory” activities (seemingly voluntary workouts deemed mandatory by coaches), such as a Captain’s Practice, were beginning to cut into their academic studies. Since there was a big consensus among student-athletes on this idea of “volun-datory” practices taking place, rules have changed. Changes were made in order to keep things in line with Division III philosophy, which emphasizes athletics should enhance the academic experience, not take away from it.

The question remains: Can a Linfield team still have a Captain’s Practice? The only way one may take place outside of the sport season is if it is open to all students on campus. If that condition is met, then we remain in compliance!