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Football coach buyouts raise concerns in tough economic times
The USA Today reported on the implications of the recent combined $11.85 million buyout of four football coaches at major NCAA member institutions, particularly during the current national economic situation. The recent firing of Phillip Fulmer cost the University of Tennessee-Knoxville $6 million, plus an additional $1.935 million if Fulmer’s assistants are also terminated. The other buyouts include $3.5 million for Clemson University coach Tommy Bowden; $1 million for University of Washington coach Tyrone Willingham; and, $1.2 million for Kansas State University coach Ron Prince, in addition to a prorated, $150,000 longevity bonus. Bowden, Prince, and Fulmer all are in the first year of new contracts. The paper noted that the buyouts at Tennessee and Clemson will be paid out of athletic department reserve funds; which may be necessary considering the state of Tennessee cut $17 million from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville budget and a potential for $25 milllion in cuts at Clemson University.
William “Brit” Kirwan, Chancellor of the University System of Maryland and co-chair of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, stated: “When times are flush, I guess maybe people look the other way when they see these kinds of numbers. But I think it’s going to be increasingly difficult for boards to explain … in these tough economic times.”
“There’s a lot of money at stake in the TV rights and revenue the schools share. So the idea of why they might be feeling pressure to spend so much money to improve their odds of winning is to be expected,” said Robert Frank, a Cornell economics professor. “The pattern is very troubling. We’re spending a lot of money on things that, in the end, aren’t going to make any difference in how well we do as a society.”
“Not only do you have these buyouts, these immediate expenses — what it’s going to cost you to keep coaches on contract who are no longer actually working for you?” said Dutch Baughman, who heads the Texas-based Division I-A Athletic Directors’ Association. “You’ve got all the new coaches’ contracts, all the moving expenses, all the other start-up costs of a whole new staff coming in. Schools will find themselves in a position now where they’re going to say, ‘You know what? We’re just going to have to tough it out. Economically, we just cannot afford … all the expense involved.’ “
Knight Commission Criticizes Commercialization of College Athletes in Fantasy Sports, New Media
Commission will study economics of college sports in year-long program
October 27, 2008—FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Katie Reardon
Widmeyer Communications, 202.667.0901 x150
or
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics met on October 27 to discuss the emerging conflict between new forms of media and long-standing NCAA rules designed to protect athletes from commercial exploitation. The Commission also announced it would pursue a year-long series of meetings and research on the economics of college sports, with a particular focus on why expenses are rising faster than revenues at virtually all Division I athletics programs.
“College athletes in fantasy games and video games may seem trivial to some, but these and other forms of new media pose new challenges to the long-held distinction between commercial activity featuring teams and that which focuses on individual athletes,” said R. Gerald Turner, co-chairman of the Commission and president of Southern Methodist University. “We continue to believe that universities need to treat athletes fairly and equitably, and for third parties to use them in commercial products and advertisements violates that principle.”
Knight Commission member Len Elmore, ESPN analyst and partner at Dreier, LLP, added that “many observers believe this invasion of commercialism appears to be inevitable given new technologies that are intersecting with consumer demand for interactivity and reality-based gaming. If college athletes’ names and likenesses are to be used in commercial products, advertisements or fantasy sports games, there must be a way to balance the inequities by providing some sort of benefit to athletes through mechanisms other than ‘pay for play.’”
The Commission heard from a panel of lawyers and media experts, who said that colleges and athletes could have a case to prevent media companies from creating fantasy leagues using athlete names and likenesses. Following that, a panel of recent student-athletes—including University of Colorado football player Jeremy Bloom, Lafayette College basketball player Kerry Kenny, Ohio State University quarterback Craig Krenzel and Georgia Tech basketball player Marvin Lewis—generally agreed that college athletes should not be paid like professionals, but that it might be possible to examine other ways of supporting athletes such as providing graduate scholarships. The NCAA has established several funds to support athlete needs, and funding for such may increase as streams of revenue do. They also all agreed that third parties should not be allowed to profit from the images and likenesses of college athletes.
To inaugurate its examination of the economics and finance of college sports, the Commission also received a report on college sports finances that showed only 19 Division I institutions recorded more revenue than expenses in the most recent reporting cycle, and that the median net deficit for the majority of Division I institutions increased more than 20 percent since 2004. Additionally, data presented show that institutions in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) receive half of their revenues from alumni donations and ticket sales.
“It’s clear that college sports has a spending problem that must be addressed,” said William E. Kirwan, Knight Commission co-chairman and chancellor of the University System of Maryland. “In the aggregate, athletics spending continues to escalate while instructional spending has remained stagnant and has even decreased at many institutions. The current economic climate and the needs of our universities require a change in this imbalance.”
The Commission’s year-long examination of financial issues will continue in January in a meeting in Miami to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Commission’s founding. Complete bios and pictures of Commission members can be found here. Photographs from the meeting are accessible at www.flickr.com/photos/kcia. The meeting sessions will be accessible via podcast on the Commission’s website on Oct. 29.
Multimedia Files
Copy of Mishkin Testimony (PDF) in the first session. Audio podcast (mp3, rss podcast), “Commercialism in Sports and Athletes’ Rights in the 21st Century: How the new media landscape and fan interactivity is impacting traditional amateurism principles (Part I).” Featuring panelists: Robert Corn-Revere, Partner, Davis Wright Tremaine; Jeffrey Mishkin, Partner, Skadden, Arps, and former Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, National Basketball Association; Wallace Renfro, Vice President and Senior Advisor to the President, NCAA; Clay Walker, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Fantasy Sports Ventures; Glenn Wong, Professor and Attorney, Isenberg School of Management, University of Massachusetts Amherst, and Faculty Athletics Representative.
Audio podcast of the second session (mp3, rss podcast), “Commercialism in Sports and Athletes’ Rights in the 21st Century (Part II).” Featuring panelists: Jeremy Bloom, former football player, University of Colorado, and World Champion and Olympic snow skier; Kerry Kenny, Chairman, NCAA Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee; former basketball player, Lafayette College; Craig Krenzel, former football player, The Ohio State University; Marvin Lewis, Associate Athletics Director, Georgia State University; former basketball athlete, Georgia Institute of Technology.
Powerpoint of the third session. Audio podcast (mp3, rss podcast), “College Sports Finances: An Update on Efforts to Improve Accuracy of Financial Data reported by Division I Athletics Programs and a Report on the Financial Health of Division I Athletics Programs.” Featuring panelists: Dan Fulks, Author, 2004-06 NCAA Revenues and Expenses of Division I Intercollegiate Athletics Programs Report and Accounting Program Director, Transylvania University; Jim Isch, Chief Financial Officer, NCAA; Andrew Zimbalist, Professor of Economics, Smith College; Ron Wellman, Athletics Director, Wake Forest University.
Photos from October 27, 2008 meeting
Below: Panel of College Sports Commercialization (left to right): Wally Renfro (NCAA), Jeffery Mishkin (Attorney), Clay Walker (Fantasy Sports Ventures), Robert Corn-Revere (Attorney), and Glenn Wong (University of Massachusetts). Link here for high resolution.
Below: Jeremy Bloom (at left, former University of Colorado football player) and Kerry Kenny (Former student-athlete and Chairman of NCAA Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee). Link here for high resolution.
Below: Knight Commission Co-Chairmen (at left) William “Brit” Kirwan, chancellor, University System of Maryland and R. Gerald Turner, president, Southern Methodist University. Link here for high resolution.
Knight Commission to Meet Oct. 27 to Discuss Publicity Rights, Fantasy Games, and Commercialism
FOR RELEASE —October 1, 2008
CONTACT AND RSVP: Katie Reardon, Widmeyer Communications, 202.667.0901 x150 or
Media Advisory
KNIGHT COMMISSION TO MEET OCT. 27 AT NATIONAL PRESS CLUB IN WASHINGTON, D.C. TO DISCUSS ATHLETES’ PUBLICITY RIGHTS, COLLEGE SPORTS FANTASY GAMES, COMMERCIALISM AND FINANCES
Who: Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics chaired by William E. “Brit” Kirwan, Chancellor, University System of Maryland and R. Gerald Turner, President of Southern Methodist University
What: Knight Commission meeting to discuss commercialism in sports and athletes’ rights in the 21st Century; how the new media landscape and emerging developments such as college fantasy football and basketball games impact traditional amateurism principles; and, college sports finances (agenda below). This meeting is open to the media and the public.
When: Monday, Oct. 27, 8:45 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. EST
Reporters will have a chance to interview and talk with panelists and Commission members during breaks or at the conclusion of the final session. Meeting photographs will be easily downloadable for media following the meeting.
Where: Holeman Lounge, National Press Club, 529 14th St., NW, 13th Floor, Washington, D.C.
Longstanding NCAA amateurism principles prohibit the commercial use of college players’ names, images and likenesses. However, these principles are challenged by emerging online media and a desire to enhance revenue by allowing the use of athletes’ names and images by commercial partners. The current debate over whether names and statistics of college athletes should be allowed to be used in commercial fantasy football and basketball games without the institutions’ or athletes’ consent is one issue to be discussed in the broader examination of college athletes and their publicity rights.
Two Knight Commission panels will explore the legal, business and policy issues with the nation’s most knowledgeable experts on these issues.
The Knight Commission also will receive a report on the financial health of Division I athletics programs. In particular, the Commission and experts will discuss the increasing reliance of Division I institutions on institutional subsidies to balance their budgets, particularly as deficits on athletic spending continue to grow. Since it reconvened in November 2003, the Commission has advocated for new processes to improve the accuracy of athletics financial data and greater transparency for these data. The Commission will hear from financial experts and an athletics director on how new NCAA financial reporting processes have improved the accuracy and comparability of data and whether the new system provides the desired transparency and accountability.
These sessions are the first in a year-long series of planned discussions on the economics and finance of college sports that will culminate in a major report on the realities facing universities and athletics programs in late 2009.
Complete bios and pictures of Commission members can be found at http://www.knightcommission.org. The meeting sessions will be accessible via podcast on the website after the conclusion of the event. The Commission will meet next in Miami, FL on Monday, Jan. 26, 2009.
About the Knight Foundation Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics
The Knight Foundation Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics was formed by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation in October 1989 in response to more than a decade of highly visible scandals in college sports. The goal of the Commission was to promote a reform agenda that emphasized academic values in a climate in which commercialization of college sports often overshadowed the underlying goals of higher education. The Commission, which presented recommendations in a series of reports in the early 1990s and in the subsequent A Call to Action in 2001, continues to monitor and advocate for changes necessary to enhance presidential control and leadership, academic integrity, financial integrity and independent certification of athletics programs.
About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation promotes excellence in journalism worldwide and invests in the vitality of U.S. communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers. Knight focuses on ideas and projects that create transformational change. For more, visit http://www.knightfoundation.org.
Meeting Agenda
National Press Club
529 14th St., NW 13th Floor
Washington, D.C.
Monday, Oct. 27, 2008
8:45 – 10:30 a.m. Commercialism in Sports and Athletes’ Rights in the 21st Century: How the new media landscape and fan interactivity is impacting traditional amateurism principles (Part I)—Holeman Lounge
Robert Corn-Revere, Partner, Davis Wright Tremaine; Project Chair and Co-Author, First Amendment and the Media, Media Institute; Author, Freedom of Speech and Content Regulation on the Internet, Internet law and Regulation (Treatise Chapter), Pike & Fischer, Inc.
Jeffrey Mishkin, Partner, Skadden, Arps; former Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer, National Basketball Association
Wallace Renfro, Vice President and Senior Advisor to the President, NCAA
Clay Walker, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Fantasy Sports Ventures; Founder and former Chairman, Fantasy Sports Association; former Senior Vice President of the NFL Player’s Association’s licensing and marketing arm (PLAYERS INC.)
Glenn Wong, Professor and Attorney, Isenberg School of Management, University of Massachusetts Amherst, and Faculty Athletics Representative
10:45 a.m. – noon Commercialism in Sports and Athletes’ Rights in the 21st Century (Part II)
Jeremy Bloom, former football player, University of Colorado, and World Champion and Olympic snow skier
Kerry Kenny, Chairman, NCAA Division I Student-Athlete Advisory Committee; former basketball player, Lafayette College
Craig Krenzel, former football player, The Ohio State University
Marvin Lewis, Associate Athletics Director, Georgia State University; former basketball athlete, Georgia Institute of Technology
noon – 12:45 p.m. Lunch Break
1:00 – 2:30 p.m. College Sports Finances: An Update on Efforts to Improve Accuracy of Financial Data reported by Division I Athletics Programs and a Report on the Financial Health of Division I Athletics Programs
Dan Fulks, Author, 2004-06 NCAA Revenues and Expenses of Division I Intercollegiate Athletics Programs Report and Accounting Program Director, Transylvania University
Jim Isch, Chief Financial Officer, NCAA
Andrew Zimbalist, Professor of Economics, Smith College; author, Unpaid Professionals: Commercialism and Conflict in Big-Time College Sports (1999), The Bottom Line: Observations and Arguments on the Sports Business (2006) and Equal Play: Title IX and Social Change (2007)
Ron Wellman, Athletics Director, Wake Forest University
NCAA penalties and self-monitoring practices called into question
The Indianapolis Star published an article on September 16 which highlights a discussion at the Knight Commission’s June meeting about the purpose and outcomes of self-monitoring practices by NCAA institutions. With a September 17 deadline for Indiana University to respond to NCAA charges of its “failure to monitor” its men’s basketball program, reporter Mike Alesia asks whether or not institutions should receive credit for reporting their own NCAA rules violations. The article notes that the NCAA does not have the manpower to watch every institution, and thus relies upon self-policing as an obligation of membership. “But the reality, in my mind, in my world, is that not everyone self-reports,” said attorney Michael Glazier in June at a meeting of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics. “And more times than not, those who do not self-report do not get caught.” Glazier is representing Indiana University former men’s basketball coach Kelvin Sampson. An audio recording and links to several news articles about the June meeting is available here.
The article notes that an NCAA subcommittee is currently examining two specific questions about NCAA infractions: 1) Should schools get explicit credit for turning themselves in, as IU did? and, 2) should punishments be tougher, and focus more on coaches or boosters who get programs into trouble, rather than the programs themselves?
Tackling college football fantasy leagues
Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics co-chairs William E. Kirwan and R. Gerald Turner authored an opinion piece, below, published in the Los Angeles Times on August 30, 2008.
This weekend, Terrapins, Trojans, Mustangs and more take to the gridiron, kicking off the college football season. This week also marks the start of a new era in college football, one in which fantasy leagues run by commercial entities exploit college players as their virtual game pieces.
These online fantasy leagues, which use the real names and statistics of collegiate athletes, raise a crucial question for higher education leaders: Is it amateurism in college sports that has become a fantasy?
The National Collegiate Athletic Assn.—the organization of colleges, universities and conferences that governs sports programs—has long upheld the principle of amateurism. NCAA bylaws establish that students participating in college sports “should be protected from exploitation by professional and commercial enterprises.” Clearly, these fantasy contests violate that tenet.
To fulfill its fundamental purpose of retaining a “clear line of demarcation between college athletics and professional sports,” the NCAA and its member universities need to combat these infringements on athletes’ rights and the principles of amateur sports.
Fantasy games allow fans to draft a personal “dream team” of players that earns points based on the real performances of chosen players. There are many such start-up games online, but CBS Sports’ is the most prominent. That raises particularly thorny questions for the NCAA and its member institutions because the network essentially funds the NCAA through a broadcast contract worth half a billion dollars a year.
Although CBS Sports’ Fantasy College Football is free, other companies charge entry fees of up to $19.95 a team and offer cash prizes of up to $25,000 for winning teams. One company goes so far as to assign salaries to top-rated college players because its game requires each team to stay under a pay cap.
The Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, on which we serve as co-chairmen, is opposed to the use of players’ names and statistics in these games and has urged the NCAA board of directors to explore possible remedies, either legal or contractual.
Since it was founded in 1989, the commission, which consists of university presidents and trustees and former college athletes, has advocated policies that protect college athletes from commercial exploitation. We believe that the creation of college sports fantasy leagues, if unchecked, is a step toward undermining the NCAA’s bedrock amateurism principles, which require colleges and their business partners to treat athletes like other students and not as commodities whose names, likenesses and/or images can be sold or licensed.
NCAA rules allow the names and images of athletes to be used only to promote their teams and their games. In fact, neither the NCAA nor the universities acquire any other publicity rights to athletes; they simply cannot license the use of their names or images—not to fantasy leagues, not to video game companies, not to sportswear companies.
However, CBS Sports and other fantasy league operators believe that they have found a loophole. A recent court ruling found that Major League Baseball players’ names and stats are not owned by the individual players or the leagues, but instead are in the public domain. This ruling was made by the U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals in a case involving Major League Baseball Advanced Media and a fantasy league operator. The court decision describes these professional players as being “handsomely” compensated and able to earn “additional large sums” through endorsement contracts.
Legal scholars disagree about whether this ruling applies to amateur athletes who are not compensated for their participation and cannot earn money from endorsements.
We believe that the NCAA, universities and college athletes should take firm positions that this ruling does not apply to amateur sports—and that all those groups should contact fantasy game operators to formally demand they stop using students’ names in these games. Unless the courts clearly decide that amateur athletes’ names can be used without consent and for purely commercial purposes, the NCAA and universities have the responsibility to stand up for their athletes and the amateurism principles that should guide college sports.
Higher Ed Watch Blog Calls for More Budget Transparency
Echoing many of the prior recommendations made by the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, New America Foundation’s Higher Ed Watch blogger Lindsey Luebchow called for the NCAA, and possibly Congress, to provide more transparency and more detailed information about athletic spending. Since the Knight Commission reconvened in 2003, it has consistently called for improvements to the accuracy and transparency of athletics financial data. Luebchow emphasizes problems with data submitted by institutions under the Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act – a problem the Commission wrote to the Department of Education about in 2005 (link here to attached letter). Luebchow also calls for changes in revenue distribution so that a larger share of NCAA revenue is based on need instead of winning performances in the NCAA basketball tournament. In its 2001 report, the Commission recommended that the NCAA’s revenue distribution plan be revised to consider values such as improving academic performance, enhancing athletes’ collegiate experiences, and achieving gender equity. Luebchow’s final recommendation is to provide four-year athletics scholarships instead of one-year renewable grants. Luebshow’s full commentary can be accessed here.
A Tribute to Former Knight Commission Chairman Thomas K. Hearn
We are deeply saddened by the news that our friend and colleague Thomas K. Hearn passed away yesterday at his home in Winston-Salem. Hearn was a founding member of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics and served as the Commission’s chairman in 2005 and 2006. Recognized as one of the nation’s top university presidents during his 22-year tenure leading Wake Forest University, Dr. Hearn’s consistent, strong voice on the core values that should shape college sports were instrumental to the Knight Commission’s agenda. A tribute to Tom Hearn is posted on the Wake Forest University Web site— http://www.wfu.edu/wowf/2008/20080818.hearn.html
NCAA won’t challenge fantasy football, will keep status quo on beer ads
Despite calls to take a strong stand against the use of athletes’ names in an online fantasy football game in violation of NCAA rules, the NCAA announced that it does not believe it can challenge the actions due to its interpretation of a judicial ruling involving fantasy leagues and Major League Baseball players.
The NCAA also decided at its August 7 meeting of its Executive Committee that it would continue to allow television networks to sell 60 seconds of commercial time for each hour they’re on the air. Ads can only be sold for beverages containing 6 percent or less of alcohol - almost exclusively beer - during the NCAA’s national championships. The NCAA requires all beer ads in stadiums or arenas to be covered during its championships, does not permit the sale of beer, wine or liquor during the games and has advised its member institutions to follow the same code.
In late July, CBS Sports announced it would revamp its college fantasy football game by using individual names and stats instead of school names and player positions. Because of a ruling handed down by the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St. Louis and the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision not to hear the case, the NCAA believes all it can do is revise its own rules. “Our bylaws lump together names, images and likenesses and the names are being used now, so we’ll have to go back and look at this,” NCAA President Myles Brand said. “We will need to go back and look at our options. We certainly are not giving up our model of amateurism.” Notably, CBS has an $11 billion television deal with the NCAA to broadcast the men’s basketball championship tournament.
In April, more than 100 university presidents wrote to Brand, calling the beer ads that appeared during the men’s basketball tournament “embarrassingly prominent.” A similar number of football and men’s basketball coaches sent their own letter to the executive committee, urging a gradual ban over the next three years. That position was backed by two other letters signed by more than 200 athletic directors and 39 university presidents. “Alcohol and college sports are a bad mix,” the letter said. “Beer promotion during college sports telecasts undermines the best interests of higher education and compromises the efforts of colleges and others to combat sometimes epidemic levels of alcohol problems on many campuses today.” Joining the call were nine members of the U.S. House of Representatives, who sent their own letter to Brand on Wednesday.
However, NCAA Executive Committee chairman Michael Adams responded on behalf of the committee to keep the status quo. “I think we’ve taken a very sensible, very rationale, very conservative approach and we’ve asked that any company that advertises (alcohol) during our games continue to include the message ‘drink responsibly’ on its ads. I think we’ve taken about as a conservative an approach as any sport in the country. While not everyone agrees 100 percent, I think we represent what is a good balance in that opinion.”
Knight Commission calls on NCAA to protect athletes from commercial exploitation by fantasy leagues
In articles published July 31 in USA Today and the Chronicle of Higher Education, Knight Commission Executive Director Amy Perko called on the NCAA to take action to protect college athletes from being exploited by a fantasy league using their names without permission and for commercial purposes. The Chronicle of Higher Education reports that Perko “believes the NCAA should do more to stop the college fantasy game.” “The NCAA exists to protect the integrity of its rules and to protect student-athletes from being exploited,” Ms. Perko told the Chronicle. “It (the NCAA) has a responsibility to make sure that its rules are followed for the benefit of the individual athletes.” An article published August 4 in USA Today discusses the position of individual schools and athletes considering their options to prevent CBS from continuing with its fantasy game.
Perko’s comments relate to news from the NCAA that it will work with CBS Sports to protect the amateur status of college athletes after CBS Sports’ decision to base its college football fantasy game on actual Division I Football Bowl Subdivision athletes. CBS Sports announced on July 28 that it would offer participants playing its online College Football Fantasy Game the opportunity to draft real student-athletes as opposed to position players (for example, Michigan State QBs, Boston College RBs) that do not disclose student-athlete names. Participants in the fantasy league will not be charged an entry fee or be eligible for any prize associated with the game. And, according to the Wall Street Journal, CBS is planning to implement this for college basketball later this year.
The Wall Street Journal article noted that CBS decided to include the names of student-athletes in its fantasy game after a decision by the U.S. Supreme Court on June 2. The court refused to hear a case brought by Major League Baseball Advanced Media against CDM Fantasy Sports Corp.; the decision was interpreted to mean an entity does not own the rights to statistics and names that are in the public domain. That allowed for other fantasy companies to use real names and statistics without fearing retribution by major sports entities like Major League Baseball or the National Football League.
According to the NCAA, earlier this month it issued an official interpretation stating that any student-athletes whose names are used in conjunction with a fantasy sports game would be required to take action to stop the third party in order to remain eligible. However, the NCAA has sent notice to CBS Sports that its league could jeopardize student-athlete eligibility. Institutions and individual student-athletes may still contact CBS Sports or any third party if they believe their amateurism has been jeopardized.
NCAA spokesman Bob Williams reportedly informed the Wall Street Journal that because of the added exposure fantasy sports can bring the student-athlete, the NCAA does not intend to stand in the way of the fantasy game for now. “We are concerned with protecting the amateur status of the student athlete,” Mr. Williams told the paper, but he also believes that the bylaws, which were enacted “before new media,” do not properly address a situation like this. Still, he warns that NCAA lawyers will be watching closely.
Recruiting expenses increase significantly for major college sport programs
The relationship between academic policies and APR calcuations
Inside Higher Ed published a point of view by Todd Diacon, Faculty Athletics Representative at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, in which he discussed the relationship between individual institutional academic policies and the NCAA’s Academic Progress Rate (APR). While Diacon notes that the APR provides a useful opportunity for institutions to examine how their academic policies affect all students, he also states that institutions differ in their grade calculations, transfer credits, class scheduling, and type of major—all of which may directly or indirectly affect APR calculations.
Academic penalties on Division I sport teams examined by USA Today
In a series of articles by the USA Today, the paper examines NCAA’s academic-related penalties to 200 sport teams at 123 Division I schools as well as the waivers given. By comparing the penalties applied across the leagues, the report highlights a difference between the academic performance of teams in higher profile conferences as compared to those conferences with mid-level universities. The paper noted that both San Jose State University and the University of Alabama at Birmingham were docked more scholarships — a combined 23.62 in six sports — than all 65 schools in the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) football conferences—college athletics’ most successful and lucrative conferences.
While the Atlantic Coast, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pacific 10 and Southeastern conferences make up the BCS and almost 20% of Division I’s overall membership, they accounted for less than 10% of the academic progress rate (APR) scholarship cuts. Notably, the Pac-10 conference saw only three of 14 teams which failed to meet the APR sanctioned (21%) while the Western Athletic Conference saw 23 of 34 (68%) and the Mountain West Conference 10 of 15 (67%). The SEC saw only five of 20 low-APR teams sanctioned (25%). The Sun Belt, with roughly the same geographic footprint, saw 16 of 46 (35%). One explanation proposed by the article is that “the bigger-budget schools are more capable of beefing up academic support programs and taking other supportive measures such as covering summer school costs for incoming athletes and reducing missed class time by flying rather than busing to game.”
APRs are designed to be a gauge of both athlete retention and academic performance. Each scholarship player on each team can earn two APR points per semester or term for remaining at the school and staying academically eligible or graduating, and the NCAA’s statistic determines that teams should hit 92.5% of their possible total (an APR of 925) or face academic penalties.
Kevin Lennon, vice president of the NCAA, told the paper, “All of the schools we’re talking about here — in the power six conferences, in the non-power (leagues) — have an improvement plan where they’ve said, ‘We’re going to meet these targeted goals.’ I think over time, all of this will kind of even itself out if they’re able to meet their goals.” Notably, it may already be having an effect on decision making: When the University of New Mexico’s (UNM) baseball and men’s basketball programs posted low APRs in 2006-2007, the head coaches were replaced. Said David Schmidly, president of UNM, “Academic scores were ‘not totally’ the reason, but that was a big part of the decision.”
Knight Commission’s Executive Director Selected For CoSIDA Academic All-America Hall of Fame
Former Wake Forest basketball star was a three-time Academic All-America honoree
(June 25, 2008)-----Amy (Privette) Perko, executive director of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, has been selected for induction into the CoSIDA Academic All-America Hall of Fame. Perko, who will enter the Hall as part of the 21st class, will be inducted with four other honorees on June 30 in Tampa, Fla. The class entering with Perko in Tampa includes Rebecca Lobo (Connecticut, `95), Dr. Kenneth Caldwell (The Citadel, `79), Nancy Hogshead-Makar (Duke, `86) and Karen Jennings (Nebraska, ‘93).
Perko has been involved with the work of the Knight Commission since the Commission reconvened in 2003 and has served as the executive director since July 2005. The Commission is funded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Perko joins Knight Commission member Val Ackerman in the Hall of Fame.
“I see this recognition as a validation of the Knight Commission’s contributions to college sports,” Perko said. “I’ve been fortunate to work with so many outstanding leaders dedicated to preserving the balance between academics and athletics. In receiving this honor, I must recognize Maureen Devlin, the commission’s former executive director, for her unwavering commitment to the commission’s work and for allowing me to become involved in this effort. I also must thank Bill Friday, president emeritus at the University of North Carolina and Thomas Hearn, president emeritus at Wake Forest, for their guidance and support. Both have made significant contributions to improving college sports so that the programs remain connected to the educational mission of universities.”
Prominent sportscaster Dick Enberg, who presented Perko with each of her three Academic All-America awards in ‘85, ‘86 and ‘87, notified the Deacon great of her selection for induction.
“When I got the phone call from Dick Enberg, I was floored,” Perko said. “I knew Wake Forest had nominated me but I did not expect to be selected. I was really surprised and obviously very honored to be included with this group. To be selected for the Hall of Fame for this particular award is very meaningful.”
Perko, who graduated from Wake Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude in 1987, was a three-time Academic All-America selection as well as a two-time All-ACC performer on the hardwood. She was inducted into the Wake Forest Sports Hall of Fame in 2000.
The Kannapolis, N.C. native ranks among Wake Forest’s top ten all-time in points, rebounds, assists and steals. Perko was also a William Louis Poteat scholar at Wake.
Perko won Wake’s Female Athlete of the Year award for the 1986-87 season and was chosen as the recipient of the 1987 NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship. Perko continued her studies at the University of Richmond, where she received her master’s degree in sports management.
Perko worked at the NCAA for over six years, and then at the University of Kansas as the Associate Athletics Director and Senior Woman Administrator. She left Kansas in 2001 to return to North Carolina when she was the first Team President named by the National Basketball Association for one of its men’s basketball development teams, the Fayetteville Patriots.
An active member of the Fayetteville community, Perko served as President of the Board of Directors for the Partnership for Children of Cumberland County, an organization that focuses on early childhood development and education. She continues to serve on the organization’s Board of Directors. Over the past several years, Perko has served on the coordinating committee for a community-wide basketball league and has coached girls’ basketball teams in the area.
Amy and her husband, Rick, are the parents of two daughters: Anna and Kate.
“My life experience has been that discipline, focus and determination help you succeed in academics and athletics,” Perko added. “I’ve been blessed to have great teachers, mentors and teammates who really share in this recognition.”
Photo: Amy Perko (center) receiving the award at her induction to the CoSIDA Academic All-America Hall of Fame.
Knight Commission Calls on NCAA to Shorten Basketball Season
Commission plans further oversight of academic reform and associated sanctions
Washington, D.C. – The Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics held discussions here Tuesday on academic reform, potential changes in the basketball playing season, and changes to penalties for violating National Collegiate Athletic Association rules. The Commission called on the NCAA to shorten the season to reduce the number of missed classes and stress on players. It also commended the association’s academic performance program, but noted that a complex waiver process is threatening to weaken standards designed to hold programs responsible for the academic progress of their players.
“The basketball season is too long, there are too many games and too many road trips, and the grades of these athletes show the consequences,” said William E. “Brit” Kirwan, Knight Commission Co-Chairman and Chancellor of the University System of Maryland. “Let’s adopt a schedule that is in the best interest of the athletes, not the TV programmers.”
Also at its meeting here Tuesday, the Commission:
· Urged the NCAA to reject efforts to dilute academic reform and to raise minimum academic standards to ensure that at least 50 percent of athletes earn degrees.
· Expressed concern that waivers of penalties for poor academic performance may be too easy to receive under the current system, and called for more transparency in the waiver process.
· Discussed proposals to strengthen the penalties for NCAA rules violations, but did not take a position on the issue.
NCAA officials told the Commission that 91 percent of the teams at member institutions surpassed minimum requirements for academic success, while 218 teams at 123 institutions have been sanctioned for failing to meet the minimum academic benchmarks during the 2006-7 academic year. The majority of teams penalized lost scholarships, and 26 teams will be subject to postseason sanctions in the 2009-10 academic year unless scores improve.
In its 2001 report, the Commission recommended penalizing teams failing to graduate at least 50 percent of their players. Since then, the Commission has supported the NCAA’s Academic Performance Program, despite pressure to weaken it from coaches and other groups.
“We see clear academic progress. We know this program is changing behavior, and we celebrate it,” said R. Gerald Turner, Knight Commission Co-Chairman and Southern Methodist University President. “But the Commission was concerned about the potential of diluting this program. Ultimately, the new system will work only to the extent that the standards are consistently applied and enforced.”
The Knight Commission also heard a report on proposals to improve the academic performance of men’s basketball teams. An NCAA working group on this issue will finalize a set of recommendations in October on subjects including the following:
· Requiring summer school attendance and expanding the time during which coaches can work directly with the players on their basketball skills.
· Reducing the number of missed classes by reducing the length of the playing season; and, by limiting the number of away conference games.
· Providing more waiver flexibility and opportunities for APR score adjustments under special circumstances, such as head coaching transitions.
The Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics also announced the addition of three new members: Sarah Lowe, Sonja Steptoe and Christopher Zorich.
Sarah Lowe graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Florida in May 2006. She was a leader on Florida’s women’s basketball team, serving as team captain three of her four years. Following her graduation, she studied in Costa Rica as a Fulbright Scholar.
Sonja Steptoe serves as client development manager at O’Melveny & Myers LLP, an international law firm based in Los Angeles. Prior to joining O’Melveny in 2007, Steptoe served as a senior correspondent and deputy news director for Time magazine for five years following a successful career in sports journalism. She earned degrees in economics and journalism at the University of Missouri and a law degree from Duke University.
A two-time All-American at Notre Dame, Christopher Zorich was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2007. He played in the NFL for seven seasons. Zorich received a bachelor of arts in American Studies as well as his law degree from Notre Dame. After working at a law firm for four years and then devoting time to his foundation, which provides scholarships and other financial assistance to students and families in the Chicago area, Zorich recently returned to his alma mater to serve as the manager of student welfare and development.
Complete bios and pictures of each new member can be found on http://www.knightcommission.org. The Commission will meet again in Washington, D.C. on Monday, Oct. 27, 2008.
Multimedia Files
Audio podcast of the first session (mp3, rss podcast), “Academic Integrity: Report on the NCAA Academic Performance Program and the recommendations to improve academic performance of men’s basketball players.” Georgia Tech men’s basketball coach Paul Hewitt and NCAA officials discuss the impact of the academic reforms with commission members.
Audio podcast of the second session (mp3, rss podcast), “NCAA Infractions: An examination of trends, recommendations to restructure penalties, and challenges.” Panelists Josephine Potuto, Gene Marsh, Mike Glazier, and Chad McEvoy discussed NCAA penalties for major rules violations and the principles that should drive any potential changes.
Several organizations have reported on the meeting, including the Baltimore Sun, the NCAA, Inside Higher Ed, USA Today, the Associated Press, and the Chronicle of Higher Education.
Knight Commission to meet June 17 to discuss academic reforms, penalties for major rules violations
FOR RELEASE—May 14, 2008.
CONTACT AND RSVP: Brian Wachur, Widmeyer Communications, 202.667.0901 or
Media Advisory
Georgia Tech men’s basketball coach Paul Hewitt and University of Hartford President Walt Harrison to discuss the academic challenges in men’s basketball and the impact of academic reforms
Who: R. Gerald Turner, President of Southern Methodist University and Co-Chairman of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics
William E. “Brit” Kirwan, Chancellor, University System of Maryland and Co-Chairman of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics
Other members of
the Knight Commission, including new members: Sarah Lowe, former University of Florida women’s basketball athlete; Sonja Steptoe, former Time and Sports Illustrated journalist and Christopher Zorich, former football All-American at Notre Dame
What: Knight Commission meeting to discuss the NCAA Academic Performance Program; recommendations to improve the academic performance of basketball players; and, trends in NCAA violations and recommendations to revise the penalties for major rules violations (agenda below)
When: Tuesday, June 17, 8:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. EST
Reporters will have a chance to talk with panelists and Commission members during breaks or at the conclusion of the final session.
Where: Salon II in The Ritz-Carlton Hotel, 1150 22nd St., NW (corner of 22nd and M Streets), Washington, D.C.
The NCAA recently announced that 218 teams at 123 institutions will be sanctioned for failing to meet minimum academic benchmarks established as part of the Academic Performance Program. In 2001, the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics advocated that teams be ineligible for postseason competition if they failed to graduate at least 50 percent of their athletes. Although the current benchmarks are lower than those advocated by the Commission, the Commission has supported the full implementation of the NCAA’s program since its adoption in 2004.
During this meeting, the Knight Commission will receive a report on the program’s administration and impact. Of particular interest to the Commission is the process that allowed nearly 70 percent of teams with scores under the minimum benchmark to avoid penalties. Also, the Commission will consider academic enhancement proposals from a group of basketball coaches and administrators.
The Commission will also hear a report from current members of the Division I Committee on Infractions on trends in major rules violations and possible changes to the penalty structure.
The Knight Commission will welcome three new members at this meeting.
Sarah Lowe graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Florida in May 2006. Lowe was a leader on the women’s basketball team serving as team captain three of her four years. Following her graduation, she studied in Costa Rica as a Fulbright Scholar. She received numerous awards for her academic and athletics excellence including the Arthur Ashe, Jr. 2006 Female Sport Scholar of the Year.
Sonja Steptoe serves as client development manager at O’Melveny & Myers LLP, an international law firm based in Los Angeles. Prior to joining O’Melveny in 2007, Steptoe served as a senior correspondent and deputy news director for Time Magazine for five years following a successful career in sports journalism. Steptoe reported and wrote for CNNSI sports network, HBO’s RealSports with Bryant Gumbel and Sports Illustrated. Her investigation of East Germany’s systematic doping of Olympic athletes earned her an Emmy Award for Outstanding Sports Journalism. Steptoe earned degrees in economics and journalism at the University of Missouri. She received a law degree from Duke University.
Christopher Zorich was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2007. A two-time All-American at Notre Dame in 1989 and 1990, Zorich played in the NFL for seven seasons. Zorich received his bachelor of arts in American Studies from Notre Dame in 1991 and his law degree from Notre Dame Law School in May 2002. He is chairman of the Christopher Zorich Foundation, which provides scholarships and other financial assistance to students and families in the Chicago area. Following his graduation from Notre Dame, he was the first student-athlete in Notre Dame’s history to fund a scholarship at his alma mater.
The meeting sessions will be accessible via podcast on the website after the conclusion of the event. The Commission will meet again in Washington, D.C. on Monday, Oct. 27, 2008.
About the Knight Foundation Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics
The Knight Foundation Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics was formed by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation in October 1989 in response to more than a decade of highly visible scandals in college sports. The goal of the commission was to promote a reform agenda that emphasized academic values in a climate in which commercialization of college sports often overshadowed the underlying goals of higher education. The commission, which presented recommendations in a series of reports in the early 1990s and in the subsequent A Call to Action in 2001, continues to monitor and report on progress in increasing presidential control, academic integrity, financial integrity and independent certification of athletics programs.
About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation promotes excellence in journalism worldwide and invests in the vitality of 26 U.S. communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers. Knight focuses on ideas and projects that create transformational change. For more, visit http://www.knightfoundation.org.
MEETING AGENDA
Tuesday, June 17 – Salon II, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel, 1150 22nd St., Washington D.C.
8:30 – 10:15 a.m. Academic Integrity: Report on the NCAA Academic Performance Program and the recommendations to improve the academic performance of basketball players
Walter Harrison, President, University of Hartford, and Chairman, NCAA Committee on Academic Performance
Paul Hewitt, Head Basketball Coach, Georgia Institute of Technology
Kevin Lennon, Vice President for Membership Services, NCAA
10:30 – 12:00 p.m. NCAA Infractions: An examination of trends and recommendations to restructure penalties and challenges
Mike Glazier, Attorney, Bond, Schoeneck & King
Gene Marsh, James M. Kidd Professor of Law, The University of Alabama Law School, and NCAA Committee on Infractions member
Chad E. McEvoy, Assistant Professor, Kinesiology and Recreation and Coordinator of the Sport Management Program, Illinois State University
Josephine “Jo” Potuto, Richard H. Larson Professor of Constitutional Law, University of Nebraska School of Law; chair, NCAA Committee on Infractions; and Nebraska’s Faculty Athletics Representative
12:00 p.m. Media Availability with Commission members and guests
The Limitations of NCAA’s Most Recent Financial Report
The Higher Ed Watch Blog recently evaluated the NCAA’s report on college spending on athletics and noted several limitations. According to the blog, the report’s usefulness is limited because it discloses only aggregate numbers and does not disclose individual institutional expenses. The issue is complicated by different accounting practices at each institution. Yet, this report confirms that athletics spending on many campuses is out of control and not in line with the educational mission of institutions—as previously acknowledged by the Knight Commission of Intercollegiate Athletics in its 2001 report, A Call To Action, and by the NCAA’s 2006 Presidential Task Force on the Future of Division I Athletics. Higher Ed Blog Watch called for the federal government to require athletics programs to use consistent accounting definitions when calculating revenue and expenses, and the data to be disaggregated into designated categories, such as generated vs. allocated revenue and spending on coaching salaries, facilities, scholarships, etc.
NCAA’s financial picture receives concern from media
Several recently published articles help identify concerns about the financial nature of intercollegiate athletics in response to the NCAA’s recent financial report, “2004-06 NCAA Revenues and Expenses of Division I Intercollegiate Athletics Programs Report.” The NCAA’s report demonstrated the median net deficit in generated revenues for Division I-A programs increased from $5.9 million in 2003-04 to $7.3 million in 2005-06, and between 2004 and 2006, Division I-A median revenues grew by 16 percent while median costs increased by 23 percent.
In Street & Smith’s Sports Business Journal (subscription required), Andrew Zimbalist notes that the NCAA’s reported financial picture may be worse in reality for several reasons: 1) an increase in athletic giving from 14.7 percent in 1998 to 26 percent in 2003 may diminish general fund giving, leading to a deeper burden on an institution’s finances; 2) the report failed to include amount of compensation to non-athletic college administrators as athletics expenses; 3) and, the report’s lack of inclusion of capital expenses. Doug Lederman of Inside Higher Education reported the trend between the haves and have-nots seems to be expanding, that “the 16 programs that generated more than they spent, the average new revenue was $4.3 million, while the average loss of those with negative net revenue was $8.9 million. That $13 million difference suggests a widening gap between the ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots’ in big-time college football, as the equivalent gap in 2004 was about $11.3 million.” And, Steve Berkowitz of the USA Today interviewed Stan Nosek, vice chancellor of administration at the University of California-Davis and a member of the NCAA Task Force Oversight Committee. Nosek identified the growing concern among presidents about fully understanding how much their schools are subsidizing athletics, because “when some programs require more institutional support, it takes away from the core mission.”
Contra Costa Times cites Knight Commission survey
Daniel Borenstein, a columnist for the Contra Costa Times, discusses the rapid increase in salaries for college coaches. He cites a 2006 survey sponsored by the Knight Commission that found that most Americans believe college sports has become too commercialized.
Controversy swells over offering athletic scholarships to eighth and ninth graders
William “Brit” Kirwan, chancellor of the University of Maryland system and co-chair of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, called on colleges and the NCAA to end the practice of offering scholarships to students as young as the eighth grade. “I find the practice appalling, quite frankly,” Kirwan told the USA Today. “I certainly hope the NCAA will step in and put a stop to it. I certainly will voice my objection to (NCAA President) Myles Brand and others at the NCAA.” Kirwan’s comments come in response to the recent action by University of Kentucky men’s basketball coach Billy Gillispie, who offered a scholarship in the last week to eighth-grader Michael Avery from Lake Sherwood, California and ninth-grader, Vincent Zollo, from Greenfield, Ohio.
As reported by the USA Today, several major college men’s basketball coaches have offered scholarships to eighth and ninth graders in recent years. Last year, the University of Southern California received commitments from eighth-grader Ryan Boatright of Aurora, Ill., and freshman Dwayne Polee Jr. of Westchester, Calif. In 2003, ninth grader Taylor King, of Huntington Beach, Calif., committed to UCLA, but eventually attended Duke University. The USA Today article reported King has since transferred to Villanova.
Parents of both Avery and Zollo defended the decision to accept the scholarship offers. Avery’s father, Howard, told the USA Today: “He just has to enjoy being a kid. It’s not pressure but motivation. My kid knows if he puts in the work, he’s going to play college ball at the University of Kentucky. Who would turn something like that down?” Robyn Curry, a teacher and the mother of Zollo, stated, “We spent nine hours meeting with Coach Gillispie and the people at Kentucky on Monday. I think it will be a perfect fit for my son. After we left Lexington, I didn’t have any negative thoughts at all. He’s comfortable, and he loved it there.”
University of Kentucky President Lee Todd also supported Gillispie in his decision to offer scholarships. Stated Todd, “You run across these kids who are talented at a young age, and they are going to be recruited by someone, and he (Gillispie) is under the pressure to build a pipeline in his program. I can’t fault Coach trying to build up the pipeline. I don’t think there will be that many cases where that will happen for us or anyone else.”
Notably, verbal commitments are non-binding for both player and coach, and it is often that students change their mind before they sign a written letter of commitment to attend a school. But, with only 13 scholarship opportunities on a college basketball roster, there is little room for mistakes if a player doesn’t live up to expectations in high school.
Steve Mallonee, the NCAA director of membership services for Division I and a liaison to the Division I Basketball Issues Committee, stated that the issue be on the agenda at the next meeting of the issues committee in June. “You could say it’s an ethical thing, but what kind of legislation can you put forward if it’s not a binding thing?” Mallonee says. “Our rules are not even designed to recruit kids of that age. You are not supposed to actively recruit kids until after the 10th grade, because that’s when you can start writing them. You can’t contact until later than that. The only thing you can do is observe. This idea they are offering scholarships (to kids that age), I don’t think that’s healthy, but how to address it is a different issue.”
Added Kirwan: “It brings someone moving from childhood to young adult into the national spotlight. I’m sure this will be discussed on ESPN, and that can’t be a healthy thing for his development. I think that’s another troubling aspect of this.”
NCAA issues penalties and waivers for APR failures
The NCAA announced that 218 teams at 123 Division I institutions will be sanctioned for failing to meet the minimum academic benchmarks measured by the NCAA’s Academic Progress Rate (APR). Sanctions included loss of scholarships, reduced practice time, and a potential of post-season bans if poor APR performance continues. According to the NCAA, about 3.5 percent of 6,272 teams received penalties. This is up from last year, when 2 percent of teams were penalized. However, the number of teams receiving penalties was much less than the projections indicated last spring as a result of increased scores that met the minimum benchmarks, the NCAA’s administration of waivers for certain cases, and mitigating factors, such as granting relief for teams that demonstrate measurable improvement and other criteria.
“We want to change the behaviors of the teams and the institutions and the athletic program so we’re all headed toward the success of student-athletes on the field and in the classroom,” NCAA President Myles Brand said. “Everyone — coaches, ADs, presidents and student-athletes — should understand that’s the order of the day.”
The APR measures college athlete performance based on eligibility and retention, with each team scoring a maximum possible of 1000 points; an team APR of 925 is considered by the NCAA as a “cutline,” below which possible penalties would be considered. The APR was designed to help provide a mechanism to put pressure on sport programs to keep college athletes academically eligible and ultimately graduating them. Twenty-six teams were handed stiffer penalties for not meeting the APR score of 925 over the past two years and did not show any significant improvement to warrant a waiver. The penalties included reductions in practice time. Failure to show future improvement could lead to post-season bans. Another 79 teams deemed headed in the wrong direction were issued warnings and could face the threat of such bans in two years.
Several programs received significant sanctions. San Jose State University received 12.17 scholarships cut in five sports, including nine in football. Sacramento State saw seven of its 20 sports sanctioned. Other major-college football programs receiving sanctions include the University of Alabama at Birmingham losing nine scholarships, Washington State University losing eight scholarships, and the University of Idaho also losing eight scholarships.
However, questions remained about the 507 teams that posted APRs beneath 925 but didn’t draw sanctions. According to the USA Today, these teams were not sanctioned because they had no athletes who left school while academically ineligible or their schools sought and received waivers — granted by the NCAA when there are mitigating circumstances and the institution has an acceptable academic improvement plan. The Division I sport teams that did not receive sanctions, but also posted an APR below 925, included: six teams in men’s basketball that have made the Final Four since 2002 (Indiana, Maryland, Ohio State, LSU, Oklahoma and Florida); 16 college football teams including Arizona, Purdue, Oregon, and South Carolina; and 54 in baseball, including No. 8-ranked Oklahoma State, No. 18 Coastal Carolina and five-time College World Series champion Arizona State.
“That raises the question: How can so many schools avoid sanctions?” said Nathan Tublitz, a neuroscience professor at Oregon who co-chairs the Coalition on Intercollegiate Athletics, an alliance of faculty senates at Division I universities. “One can understand a few exceptions. One can understand that some schools have good reasons. But for so many schools to have so many good reasons raises the question of whether there’s really any bite to this academic performance package and the sanctions that are supposed to be issued. It’s just that if you’re going to set up a program that has a cutoff score, you have to stick to that cutoff score and not continue to give schools a free ride.”
The Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics will consider the issue of academic integrity and NCAA infractions with representatives of the NCAA at its next meeting on June 17, 2008, in Washington, DC.
Bowl Championship Series keeps status quo, rejects playoff
The Bowl Championship Series (BCS), which matches the final regular-season’s top two NCAA Division I-A college football teams in a championship game separate from its Orange, Sugar, Fiesta and Rose bowls, will not change its current format at least for the next several years. This decision was reached on April 30 by the commissioners who manage the BCS. Two of the commissioners requested a consideration of an alternate format, which would have built a four-team playoff into the current five-game structure. However, according to the USA Today, the lack of endorsement of any changes assures that the current system will remain in place through at least the 2013 season. In 2014, the Big Ten and Pac-10 contract with the Rose Bowl expires.
Both the USA Today article and an article in the International Herald Tribune discussed the influence of television networks on the conferences to move to a playoff system, which may be worth more advertising money and enhance the interest in the games. “Certainly the public would like to see a change,” Fox sports president Ed Goren said. “If there’s a change, we’re on board. If it stays the same, we’re thrilled. We just want to be associated wi