NCAA Sand Volleyball

Colleges may be seriously considering the idea of adding sand volleyball to their athletic programs. A very interesting development indeed. And not just because of the debate over what they’ll wear. My guess is that the women will be in teeny bikinis and the men will be in full-length parkas just like at the Olympics. But don’t get me started. That’s a subject for another day.

My main concern is how this addition will affect indoor volleyball. I mean, since the inclusion of beach volleyball into the Olympics in 1996, indoor has been competing against the lure of the outdoors. Let’s face it, sand volleyball has a glamour that indoor lacks and that bright and shiny appeal may rip some fantastic indoor players away.

Fresh air instead of a musty gym? One teammate as opposed to 11? More playing time? Less coach interference? More TV appearances? Who could resist? And where will it lead?

Will there be sand volleyball club teams and junior tournaments with college scouts? Elite youth beach volleyball training programs and pipelines to the national teams? If so, maybe young players will skip the indoor game altogether and go for a scholarship playing on the sand.

This is great news for the beach game – it means more great, well-trained athletes to choose from and they can say goodbye to that awkward transition period indoor players sometimes need in order to adapt to the nuances of playing on the sand.

That’s all wonderful. But not having that certainly hasn’t hurt us. U.S. beach teams have won medals (at least one gold) in each of the last four Olympics with players who transitioned from indoor. The indoor side, however, has struggled much more at the Olympics and could certainly use all the young talent it can get in the coming years.

Granted, this is not a development that will likely occur right away -- there aren’t a whole lot of universities looking to add sports in this economy. But it may lead to some very interesting developments in the near future.

My hope is that if college sand volleyball becomes a reality, it won’t ultimately lead to players vacating gyms all over the country in droves. Because that would be a crying shame.