Looks like the number of foreign athletes taking scholarship money away from home grown kids has surged in recent years. 2/3rds are in Division I schools.
I wouldn't dream of accusing lazy coaches who don't recruit well of using "hired guns" from other countries to win championships. I'm sure they are only accepting foreign athletes for the altruistic good of helping to diversify the student body..... :-)
Influx of foreigners presents new challenges for NCAA
www.usatoday.com/.../2008-10-01-foreign-influx_N.htm
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Former Member
I got curious and thought I would check the rosters of some of the top ranked men's swimming programs. Arizona has 34 on its roster which includes 10 swimmers from Arizona and 7 international swimmers. Auburn (located in Alabama) has 25 on its roster which includes 1 swimmer from Alabama and 6 international swimmers.
I have to admit that it bothers me somewhat that there are more international swimmers on Auburn's team than swimmers from Alabama. Keep in mind that Auburn is a state school and we have several outstanding USA teams in the state - Huntsville Swim Association, Birmingham Swim League, Hoover Blue Thunder, Auburn Aquatics are just a few of the good teams we have here. I sure would like to see more than one Alabama swimmer on the roster.
With 9.9 scholarships - care to guess what % was allocated to the international students? If only one swimmer is from Alabama then almost the entire team has to pay out of state tuition or receive financial aid (could be scholarships). I don't know how much difference there is in tuition in-state vs. out-of-state in Alabama.
I bet Cesar Cielo gets 1 scholarship. That leaves 8.9 to be divided among the remaining 24 swimmers+divers.
I got curious and thought I would check the rosters of some of the top ranked men's swimming programs. Arizona has 34 on its roster which includes 10 swimmers from Arizona and 7 international swimmers. Auburn (located in Alabama) has 25 on its roster which includes 1 swimmer from Alabama and 6 international swimmers.
I have to admit that it bothers me somewhat that there are more international swimmers on Auburn's team than swimmers from Alabama. Keep in mind that Auburn is a state school and we have several outstanding USA teams in the state - Huntsville Swim Association, Birmingham Swim League, Hoover Blue Thunder, Auburn Aquatics are just a few of the good teams we have here. I sure would like to see more than one Alabama swimmer on the roster.
With 9.9 scholarships - care to guess what % was allocated to the international students? If only one swimmer is from Alabama then almost the entire team has to pay out of state tuition or receive financial aid (could be scholarships). I don't know how much difference there is in tuition in-state vs. out-of-state in Alabama.
I bet Cesar Cielo gets 1 scholarship. That leaves 8.9 to be divided among the remaining 24 swimmers+divers.
