CSU Pueblo Football ( Pack Football )

Southern Colorado State College, now Colorado State University-Pueblo, played Colorado State College, now University of Northern Colorado, to a 7-7- tie before a crowd of about 4,500 at Dutch Clark Stadium in the late 1960s. CSU-Pueblo officials want to resurrect the football program after a hiatus of more than 20 years.


School's president, Joseph Garcia, makes pitch at board of governors' meeting.
By GAYLE PEREZTHE PUEBLO CHIEFTAIN
STERLING - Colorado State University-Pueblo President Joseph Garcia made a pitch Wednesday to resurrect football, wrestling and women's track and field programs in an effort to increase the school's enrollment.
In a presentation to the CSU System Board of Governors at its regular meeting, Garcia said he would like to reinstate the three athletic programs as part of his overall effort to boost an enrollment that has been stagnant for years.
"This will allow us to compete better in the market that we are in. It will allow us to have a chance to reach our stretch goals," Garcia told the board.
"I don't think I was hired here to tread water," Garcia said. "We want to move forward. We will do what we can to attract more and better students and more and better faculty."
A few months ago, Garcia set a lofty goal of doubling the university's enrollment during the next five years. The school's fall enrollment was 4,096.
In order to achieve that goal, Garcia said he is developing several aggressive plans aimed at improving the recruiting, retention and graduation rates of students at CSU-Pueblo.
He said that adding the three sports would help to dramatically increase enrollment. All three programs previously existed at the university.
In 1985, football, baseball, golf, men's tennis, women's tennis and women's gymnastics were cut as part of a campuswide reorganization plan. All the other athletic programs that were cut that year, except football, have been reinstated.
The men's and women's track and cross-country programs both were eliminated at the end of the 1992-93 season, the same year that baseball was reinstated and women's softball was added. At the time, university officials said the track programs were being cut because it would cost too much to repair the schools' all-weather track.
The women's cross-country program was brought back last year.
The wrestling program was cut in May 2001 because of a shortfall in the athletic department.
Garcia said he is considering bringing back the three sports based on interest from the Pueblo community as well as his desire to increase the enrollment.
He told the board that donors have pledged several million dollars to have the football and women's track programs restarted. Garcia said he still is looking for donors to support the wrestling program.
"If we don't get the money, then we won't do it," he said. The costs include personnel, operating, recruitment, equipment, facility upgrades as well as a new track and a football stadium.
Garcia said the reinstatement of the programs would be contingent on the community contributing to the startup of those programs.
Garcia said he would not endanger other programs - athletic or academic - to support the new athletic programs.
"I would not add anything that would take away from the academic resources," he said. "I can live with it if we can't afford to do it."
Garcia said he already has a donor willing to contribute $6 million toward the programs.
When he was named the president last summer, Garcia said reinstating football and wrestling were not among his immediate plans.
"This was not something on my front door when I came here, but I have an opportunity here and I'd hate to miss out on it," he said regarding the possibility of receiving one of the single largest donations to the university. "I did not come to CSU-Pueblo primarily to add athletic programs, but I can see where the athletic programs will help."
Garcia said the addition of the programs not would only bring in more students who will participate in those sports, but it also will enhance the student life on campus.
He said the additional sports programs, along with upgrades and the construction of new student facilities, will draw more students to campus. He said the lack of facilities and programs deter some students from attending CSU-Pueblo.
Several board members commended Garcia's desire to increase the enrollment through athletic programs but also expressed some reservations about the plan.
Joe Blake, Ed Haselden and Doug Jones said they were concerned how the project would fit in with the university strategic plan.
"I share concerns with regard to the strategic plan and how this does or does not integrate into that," Blake said.
Garcia told the board that the strategic plan is still being developed and that the programs could be incorporated in the plan. He said the plan will be completed when the university hires a new provost, dean of business and dean of student life.
In the meantime, Garcia said his strategic focus is on the goals set in the fall.
Joseph Garcia
Two board members also expressed concerns about whether a plan has been developed to ensure that the programs would be financially stable.
"I advise you to consider athletics are a business and to look at this as a startup or expansion of business," Haselden said. "It needs a good, well-thought out execution of a business plan, so that we can be assured that in fact it can be executed."
Garcia responded, "I would not have come to you if I had not thought out the plan."
Garcia said he plans to address how the programs will be funded and provide details of a business plan at the board's next meeting, which is scheduled March 23 in Pueblo.
"This is just one piece of the formula," Garcia said with regard to his plan for increasing enrollment.
"I certainly don't want you to think we are putting all our eggs into one basket. But we think this will allow us to be aggressive and to take some risks but not put the university in financial peril."