At 350 plus schools they are Student Athletes.
I know that had a different meaning when you played as MOST of them back then were playing 4 years and getting their degree and then entering the work force.
That is not how the world and NCAA work these days. You can hold onto your memories and project them on to the present or you can step back and look at the reality through the eyes of Coaches, athletes, the Member schools and figure out how to remain competitive.
98 per cent of athletes (if you believe the NCAA) go professional in something other than sports. That is probably a bit higher than when you played as there are more leagues and more spots in the US and abroad but then I am not sure if you were before or after Title IX. Contrary to what the talking heads tell us....kids are not there to be groomed for a life of professional sports which is why changing NIL, paying athletes and other proposals for the Gross minority will result in a plethora of unintended consequences that result in a way worse situation for MOST athletes *IMHO*.
They are most assuredly Student Athletes juggling the same 24 hours we each get. They have way more responsibility than you did and a lot more pressure to achieve. That is a reality whether you want to acknowledge it or not. THey graduate at higher rates and finish at higher rates than the general student body. Athletes are dedicating their existence all through jr high and high school to grab one of those elusive scholarships and trade sweat, time and effort to get there. There are some who will always game the system and whose talent far supercedes their desire to major in anything but sports but I have not met many coaches who do not desire to help them see the light and get them a degree.
Making the argument that they are there for school more than sports is quaint but does not capture that the vast majority of kids are using sports to pay for school and get a degree. Most of those kids whether you want to accede to it understand far better then we the regimen in takes mentally, academically, nutritionally, physically and socially to get there and finish.
I am not sure when you played but one of the most memorable conversations I had with a former Indiana player talking about weights and nutrition. WHen he started they had no weights and food was typical college fare. When Isiah came to IU they started in the "new" weight room everyday and eating right to keep their bodies in shape. It was a new thing in 1980 that they had to figure out. If you played before then you may not have had the off season and in season agility/strength regimen in addition to practice, studying film, medical treatment regimen with trainers and all the other things that take up an athlete's time. Ignoring that or not trying to understand it .....just makes you old and maybe a little bitter .... or like one COach said...."those guys just want to remain a little ignorant to what it takes...."
Assuming you lived on campus you probably went to the cafeteria and had the normal slop that results in the "freshman 15" as we are suddenly giving our kids unlimited carbs and no guidance. We are also asking our athletes to pack into a day, classes, athletic endeavours, homework, travel to and from games, walking an expanding on and off campus living situation, class schedule.....you know the drill. Even on a compact campus like Ohio that is a lot of back and forth normal students do not have to juggle. I have 4 boys, one athlete and 3 others. They have been in a variety of situations at IUPUI in a commuter setting, a downtown campus at Philadelphia's University of the Arts and then Columbia for his masters, and Purdue Fort Wayne for engineering. I think the most rigorous day to day regimen has been the athlete by far. Even with the Art projects at Herron/IUPUI, the theatre rehearsals and labs in Philly and the GM Engineering internship in FT Wayne....there is little doubt the skills needed to be a student athlete are the most demanding.
Your question asking about Student Athletes has taken on a whole different meaning since you passed through. I can think of a hundred different things that are similar.....they all require that folks who did those jobs/activities decades ago don't live in the paradigm of the past....even if they are in positions of power ...or especially if they are in those positions. A surgeon who holds onto "when I was a resident" or a teacher who says "when I was a student" and projects those on to the present is doing their own history and the progress of the process a big disservice.
Now....as I sit here and reread this before I hit Submit Message....I have to laugh....knowing that it will not make a bit of difference or change the discussion. I am always looking for the backstory and trying to find the motivation. I think yours is Athletes should be Students first and spending money to give them what they need to remain competitive is superfluous. I amy be totally wrong but that is what you seem to communicate in your one line reactions to any and all spending.
Last Edited: 5/2/2021 6:30:17 PM by bornacatfan