Recently, the Independent Weekly (Raleigh-Durham, NC) interviewed William Friday, the founding co-chairman of the Knight Commission and president emeritus of the University of North Carolina System. Friday was asked for his perspective on the state of college sports today. A portion of the interview follows: INDEPENDENT WEEKLY: You helped found the Knight Commission in 1989…
Tribute from William C. Friday, Founding Co-Chairman of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics: “Creed Black was one of those newspaper men who profoundly believed that a free and productive press was the essential and primary force to sustain our democracy. As a civic and foundation leader, he kept his experienced eye on the needy…
Catholicsports.net published a commentary from Billy Reed relating to concerns about how recent scandals in college sports demonstrate that morals and values are being sacrificed to support winning athletic teams. Below is an excerpt of Reed’s comments: “In firing football coach Butch Davis, North Carolina chancellor Holden Thorp said he had “lost confidence in our…
An editorial in the Raleigh News & Observer supports the NCAA’s recent adoption of a Knight Commission recommendation to tie postseason eligibility of all Division I athletic teams to minimum academic performance standards. A clip of the editorial is below: “The tension between universities’ academic mission and major athletics programs often boils down to a…
Today, the legacy of Creed Black was published on the website of the Knight Foundation: Creed Black, editor and newspaper publisher and the former president of Knight Foundation, has passed away. He was a courageous journalist who will be remembered at Knight Foundation as a leader, in the field of intercollegiate athletics as a visionary…
The Charlotte Observer reported on comments from former Knight Commission Chair William Friday about the NCAA’s recent adoption of a rule tying postseason eligibility to minimum academic standards. A section of the article is provided below: Last week, some ideas championed for years by former UNC System President William Friday were implemented by the NCAA.…
Several news outlets have reported on the NCAA’s recent action in support of the Knight Commission’s recommendation to require teams to be on track to graduate a 50-percent of their players to be eligible for post-season play. The Knight Commission recommendation was initially proposed in its 2001 report and reiterated in its 2010 report, Restoring…
Today, the NCAA Division I Board of Directors adopted a policy requiring teams to meet an academic threshold to participate in any NCAA-sponsored championship or football bowl game. The threshold requires that teams be on track to graduate at least 50 percent of their players. This policy and threshold are consistent with recommendations the Knight…
The Chronicle of Higher Education reported on the financial difficulties of the athletics department at the University of Maryland at College Park, and proposals to improve the governance process of its athletics program. The article stated that William E. Kirwan, chancellor of the University System of Maryland, announced the athletics program had run a deficit…
Knight Commission Executive Director Amy Perko appeared on NC People, UNC-TV’s longest-running program. Perko joined host William Friday, former UNC president, to discuss the Knight Commission’s efforts, the progress that has been made and the big issues facing college sports. The program can be viewed at: http://video.unctv.org/video/2057949925