On July 9, USA Today published an article questioning the success of the NCAA’s academic reform policies from the context of pressures on admissions policies at member institutions. The article raised questions about the NCAA’s elimination of minimum SAT and ACT scores leading to a de facto open admissions policy with too many under-prepared athletes…
On July 8, sports commentator Frank Deford provided an opinion on National Public Radio in relation to the likeness of video games and commercialism in college athletics: “As sure as both the politicians and the citizens of this republic are unable to agree on much of anything anymore, there is one issue where all decent,…
On July 4, the New York Times published a story on a class-action lawsuit filed against Electronic Arts and the NCAA by former Arizona State University quarterback, Sam Keller, arguing that they illegally profit from the images of college football and basketball players in video games. According to the Times, Ryan Hart, a former Rutgers…
The University of Oklahoma announced its athletics program will provide $7 million in direct and indirect support to help subsidize academic programs at the institution, an increase of $3 million from the previous year. “This additional support from the Athletics Department has helped the university avoid tuition increases for students and layoffs of faculty and…
The Orlando Sentinel recently reported that the athletic department at the University of Central Florida (UCF) relies on student fees for nearly half of its annual budget. Students at UCF will contribute $16.2 million this year to a $35.5 million athletic operating budget — amounting to 46 percent of the budget. The university raised student…
The Eagle at Bryant/College Station reported that Texas A&M University is expecting to being to receive repayments on a $16 million loan to its athletic department in 2005. According to the report, the athletics department was provided access to that credit for four years and then would have 10 years to repay the money without…
A May 29, 2009 article in the New York Times reported on the decisions at several colleges by students who voted against fee increases to help pay for their schools’ college sports programs. The votes by student bodies at the University of New Orleans, and three state universities in California — Sacramento, Long Beach, and…
The NCAA News provided a status report on May 29, 2009, about the economic dashboard indicators created by the NCAA for college presidents and campus leaders to provide them with a financial profile of their intercollegiate athletics program in relation to peer groups. The dashboard indicators are a graphic comparison of the annual financial picture…
In a May 22 article in the Wichita Eagle, the paper reported that fomer Kansas State University football caoch Ron Prince may be paid an additional $3.2 million on top of a $1.2 million payment to terminate his 2008 contract early after a mediocre three-season record of 17 wins against 20 losses. The paper reported…
In its May 22, 2009 edition, the Chronicle of Higher Education reported on the testimony of John D. Colombo at the May 2009 meeting of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics. Colombo, a professor at the University of Illinois College of Law, stated the spending of college athletics can be regulated similar to that of…