I have been publishing this blog for a little over a year now; I must admit I am surprised by the variety it contains. Each article addresses issues, people, events and information I consider pertinent to sport management professionals, business leaders, athletes, sport enthusiasts, high school/college students and their parents. Some are inspired by events in my personal life (especially my two daughters), by my interactions with students/alumni/colleagues (I am a sport management professor) and by the events and circumstances of everyday life. My goal is to provide content that helps readers look at things from a different perspective and enables individuals to learn while being entertained.

For this week’s blog I’d like to get your input.

• What types of topics do you enjoy the most?
• What issues would you like to see covered in upcoming posts?
• Do you have any questions about sport management at the college level or in the “real world” of business?
• Is there an area I have not yet covered that you feel should be examined and discussed?

This is your specific invitation to let me know what you want to see from me on this site. Please remember that I am always open to suggestions or comments—I am just taking this week to especially focus upon your thoughts and ideas. To make things easier and to serve as an overview (especially for those relatively new to the blog), I have organized past postings into categories. I am sure there is a better way to do this (feel free to share suggestions) but here goes anyway.

Listed below are the topics from the past year and the month in which you can find the original post within the archives. Please respond with your thoughts, ideas and suggestions for the future…I’m serious…let me know what you think and what you want in the future and I will do what I can to accommodate your wishes. In the meantime, thanks for reading and joining in on the conversation!

For All Readers
1st Time for Everything (March 2009)
A Different Perspective (April 2009)
I am _____? (January 2010)
Make a Positive Lasting Impression (October 2009)
Motivation (June 2009)
Peopling (September 2009)
Planning for Success (February 2009)
Preparation, Reaction, Change (March 2009)
Success (December 2009)
Taking Responsibility (July 2009)
Tips for Landing a Job (May 2009)
What do you read? (February 2010)

Networking and Social Media
10 Tips for Twitter Networking (August 2009)
Basic Networking Tips (January 2009)
How can Twitter help me? (April 2009)
Networking and Fantasy Football (September 2009)

Issues for College Students
Easing the Transition between High School and College (June 2009)
Get Involved (August 2009)
How do you study? (May 2009)
Student-Athletes (February 2009)

Sport Management Majors (Information and Conferences)
Advice for Sport Management Students (December 2009)
Choosing a Sport Management Program (July 2009)
CSRI Conference in Chapel Hill: Day One/Day Two (April 2009)
Health Care Reform and the Sport Industry (July 2009)
Make the Most of the New Year (January 2010)
Princeton Sports Symposium (December 2009)
Sport Management Faculty (February 2009)
Sport Management Projects (May 2009)
Students Host Professional Panel and Charity Event (October 2009)
YCP Alumni on the Web (May 2009)

Highlights of Sport Professionals
Bob Ancharski/Hershey Bears Hockey Club (April 2009)
Lewis Howes/Sports Networker (September 2009)
Steve Masterson/Game Face, Inc. (March 2009)
Packy Moran/University of Ohio (March 2009)
Becky Norris/Oklahoma City Thunder (March 2009)
Jeana Olchowy/National Pro Fastpitch (June 2009)
Dr. Ramlan/Director General of the National Sports Institute of Malaysia (November 2009)
Dave Salter/Author (October 2009)

Miscellaneous Topics
Brest Cancer Awareness Month (October 2009)
Fix It (February 2009)
Random Thoughts (November 2009)
Rush Limbaugh (October 2009)
Summer Job (June 2009)
Trip to Malaysia (November 2009)

When college student-athletes make mistakes, the common response is “they are just kids” or “they are only 18/19/20 years old and doing what any 18/19/20 year old would do.”  I think to a certain extent that is true.  But we have to remember these 18/19/20 year olds are adults. I would also argue that the 18/19/20 year olds are not doing what “anyone their age would be doing”.  Take our brave men and women who are serving their country, they are making this country a better/safer place to live so that the student-athletes can get an education and play the sport that they love.  But that is not what this blog is about.

I read the article Players Regret Bowden Might Lose Wins (http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=4320845) over the weekend and a few things struck me. Student-athletes and people of all ages need to understand that their actions affect other people. In this case there are some serious unintended consequences that affect the institution, athletic department, other athletic departments, teammates, coaches and football history. All because sixty-one student-athletes thought it would be a good idea to cheat on an on-line music exam (allegedly).  I also find it troubling that not every player has contacted Coach Bowden and apologized.  I also remember when it happened listening to talk radio and hearing hosts and callers saying things such as “so what it was just an online class it doesn’t matter.” That type of attitude leads to more cheating!  It is one thing to do something dumb.  It is another to not take responsibility like an adult (which is what they are—young adults).

I am not one who thinks that collegiate athletics is in terrible shape.  We hear about the negative more than the positive aspects just like in every aspect of our society.  The majority of student-athletes are good individuals who take both their education and sport seriously.  Those that don’t should be dealt with and if forfeiting games and championships is the consequence then, so be it. Maybe it will deter this type of behavior maybe it won’t, I just hope that they will think before they act.

Day two of the CSRI Scholarly Conference on College Sport has come and gone.  Today’s sessions were mostly academic research presentations, and I will get to them.  There were two keynote speakers, though.  The first was Dr. John Gerdy (Ohio University), and the Journal of Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics Luncheon speaker was Dr. Bernie Mullin (The Aspire Group).  Both were informative and took two different approaches.
Dr. Gerdy started the day off talking about how the intercollegiate model of sport has taken on the professional sport model with regards to football and men’s basketball.  He stated the reform in intercollegiate athletics should remain at the Division I level with football and basketball.  Dr. Gerdy also gave some alarming statistics regarding retired NFL players.  He said that two years after retiring from the NFL, 78% of the retirees file for bankruptcy or are under financial stress due to joblessness or divorce.  He went on to say that five years after retirement, 60% of the retirees are broke.  He attributes this to the lack of direction, planning and purpose while the players are in college.  Dr. Gerdy suggests the only way to reform the professional model is to eliminate the scholarship in exchange for a need-based financial aid agreement that is administered outside of the athletic department.
Dr. Mullin compared and contrasted the NBA and college basketball.  He said that that reform is needed in intercollegiate athletics and from the basketball side, a lot could be fixed if the students were forced to stay in college longer, giving them a longer period to grow as basketball players and as adults.  He noted that the players that only stay one year are neither physically or emotionally ready for the NBA.  Dr. Gerdy asked Bernie if it was the NBA’s fault that 60% of NBA retirees are bankrupt after two years.  Dr. Mullin not only said no, but he outlined what the NBA does to prevent it, and went on to say that if they stayed in college longer they would be more mature and learn the skills needed to prepare them for life after college.
I also saw two other interesting presentations. The first was Intercollegiate Athletic Participation and Undergraduate Student Engagement by Dr. Tammy Crawford (Washington State University).   It was an interesting study in terms of not only the types and levels of engagement student athletes had, but some of the statistics were alarming and need more investigation.  The statistic that was most eye-opening to me was this one:

The amount of effort put into the following activity:

Practice

95%

Attending class

73%

Spectator for another sport

47%

Preparing for class

41%

 
It is alarming to see that the student-athletes surveyed put more effort into being a spectator at a sport than preparing for class, but on the other hand they are putting forth a fair amount of effort to attend class.
Dr. Steve Dittmore (University of Arkansas) and Mr. Craig Crow (East Stroudsburg University) did a wonderful job presenting the topic Competitive Balance in the Founding BCS Conferences: Regular and Post Season Implications.  The premise behind the study was to see how competitive balance has changed since the BCS was founded in 1998.  There were two results that stood out to me.  The first was that all six original BCS conferences had an increase in competitive balance since the inception of the BCS in terms of the within-season results.  The second was that the recent conference alignment has positively affected competitive balance in the two most impacted original BCS conferences which are the ACC and the Big East.
The poster session with the YCP students went well as did their case study.  I will find out later if they will advance to the finals later this evening.  Overall, it was a good day.  I will update you tomorrow on the final day of the conference.

On Saturday afternoon (2/21), the York College Men’s & Women’s basketball teams played their last regular season home game. The men’s team had a thrilling overtime win, securing a spot in the CAC playoffs. The women’s team stretched their winning streak to twenty-four. More importantly, it was Senior Day.

The men’s team honored two seniors, Pat Kelley (Business Management; he also went to the same high school as I did) and Mike Reilly (Sport Management), while the women’s team honored six seniors, Amanda Andrews (Elementary Education), Donna Figenshu (Secondary Education/General Science), Amy Fry (Recreation and Leisure), Jackie Garlock (Business Administration), Chanel Perez (Biology) and Keli Ward (Nursing). These seniors have seen and been a part of massive changes at York, not only college-wide, but athletically as well. As a student-athlete on the Division III level, to compete at such a high level and still perform academically is an achievement that should not be overlooked.

York College student athletes are amongst the best performers in the classroom. Women’s Basketball, Field Hockey and Wrestling teams have been honored and recently ranked nationally as having the highest team GPA in their respective sports. With the negative publicity that surrounds sports, it is important to remember the positives that come from participating in athletics. More positive, uplifting stories come from participating in athletics than negative stories. For example, YCP was honored as the Division III School who raised more funds for community organizations than any other Division III school in the country (they were honored at halftime of the men’s game).

It is incumbent upon us as Sport Management professionals to steer the sport industry in a positive light. Part of that mission is to recognize and correct the negative, as well as recognize and honor the positive. Senior day is one of those positives. I wish all of the seniors the very best in their future. They will have their opportunity to make their mark on society once they graduate; I hope they don’t forget the mark they left on YCP. I also hope that we don’t forget how important athletics is to the culture of YCP, the role it plays in the development of our student-athletes and the role it plays in making our college such a wonderful environment.

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