The NCAA posted a story this week with rules committee chair and LSU head coach Fran Flory about possible changes that could be coming soon:

Increase substitutions from 12 to 15. “The rules committee as a whole felt more substitutions in a match can help student-athlete well-being and keep student-athletes happy. The traditionalists of the game probably don’t want this. They want us to make it truer and make people play all positions so players become well-rounded. That certainly was a big topic of discussion. But ultimately, this committee sided with the opportunities for student-athletes.”

Allow transmission of statistical data to the bench area. Audio/video would continue to be restricted. “People from all the divisions are using [laptops and iPads]. Technology is advancing in the world, and volleyball is no exception. We don’t want to close down technology in our sport.”

Ensure referee platforms, including the ladder, are distributed evenly behind the net pole. “Potentially, this could be a cost issue for some schools. We felt like there was enough opportunity to adapt to another system. We want to implement this immediately for player-safety reasons.”

They also clarified rules about libero jerseys to allow trim and piping as long as it is still distinguishable from other players.

In other news, the SEC coaches had their annual meeting earlier this month. A big topic of discussion I’d be willing to bet was the schedule for the upcoming season. Currently each SEC team plays the other 10 opponents in the conference two times, home and away, for a total of 20 league matches. With Missouri and Texas A&M joining the fold next year, that system becomes impossible. It would require each team to play 24 conference matches. And due to NCAA rules limiting the days of competition allowed each regular season (capped at 28 I believe), that wouldn’t leave enough room for preseason tournaments or other out of conference games. So for the first time in 7 years, SEC teams will not play an even schedule with their league foes. I have no idea what they’re going to come up with but it is inevitable that we’re going to have a situation where it’s possible that if two teams are neck and neck for the title one of them might have an easier schedule than the other.