CSUN Loses Decathlete to CS Chico

David Burton, an NCAA Division II All-American in the decathlon for Cal State Northridge last season, has transferred to Cal State Chico.

Burton, who placed third in the Division II championships in Hampton, Va., last May, attended Northridge during the fall semester but will be eligible to compete for the Wildcats this season because he was given an official release by Northridge.

The 1988 graduate of San Diego Mt. Carmel High said he transferred primarily for two reasons.

First, he sought more financial aid from Northridge--he was receiving $1,200 a year on a partial athletic scholarship--and second, he wanted to be closer to his girlfriend Amy Ryan, who attends Chico.

“The money was a big issue,” said Burton, whose personal best of 6,811 points in the decathlon ranks seventh on the all-time Northridge list. “I wanted more than they were willing to give me.”

Burton asked for $3,600 annually but said that he would have taken less.

“Paul Albers was getting $3,200 a year and he placed third in the hammer throw at the Division II meet,” Burton said. “I was third in the decathlon so I figured I should be getting roughly the same amount.”

Although CSUN track Coach Don Strametz would not say how much Burton wanted, he did say that it was substantially more than Northridge was willing to give him.

“He wanted the world,” Strametz said. “David is a very good athlete, but we couldn’t give him what he was asking for.”

Ironically, Chico, a Division II school that competes in the Northern California Athletic Conference, does not offer athletic scholarships.