Recently in Sports Category

I'm pretty sure I've written about this before, but I think this is one of the few times that CAS has been used for good rather than as a last appeal for doped up track stars. The NYT covered this recently, and now they bring us the latest chapter:

        The watershed ruling made the runner, Oscar Pistorius, the first amputee to successfully challenge the notion that his carbon-fiber prosthetics gave him an unfair advantage and assured his right to race against able-bodied athletes in the Olympics, should he qualify. Previously barred from competing in such races by track and field's world governing body, Pistorius will continue to stoke the debate over the competitive issues created by evolving technology in sports.

I'm glad that the Court of Arbitration for Sport came down on the side of the athlete, not the bureaucracy. For once.

We are deeply troubled by the very serious disruption and harm that portable device 

interference will cause to sport broadcast programming, whether pre-recorded or live, and the 

conduct of  the games themselves.  Sports programming relies extensively on wireless microphones and related audio equipment in its production and distribution. 

...The ESPN Monday Night Football ("MNF") broadcast alone requires 145 wireless frequencies for microphones, talkback and communications.  Under current conditions, one TV channel is simply not enough bandwidth to sustain the MNF broadcaster's needs. ..

When the University of Michigan dedicated its new academic center for athletes in 2006, the building's namesake reinforced expectations for the university's athletes.

"I am very pleased to help provide a top-notch learning environment in a new facility where these student-athletes and others can study and receive academic support," said Stephen Ross, a New York real estate developer and Michigan graduate. "The 'leaders and best' not only refers to the athletes on the sports field, but also to the students in the classroom."

But three former employees of the athletic department's Academic Success Program, now housed in the Stephen M. Ross Academic Center, said that academics often take a back seat to sports.

To achieve that goal, Academic Success Program employees appear to have found an unofficial path through the university, one that isn't written on any Web site or manual, but is evident in statistics, transcripts, interviews with athletes, faculty and in a 2007 audit conducted by the university.

That path has included:

? Encouraging athletes to pursue a bachelor in general studies degree, on the grounds that other majors are too inflexible and will interfere with sports.

? Telling athletes which classes to take, which has resulted in clusters of athletes taking many of the same psychology, Ojibwe - a Native American language - classical civilization and education courses. Many of these choices are "non-traditional" or non-classroom courses, such as independent study, directed readings, practicums or mentoring.

? Recommending athletes take the minimum number of credits required to stay eligible for sports, a practice that runs contrary to the Academic Success Program's stated principles.

? Using athletes' passwords and log-ins to enroll in classes or make changes in schedules, a violation of university policy.

As part of a seven-month investigation into athletics and academics at Michigan, The News spoke with Academic Success Program co-director Shari Acho about these issues, as well as the program's mission, challenges and policies.

Acho said Academic Success Program staff do not direct students to majors or classes.

"No, not at all," said Acho, the program's co-director since 2002. "Each individual student will sit down and decide what their interests are and what works for them, and follow the right channels to do that."

Athletic director Bill Martin, who declined to be interviewed, told a university publication in spring 2005 that he wants academics to be the department's foremost focus.

In speaking with 87 current and former athletes, athletic staff, administrators and faculty on academics and athletics at Michigan, The News encountered cynicism about whether that goal can be met.

"Michigan, or any big-time program, they try to say that, and I think they do believe it," said Steve King, a former Michigan football player who later worked in the Academic Success Program. "But at the same time, too, as long as it doesn't interfere with the ultimate objective, which is to win football games, or to win in their sport."

Daniel Horton, who played basketball at Michigan from 2002 to 2006, was more blunt, laughing at the suggestion that academics came ahead of sports.

"There are consequences immediately if you don't show up for practice," Horton said. "The next day, you have to run or aren't going to play or something like that. There's no immediate consequences for not doing your homework or not studying that night.
"It's a farce for the NCAA to say that academics should come first. It's good in theory. ... But it's not really like that, not just at Michigan, anywhere."

The Ann Arbor News continues its fantastic reporting today on the disgusting state of the University of Michigan's treatment of "student-athletes"  with a report on a major that only 3% of the thousands of undergraduates at UM take, but 49% of those taking are athletes.

Yes, I'm talking about "General Studies."

You may ask yourself, what the heck does that mean, anyway? You tell me. I have no idea. Someone who does know, is former UM president James Duderstadt, who wrote a book called "Intercollegiate Athletetics and the American University."

Duderstadt asks the question,

"Where else can athletes with weak academic skills be accommodated in a university with competitive academic admissions and rigorous academic programs? This, of course, is a question many leading universities face, from Michigan to Berkeley, and Duke to Stanford...

Since these soon become well known to coaches and academic advisors, student-athletes with weaker academic skills are steered toward these safe harbors. Since one can rarely find enough cupcake courses to comprise a true major, some universities have actually created degrees such as a Bachelor of General Studies to facilitate such a strategy."

He calls it like he sees it.

Something else the News has picked up on is Shari Acho, an "academic counselor" whose job seems to consist of keeping football players eligible without regard to their lives after Michigan football.

Acho remains in a Michigan football player's academic life from the time he officially visits campus as a recruit until he leaves the school. She discusses possible academic tracks with him, keeps on top of course enrollment, monitors class attendance, verifies progress toward a degree and serves as a counselor about school and, sometimes, personal matters.

But the precise part Acho plays in an athlete's decision to enroll in general studies seems to be subject to interpretation.

Acho said if a visiting football recruit is interested in LS&A - the largest of Michigan's schools and colleges - then she'll ask someone from LS&A to come and talk about general studies. In interviews, players said Acho encouraged them to pursue the degree.

"I don't think encouraged is the right word," Acho countered. "I think every student decides on whatever degree program they want to go into. And just as I said before, we'll ask the questions - what might you be interested in?"

"I wanted to do all of the film and video classes, but it was just that the times conflicted with football, and you know football's paying the bills." - Pierre Woods, former Michigan linebacker.

Branch told The News he wanted to be a history teacher. Former Michigan wide receiver Steve Breaston - Branch's teammate with the Arizona Cardinals - said he wanted to major in English. New England Patriots linebacker Pierre Woods, another player on Michigan's 2004 team, said he wanted to be a film and video major.

All three ended up in the general studies program.

Acho said she can't explain why so many athletes congregate in general studies, other than to say that "the flexibility in the program has allowed them to create programs of study that really interest them."

She's either lying or just plain stupid.

Can anyone explain why the NCAA is tax exempt?

Just shouting-out to the second day of The Ann Arbor News' expose of UM's "student-athletes" and the hoops the University jumps through to keep them eligible. Today the topic is easy majors. When the NCAA toughened its' requirements,  the "Kinesiology" major, which is sports management and exercise science, and actually rather difficult if you're not given a free pass, became too hard for many UM football players. Now they take "General Studies," which means...what? You tell me.

I think I had one teammate at Wisconsin who was a Kinesiology major. He ended up going to Medical School. I don't know anyone who got a BA in General Studies. Then again, many of Michigan's athletes don't even graduate, so does their major even matter except for them to announce it on TV?

Money excerpt:

With the fall term drawing to a close, Jay Basten monitored students taking his final exam in Sport Management 111, a course at the University of Michigan.

During the essay test last December, one undergraduate - an athlete - caught Basten's attention.

"I could tell by the look on his face, and also based on the work he had done previously in class, that he had no clue what to write," Basten said. "It was a 50-minute exam, and he probably wrote three sentences."

Basten said the experience almost brought tears to his eyes. But the full-time kinesiology lecturer added that watching a Michigan student-athlete struggle is not an isolated occurrence.

"As far as the university's history, it's not all good," he said. "There have been people who have worked to do the right thing, but more often than not, athletic talent has won out over academic ability."

Basten worked in Michigan's admissions office before becoming a faculty member, and he said he knows about the compromises made when admitting some athletes. He said he's seen a previous school president get involved in the process.

Basten also helped spawn recent changes to toughen kinesiology's sport management major.

That, in turn, caused many athletes to shift their educational track into a relatively unstructured degree program called general studies.

Asked if Michigan could offer its student-athletes an academic experience similar to that of a typical student and still compete at the highest levels athletically, Basten didn't hesitate.

"No," he said.

 

So, anyone want to explain that whole tax-exempt thing again?

6. According to studies, incoming athletes at many universities have lower average SAT scores and high school grades than those of the general student body. Do the minimum initial eligibility standards currently in place adequately ensure that high school athletes can succeed academically at universities?

7. In order for a high school student to become eligible to compete in intercollegiate athletics, the NCAA requires high school athletes to take a core curriculum of academic courses and earn a minimum grade-point average while in high school. Why does the NCAA not have similar requirements for athletes during their collegiate careers?

8. In recent years, there have been many reports of athletes taking college courses that lack academic rigor. Several schools have reportedly steered athletes toward professors and academic majors that are less challenging.

? a. What actions has the NCAA taken to assess the substance of the courses athletes are taking and, more generally, the quality of the education athletes receive?

? b. Does the NCAA collect information from its member institutions to determine whether athletes are disproportionately taking certain professors, courses, or academic majors at individual schools?

Maybe after being inspired by NFL Hall-of-Famer Steve Largent's appearance before his subcommittee on behalf of CTIA today, Chairman Markey (D-MA) has scheduled a hearing for next Wednesday, March 5th at 9:30am which has been titled: "Competition in the Sports Programming Marketplace"

We know that Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA), a well-known Eagles fan, has been "all up in Roger Goodell's grill" about the NFL's ham-handed attempts to get Comcast (which is headquartered in Philadelphia) and other cable and satellite operators to carry the NFL Network on their main tier. Remember the Patriots-Giants game that was simulcast on 3 networks? That was done because the game was originally scheduled months before to air on NFL Network alone. This was before the Patriots began to do that whole undefeated season thing, and it happened that they would be breaking the 1972 Miami Dolphins' single seaon win record against New York. One problem: not everyone would get to see it, because not all cable subscribers get NFL Network.

You see, many operators keep NFL Network on a "sports tier" and only pay the NFL for customers that choose to get it, rather than pay the NFL more money per regular subscriber. The NFL does not like this, and has engaged in a rather crass advertising campaign to get customers to harass their cable companies.

Obviously, as a Patriots fan, Chairman Markey could have been bothered by this, seeing as Congress has granted the NFL limited antitrust immunity for the purpose of selling the broadcast rights to their games. This was done in 1962. Now, the NFL wants to keep more games to itself and rake in both the subscriber and advertising revenue (although I think there are more commercials for NFL Network on NFL Network itself than for anything else...).

There is also that pesky matter of Sunday Ticket. The NFL only offers it through DirecTV. However, not all consumers can recieve DirecTV signals. Could it be that Markey's Washington residence doesn't have a southern exposure and couldn't get DirecTV? Did he miss a Patriots game? Senator Specter has made a point of criticizing these exclusive programming agreements. I detect a pattern.

The hearing is next Wednesday, March 5th at 9:30am, in 2123 Rayburn House Office Building. No word on a good location for tailgating.

"I'm sorry we had the hearing. I regret that we had the hearing. And the only reason we had the hearing was because Roger Clemens and his lawyers insisted on it."

And it was out in the open that it became Democrat against Republican. Waxman said he was shocked at the partisan nature of the hearing, with Democrats, for the most part, grilling Clemens while Republicans lambasted McNamee. "I was disappointed to see that kind of partisanship, and I can't understand it," Waxman said.

Waxman said Davis and Mark Souder of Indiana were the only Republicans on the committee who actually read through the depositions that were filed last week. Souder was also one of the few committee members who refused Clemens's request for a private meeting before the hearing. And it was Souder who stood out from his Republican colleagues by stating during the hearing that the depositions were "fairly devastating" against Clemens.