Clemson to continue men's track and cross-country programs.

Five months after announcing plan to eliminate them, Clemson University will continue men's outdoor and indoor track and field and cross-country programs as varsity sports.

The decision comes after revised financial projections show that the impacts of COVID-19 did not harm the university's budget as much as anticipated, according to a university news release.

The release said the decision comes "after months of discussion with student-athletes, their representatives, families, supporters and others." During those months, the track and cross-country programs also received a lot of support from students and the community through protest messages on yard signs and business message boards throughout the area.

Contributions from philanthropic fundraising, as well as state and federal financial support and appropriation, also played into the decision and allowed the school to expand its women's varsity sports offerings, the news release said.

The university will decide soon which women's sports to add, according to the release.

"This is the right decision for our university, our department of athletics and, most importantly, for the young men and women who proudly wear the Clemson uniform," Clemson President Jim Clements said in the release. "I am thrilled that we are able to continue these men's programs and I am excited for the new varsity opportunities we will soon be adding for our female student athletes."

While in recent years the athletics department has added women's golf and softball, the university has also seen rapid growth in its female student population. In 2011, Clemson's student population was 54.3% male. In the fall 2021 semester, female students are expected to outnumber males for...