Try catching up to world-class sprinters Michael Johnson and Donovan Bailey in the 100-meter dash with a two-second delay in start time.

Or, attempt to play with the world-champion New England Patriots by starting your season in October.

Sounds ludicrous, and in many respects, the tasks are.

Nonetheless, it's one that many Northeastern collegiate baseball teams face each season without a uniform starting date to each season.

That enigma is on its way to a solution, thanks to discussions this January by the NCAA's Division I Baseball Issues Committee.

The proposal would require specific starting dates for practices and games, similar to the schedule imposed on college football and basketball.

According to the Associated Press in a Jan. 10 article, the proposed starting date for practice is Feb. 1 and March 1 for games.

Due to meeting schedules and discussion, the NCAA Management Council won't address this issue until next January.

The earliest they could implement it would be for the 2007 season. However, it's a perfect measure.

Currently, many teams in the Southern and Western states, because of the warm weather, are able to start their seasons over the winter months and have played several games before Northern teams play outside for the first time.

Obviously, the "warm-up" gives these teams a huge advantage.

For a little comparison, one needs to look no farther than this campus and the Penn Staters playing every April and May on icy Beaver Field.

Though the Nittany Lions start each season in late January and early February, the dirt outside is even harder than the artificial surface in the Multi-Sport Complex or Holuba Hall.

Meanwhile, these Lions are preparing to play teams like Arizona State in 2003. When Penn State went to Tempe in early March to play the No. 4 Sun Devils, they had a 21-1 record and thumped the Lions 13-0, 11-7 and 12-1.

Last year, it was a similar situation when then-coach Joe Hindelang took his squad to Miami to face the Hurricanes and lost two of three games by five runs or more.

New coach Robbie Wine, who coached for several seasons at Oklahoma State, said he, too, was in favor of the proposal.

And, with a new stadium on the way for the baseball team, it might provide just the Lions with a stepping stone to becoming a baseball school. At least it will eliminate the head start for the programs that need it the least.