In A Year Of Cuts, Clemson Serves As Another Victory For Grass Roots Track & Field

The past year has been a virtual minefield for collegiate Track & Field programs. It is in that minefield where grass roots activists, like Russell Dinkins, work tirelessly to dodge and uproot the arguments used to justify cutting non-revenue sports.

This has become an all too familiar narrative: AD puts out a press release (sometimes before telling the coaches and athletes), after initial backlash the school will cite budget cuts or Title IX compliance, after continued outrage the school will go silent and eventually the noise will soften.

This is where the #SaveClemsonXCTF movement feels like a momentous step towards creating an image that saves Track & Field from the inevitable chopping block. Few other sports can harness the general population’s awareness like Track & Field, it is the largest participation sport at the high school level while simultaneously having the lowest cost of entry. That Track & Field population is also one of the most diverse in all of college sports, a fact that looks extremely short sighted when sports like Rowing or (sorry) Ice Hockey often survive rounds of budget cuts.

You may think that a school who paid Dabo Swinney a 10 year $93 million contract shouldn’t be citing budget cuts as a reason to drop any scholarships but…