As many college athletic programs are preparing for the postseason and finishing fall regular season schedules, there has been an ongoing public discussion about the future of “mid-major” athletics. George La Noue, professor emeritus and research professor of public policy and political science, wrote an op-ed published in The Chronicle of Higher Education in which he analyzed the current state of mid-major athletic programs and discussed what he called their “muddled future.” “While media attention is overwhelmingly focused on big-time intercollegiate athletics, a crisis is developing for most of the 351 Division I institutions that cannot afford to play at that …