I see both aspects of the baseball argument. UNI has baseball, and as a Panther fan I wouldn't be against axing baseball in favor of putting that money towards football or basketball. But, I feel that UNI's struggle in financing baseball comes from the lack of an on-campus stadium (what student wants to drive to Waterloo to watch college baseball?) as well as exposure from local media. Iowa and UNI are the only two Division I programs in Iowa, but they receive zero attention. It's hard to finance the 11 scholarships when there is so little interest in the team.
Not to mention how hard it is to sustain a successful program in the north. Weather plays a huge factor in collegiate baseball, and that is evidenced in the best programs. If you look at the MVC, the two best programs are Wichita State and Missouri State (the two most southern teams). Creighton also has strong teams but they also host the College World Series. In the Big 12, the Texas schools are pretty dominate. This is because they can have home games earlier, which obviously bring in money as opposed to spending money to travel south for games. The only way to avoid this is when the softball team plays in the Dome or up in the MetroDome in Minneapolis.
I understand many
ISU fans want baseball back, but I really think it is best that you don't bring it back until you have ample funds and successful football or basketball teams.
