There is a rule of thumb when negotiating the vast NCAA bureaucracy that suggests that the longer the name of the committee or panel, the more potential it has to do damage.

Which brings us to the mouthful that is the NCAA Championships Finance Review Working Group.

If you are the University of Hawaii men’s volleyball team or, indeed, many of the nationally ranked teams that play men’s volleyball on the Division I level, be concerned. Be very concerned.

The NCAA convened this working group to study a proposal before the Division I Council to reduce the number of teams in its NCAA tournament from the present seven to four.

So much for embracing the #GrowTheGame movement.

The size of the field and the number of at-large berths are of major concern to schools such as UH, who are perennially among the top-ranked teams and compete in the toughest conferences like the Big West. With five conferences each currently earning automatic qualifying berths, at-large bids are already at a premium. If the field gets shrunk there would be potential for some conference champions to be eliminated as well as at-large selections.

Concerned about rising expenses, the NCAA inaugurated the study prior to the COVID-19 breakout to examine the allocation of several low-revenue sports, including men’s volleyball.

Since the pandemic and the resulting loss of revenue from the cancellation of the NCAA’s biggest bread winner, the men’s basketball tournament, the measure has taken on added significance.

Of course, had the NCAA Board of Governors not spent down more than three-quarters of its nearly $500 million “rainy day” fund of sorts in 2015 while failing to increase its insurance coverage, it might have been in better shape to ride out some of what has taken place.

Under the proposal being examined by the working group, sports that have 50 or more schools competing would have a 20% representation in the championships. Those with less than 50 would get 10%.

In the current format used in the most recent tournament, 2019 when UH went to the NCAA championship match against Long Beach State, men’s volleyball had less than 50 participants and nearly 16% representation.

But Kathy DeBoer, executive director of the American Volleyball Coaches Association, said the proposal did not account for the number of participating schools surpassing 50 by 2022. She said $1 million in grants announced last year will help endow six teams and a seventh is also coming aboard.

The newcomers will come from the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, which consists of primarily historically Black colleges and universities (Central State (Ohio), Benedict, Fort Valley State, Kentucky State, Morehouse and Paine). They will be funded by grants from USA Volleyball and the First Point Volleyball Foundation to increase the diversity and reach of the sport.

Under the formula, DeBoer said men’s volleyball would be due as many as eight representatives.

Interested parties have until July 10 to provide feedback to the working group.

In this case, for UH and the Big West, the louder the better.

Raech Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.