Category: College Athletics

Union of College Athletics – “It’s the End of the World as We Know It”

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Today it was announced that football players at Northwestern University could create the nation’s first union of college athletes for private universities.

The decision was passed down by Peter Sung Ohr, regional director of the National Labor Relations Board. Some of the key points from his decision follow:

  • Football players qualify as employees because they receive compensation (scholarships) and they are under the control of a manager (the coach and athletic program).
  • Football players are recruited because of their athletic ability, not their academic achievements.
  • Football players are not allowed to miss entire practices or games to attend classes, lecture sessions, group projects, or take tests. In fact, the opposite is true – they miss class to travel to play in games.
  • The life of a football player is more regimented than an average student. Players are given diets to follow and have NCAA restrictions that govern what they are allowed to do in their personal lives.

Some of Ohr’s key points raise serious questions about the argument made by many college officials that athletic programs are an integral part of university academics.

If the players vote to authorize the College Athletes Players Association (CAPA) to represent them they will reportedly address sports-related medical expenses for current and former players, reduction of head injuries, and allowing players to pursue commercial sponsorships. While the first two items have a strong “feel-good” appeal, the latter issue is the heart-of-the matter.

Right or wrong, a union of college athletes ultimately is about money.

Many years ago R.E.M. wrote a song that sums up the situation best, “It’s the End of the World as We Know It.” If this moves forward, college athletics programs will never be the same.

 

Who’s Playing College Sports?

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In September 2008, the Women’s Sports Foundation released a report entitled, Who’s Playing College Sports: Money, Race, and Gender. The report was authored by Dr. John Cheslock of the University of Arizona.

The report provides a description of men’s and women’s college sports participation patterns. It looks at the role of Title IX, athletic expenditure growth, changes in high school sports participation, rising health care costs, increased international students, college recruitment practices, and diversity within sports programs.

The key findings from the report are listed (verbatim):

• All available data on intercollegiate athletic participation produce the same conclusion: Both men’s and women’s participation levels have increased over the last 25 years.

• Higher education institutions have responded to Title IX by increasing women’s participation rather than by decreasing men’s participation.

• Expenditures on intercollegiate athletics, especially for men’s basketball and football in Division I of the NCAA, have grown at unsustainable rates.

• A variety of factors beyond Title IX and rapid athletic expenditure growth help explain why participation in certain sports (such as lacrosse and soccer) has grown steadily while participation in other sports (such as tennis, gymnastics and wrestling) has waned.

• While the early growth in women’s athletics favored those sports with the highest levels of racial and ethnic diversity, recent growth has favored women’s sports with less diversity. This latter shift has occurred because almost all NCAA schools already sponsor most of the sports with high participation by female athletes of color.

For most people involved in sports at some level (youth sports, high school sports, recreation programs, club sports, sports fan, coach, athletic director, booster, etc.) at least one of the above findings has to be a shocker or at least create a level of discomfort. A copy of this and other research can be found by visiting the WSF website.

Should Scholarships be Granted for One or Four Years?

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If you were a current or prospective college athlete, would you rather sign a one-year renewable scholarship contract or a four-year agreement?

Until this past spring, colleges could only offer one-year renewable agreements. In February, the NCAA changed the rule when college presidents voted to allow four-year contracts.

Interestingly enough, CU-Boulder voted against the measure. Acting in the true spirit of a research university, the Buff leadership polled its athletes and found they were overwhelmingly in favor of one-year renewable scholarships.

Buff athletes indicated that a lot can happen over the course of 4 years. Coaches can change, there is turnover among players, injuries occur, priorities change – in other words “Life Happens.” It was also felt that players would have greater commitment to the program if their contracts were renewed each year.

If an athlete isn’t performing or no longer fits in with the team, the coach should be able to help the student find a different situation that works to everyone’s benefit.

While there are some compelling arguments for the four-year scholarship contracts, hats off to the Buff athletes for their insight. The adminstration is also to be commended for seeking the opinions of its athletes and voting on the topic in the manner that best suited their wishes.

 

The Occupy College Sports Movement Takes Hold

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There is a rumor that the Occupy Movement has moved from the streets and lawns of Denver, Oakland, and New York to athletic departments on college campuses across the country.

The Occupy Movement features the 99% “who don’t get anything” and the 1% “who get everything”.

The Occupy College Sports Movement also features two groups. First, there is the 99.9% “who really don’t get anything” (the athletes). They are the bit players/star performers who occupy college weight rooms, playing fields, and classrooms. In exchange, they are expected to represent their colleges in exemplary fashion while generating significant revenue streams for them.

Second, there is the .1% “who get everything” (the coaches, ADs, staff, universities, sponsors, et. al). From a financial perspective they are clearly the financial benefactors of college athletic programs.

Unlike the Occupy Movement, which is on life support, the Occupy College Sports Movement will ensure that the Pay for Play argument will be a source of debate for years to come.

 

Want to Turn Pro – What are the Chances?

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Do you want your son or daughter to earn an athletic scholarship that will allow them to pursue a career as a professional in their sport?

The NCAA research department has compiled data that sheds light on the prospects of achieving that goal. As will be shown below, the chances of going pro are greatest for athletes who pursue professional careers in baseball or hockey.

Men’s Basketball
• Less than 1 in 35 high school seniors play in the NCAA.
• About 1 in 75 NCAA seniors get drafted by an NBA team.
• 3 in 10,000 high school seniors play in the NCAA and are drafted by an NBA team.

Women’s Basketball
• About 3 in 100 high school seniors play in the NCAA.
• Less than 1 in 100 NCAA seniors get drafted by a WNBA team.
• 2 in 10,000 high school seniors play in the NCAA and are drafted by a WNBA team.

Football
• About 1 in 16 high school seniors play in the NCAA.
• Less than 1 in 50 NCAA seniors get drafted by a NFL team.
• 8 in 10,000 high school seniors play in the NCAA and are drafted by an NFL team.

Baseball
• About 3 in 50 high school seniors play in the NCAA.
• Less than 9 in 100 NCAA seniors get drafted by a MLB team.
• 1 in 200 high school seniors play in the NCAA and are drafted by an MLB team.

Men’s Ice Hockey
• About 11 in 100 high school seniors play in the NCAA.
• Less than 1 in 26 NCAA seniors get drafted by a NHL team.
• 1 in 300 high school seniors play in the NCAA and are drafted by an NHL team.

Men’s Soccer
• Less than 3 in 50 high school seniors play in the NCAA.
• Less than 1 in 50 NCAA seniors get drafted by a MLS team.
• 1 in 1,250 high school seniors play in the NCAA and are drafted by an MLS team.

The data presented above and in the table below was updated on September 27, 2011 and posted at www.ncaa.org. These percentages are based on estimated data and should be considered approximations of the actual percentages (NCAA disclaimer).

Clearly, academics have to be important to most of the athletes who participate in college programs.

 

Great Scott – Another Good Idea – PAC 12 and Big 10 Commit to More Competition

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PAC-12 Conference leader Larry Scott continues to amaze with his creativeness and aggressive approach for making the league the premier athletic conference in the country. Last week, Scott and Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany announced a commitment to schedule more competition, in all sports, between the 24 schools in the two conferences. In football, the goal is to create 12 inter-conference games by 2017.

The concept makes sense to the average sports enthusiast. Unfortunately the press release did not. For example it stated:
• “Collaboration will feature more games between the two conferences in an effort to enhance the experiences for all student-athletes, fans and alumni while broadening the national scope of both conferences.”
• “We believe that both conferences can preserve that sense of collegiality and still grow nationally by leveraging our commonalities in a way that benefits student-athletes, fans and alumni. This collaboration can and will touch many institutional undertakings, and will complement our academic and athletic missions.”
• “Through numerous conversations over the past several months with stakeholders from the Big Ten and Pac-12, we decided there would be great value in building upon the history and collegiality that exists between our member institutions, by initially committing to an increased frequency of play between our schools in all sports.”

The four sentences in these three bullet points were written at a Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level of 18.3. In other words, they are understandable by an average person with 6.3 years of college, i.e a college professor.

As well, the four sentences have a Flesch- Reading Ease score of 19.7. A score of 90 to 100 is understandable by an average 11 year old. A Reading Ease Score of 60 to 70 is easily understood by a 13 to 15 year old. As a point of reference, Time magazine is about 52 and the Harvard Law Review is in the low 30s (Wikipedia).

The press release was posted on the PAC-12 website on December 28 (when school is not in session). It was written at a level designed to appeal to only the academic-types at the 24 member institutions. Was this announcement made in this fashion because Scott and Delany expect to receive serious backlash from faculty members and the university communities?

In a nutshell, Scott and Delany said:
• This is a business venture between two of the country’s top athletic conferences.
• It is intended to generate more revenue for our television networks.
• It is intended to generate more revenue for both conferences and their member schools.
• We have a history of competing in the Rose Bowl.
• We want to build on the distinctive competency of past Rose Bowl competition.
• It will be easier to build a virtual super-conference rather than one made of bricks and mortar.
• Get your tickets now.
• $$$.
• Let the games begin.
FYI – This set of bullet points were written at a 7.2 grade level with a reading ease score of 63.

The concept is a slam dunk (in more ways than one). It is exciting for the sports enthusiast. And it should make these 24 athletic programs more financially viable.

To read the entire press release or to get more information about the PAC-12 click here or  click here for the Big 10 website.

Note: On July 13, 2012 the deal fell apart. In the article “Pac-12 and Big Ten Partnership Falls Apart,” the New York Times reported, “The fundamental fissure between the leagues was the Big Ten’s preference for 12 games with the Pac-12 every year. Larry Scott, the Pac-12’s commissioner, said in a telephone interview that it ultimately became a “flexibility”  issue for his teams, which play a nine-game conference schedule and have longstanding scheduling agreements with other teams, like those of Southern California and Stanford with Notre Dame. The Big Ten teams play an eight-game league schedule, making the addition of an annual marquee game outside the league easier.”

Bummer!

 

Newcomers Finish As Expected in First PAC-12 Season

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The inaugural PAC-12 athletic season has come to a close and Colorado and Utah finished as expected. With the exception of cross country, the newcomers showed that they can compete in the conference, but that they are not yet serious contenders for the top spots in the league.

In the ever-important sport of football, Utah finished third in the South Division with a 4-5 record. The Buffs ended at the bottom of the pack with 2 wins and 7 losses. The conference will be well represented in the upcoming BCS Bowl Series.

On the volleyball court CU compiled a spirited 1-21 record, while Utah finished 9th with 6 wins and 15 losses in conference play. UCLA won the national championship, defeating Illinois 3-1 in four closely fought sets. Illinois squeaked by USC in the semifinals 3-2. Arguably, the PAC-12 is the toughest volleyball conference in the country which will present challenges for the newcomers in 2012. In December, Tom Hogan, CU assistant coach and former USOC coach, announced that he will be leaving the Buff program.

Utah finished a respectable 5th place with a 6-5 record in women’s soccer, while Colorado was 1-9-1. CU’s only win of the season came in conference play. Stanford won the National Championship in women’s soccer. In November, Coach Bill Hempen ended his successful 11-year tenure at CU.

The one bright spot for the Buffs was cross country. To nobody’s surprise, Colorado swept both the men’s and women’s PAC-12 events. At the NCAAs, Arizona’s Lawi Lalang won the Men’s individual title. The PAC-12 had finishers in the second, sixth and 8th position. Buff Richard Medina finished 8th. On the women’s side, PAC-12 Champion CU finished third overall.

For further information on the PAC-12, click here.

 

What About Academic Performance Incentives?

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Kyle Ringo, sports writer for the Boulder Daily Camera, recently wrote an intriguing editorial on the local football scene, “McElwain Deal Could Pave Way for Raise for Embree” (December 14, 2011).

A short replay for those not familiar with the situation…

Jon Embree was hired to rebuild the University of Colorado football program at an annual salary of $725,000, plus on-field incentives. This is the lowest salary in the PAC-12. Embree bleeds Black and Gold and is well qualified despite his lack of experience as a head coach. He has surrounded himself with a qualified team of assistant coaches and has rekindled enthusiasm for the sport, CU Athletics, the university, and fundraising efforts.

Jim McElwain was recently hired to coach the Colorado State Rams, a school that was successful in a weak conference under Sonny Lubick. McElwain will be paid $1.3 million to try to put CSU back on the football map.

Now for the intriguing part of Ringo’s editorial…
McElwain has a $200,000 incentive in his contract related to his players’ academic performance.

The focus of the editorial was $$ and it did not address the specifics of McElwain’s academic performance incentive nor did it look at some of the questions surrounding the concept. Some questions that might be posed are presented below.
• Participation on a D1 athletic team is time consuming. As a result, athletes have access to tutors and in some cases are required to use them. Given that level of support is it is appropriate for an academic incentive to be offered?
• Most special groups, including athletic teams, include students who perform above the average in the classroom. If that is the case, then why is an academic performance incentive necessary?
• Are academic performance incentives based on a student’s improvement or his grades? This question is relevant because some athletics lack strong academic backgrounds for socioeconomic or other reasons.
• Former CU basketball Coach Jeff Bzdelik stated publicly it was difficult to produce a quality basketball team at CU given the universities high academic standards. f this is the case, how do you establish an appropriate academic standard for football and basketball?
• Would an academic performance incentive require students to perform at a certain level in meaningful classes that develop knowledge and skills that will allow the student-athletes to get a job when they graduate?
• How many coaches in Colorado’s colleges and universities have a clause in their contract that awards them for their students’ performance in the classroom?
• Does Embree have a academic incentive for the classroom performance of his players? If not, then why? If so, then why wasn’t it discussed in Ringo’s article?
• Do physics or accounting professors have similar performance  incentives for their students? This is a rhetorical question. Grade inflation has become so rampant in some universities, CU included, that policies have been set in certain disciplines, such as the Leeds School, that establish quotas that limit the number of A’s and B’s in a class.
• Is an academic performance incentive meaningful, or is it just a clause placed in the contract to pacify the “jock-haters.”

Both athletics and academics are important to our colleges and universities. It is truly an interesting challenge to find a balance between the two.

 

The Pay to Play Debate Rears Its Head Again

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For the past 50 years, there has been an ongoing debate about whether college athletes should be paid to play. Over that time, the topic has moved to the forefront, then it has been put on hold for more pressing issues. Several years later it again becomes a hot topic for discussion and the cycle repeats.

Much like the merits of the BCS system, it is a great topic to debate over a beer. There are solid reasons to pay college players and there are an equal number of justifications for not paying them. And much like the debate over the  BCS system, it is an issue that will never be addressed to everyone’s satisfaction.

The Boulder Daily Camera recently (9/14) printed a quote from South Carolina’s football coach Steve Spurrier on the topic. He supported an advocacy group’s report that determined that college football and basketball players don’t get what they’re worth from their schools.

To that point Spurrier said, “I mean, 20 years ago, 50 years ago, athletes got full scholarships. Television income was what, maybe $50,000? And now, everybody’s getting 14, 15 million bucks and they’re still getting a scholarship.

Forty or 50 years ago, college football and basketball were sports that were played for the sake of competition and bragging rights. Today the two sports are minor leagues for the NFL and NBA. In some cases they are expected to generate enough revenue to support the entire athletic department. The Final Four and the BCS Bowl Series have become a form of entertainment more than a showcase of athletic accomplishment.

While the top schools may “rake in the dough” from their football and basketball programs, those sports do not always generate a profit. Without a profit from the major sports or significant support from donors, it is likely that many minor sports teams would have to be eliminated, if pay to play was instituted.

Much of the discussion about college athletics presumes that higher education will continue to exist in its current form 30 years from now. That is not likely given concerns that higher education is too costly and ineffective. As well, technology is making it possible to receive a more targeted education online or through alternate means.

A case can be made that there is a higher education bubble and that when it bursts, college athletics will be forced to take on a different form.  The NCAA 2042 Final Four may feature the Appalachia Online School of Technology Cougars (an online university specializing in technology training) and the Southern California Leadership School Lakers (a leadership school whose basketball team is a farm club of the professional team bearing the same name).

Until that happens, you can partake in the “pay to play” debate now while the topic is hot or you can wait a couple of years and be a part of the sequel.

 

PAC-12 Arrives – Let the Games Begin

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Tomorrow (7/1) marks the day the University of Colorado and the University of Utah join the PAC-12. For CU, the move is from one BCS Conference to another – no big deal. For Utah the move is from a non-BCS to a BCS conference – this is a big deal. Being part of the PAC-12 is historic in another sense. The league is the second oldest in the country with only the Ivy League having a longer history.

Reportedly there is a network deal with ESPN and Fox worth about $3 billion to the PAC-12 (Daily Camera). As a result the move could be worth an additional $20 million each year to CU. While this is not a firm number, neither it or other preliminary estimates are chump change. Unfortunately, CU and Utah will need substantially more to be competitive in the new league.

Being in the PAC-12 presents a number of new marketing opportunities for the newcomers, particularly given CU’s large alumni base on the West Coast. And on the academic side, Buff leaders are quick to make the claims that the PAC-12 conference in more in line with the CU academic mission.

At the moment the conference is thriving under the aggressive leadership of Larry Scott. CU and Utah will definitely benefit from his actions.It was necessary for both schools to make the jump, given the race by other programs to construct a series of super conferences. If either school failed to take advantage of this opportunity they would have ended up in a weak conference.

Not only did the Buffs and Utes find a home; they now reside in one of the country’s elite athletic conferences. HOWEVER; being tabbed as an elite programs presents the newcomers with a series of new challenges- how are they going to survive in the race to raise or generate the most money, build the best facilities, hire the top coaches, and recruit premier athletes.

The bottom line is that CU and Utah were invited into the PAC-12 to generate money and develop winning teams. It is that simple. Let the games begin!

For further information on the PAC-12, click here, or go to http://www.pac-12.org/.