Michael Lisher logged onto his computer around 10:30 p.m. on March 12 to read an e-mail from University of Nebraska-Omaha athletic director Trev Alberts.

In short, Alberts informed the students that the UNO administration decided to move the school from Div. II athletics to Div. I.

“Everyone was pretty excited,” said Lisher, a freshman offensive lineman who played at Free State High. “We were talking about playing at cool places. The whole Div. I thing was going to be exciting.”

But after two hours of celebrating the move, the football team was rocked by the finer details of the decision.

In order to join the Summit League and move to Div. I in basketball, the school had to cut the football and wrestling programs. Lisher and his teammates found out about the decision through an article posted on the Omaha World-Herald website.

Michael immediately called his father, Bob, the football coach at Free State.

“Before anybody had a chance to tell the players, we were reading about it on the computer,” Bob said.

And now all the people involved with the football program are scrambling to find new homes for the 2011 season. The Lishers aren’t the only Firebirds affected, either. Freshman running back Camren Torneden must also find a place to play.

The players don’t have much time to enroll at another school. Since the main recruiting period has already passed, most schools have given away most of their scholarship money. To secure anything, the players must move fast.

The Lishers tried to set up visits over spring break, which started March 18. Minnesota-Duluth, Sioux Falls (S.D.) and Washburn have already requested Michael’s game tapes, so Bob is confident that his son will find a place to play.

He said it’s too bad that Camren and Michael will have to leave Omaha, a city they loved.

“And then to just have it pulled out from them, and the way it was pulled out from them, it was just pathetic,” said Bob, who played at UNO.

Michael and the team commiserated about the move until 5 a.m. the morning of March 13. They talked about finding new places to play all afternoon. At 6 p.m., the athletes at the school met with Alberts and the chancellor, Dr. John Christensen.

The school officials discussed the decision with the athletes, explaining that the Summit League does not sanction wrestling and football for competition. Christensen and Alberts also explained the athletic department’s dire financial situation.

“At the end of it, the chancellor was talking about how hard of a decision it was and how hard it was on him,” Michael said. “A couple of the older guys didn’t really like it and they walked out, so we just walked out with them.”

Bob said that level of disgust has filtered down to the Lawrence area, which is home to a lot of former UNO football players. He doesn’t have a huge problem with the decision itself, but rather how it was dumped on the kids through the newspaper.

The players would like to continue their college careers together, but Michael realizes that probably won’t happen.

He’s looking for a school with a good football program and solid academic standing. The UNO players are still able to work out at the school with trainers until the end of the spring semester.

“I loved it up here,” Michael said.ped on the kids through the newspaper.

The players would like to continue their college careers together, but Michael realizes that probably won’t happen.

He’s looking for a school with a good football program and solid academic standing. The UNO players are still able to work out at the school with trainers until the end of the spring semester.

“I loved it up here,” Michael said.