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Knight Commission Criticizes Commercialization of College Athletes in Fantasy Sports, New Media

[ Sessions and audio with experts on commercialism and athletes' rights in college sports; impact of the media on college sports; fantasy sports; and reporting of financial data ]

The Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics met on October 27 to discuss the emerging conflict between new forms of media and long-standing NCAA rules designed to protect athletes from commercial exploitation. The Commission also announced it would pursue a year-long series of meetings and research on the economics of college sports, with a particular focus on why expenses are rising faster than revenues at virtually all Division I athletics programs.

Financial Straits of Boosters Hit Athletic Programs

By JOE DRAPE and THAYER EVANS, New York Times Nearly three years ago, the billionaire oilman T. Boone Pickens donated $165 million to Oklahoma State’s athletic department so it could remake its facilities into a Shangri-La for Cowboys sports, complete with an indoor practice center and new facilities for baseball, equestrian, soccer, tennis, and track…

Coach’s pay draws ire from college watchdog group

By Steve Wieberg, USA Today A faculty watchdog group sounded an alarm Tuesday over a $420,000 compensation package for a Kansas State assistant basketball coach, saying it represents a “new day” in the escalation of college coaches’ salaries. “Higher education should quickly rethink the merits of this professional athletics model,” the Coalition on Intercollegiate Athletics…

News Release: Americans are concerned about college sports

Knight Commission Poll Finds Americans Are Concerned About College Sports Professionalism in college sports, among topics at Washington, D.C. Summit (WASHINGTON, JAN. 30)– Americans are deeply concerned about the professionalization of college sports, according to a new poll conducted for the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics. Concerns about how the increasing pressure to win and…

Female athletes and depression

The cover story in the Feb. 6 issue of USA Today tackles specific problems faced by female athletes–depression, eating disorders, and the pressure to lead “perfect lives.”

Big football players

The Sports Economist has a summary of a scary story: life expectancy of NFL players.

Athletes=better citizens?

A report out from a group sponsored by the University of Maryland says that young people (i.e., high schoolers) who are involved in sports are more likely to vote, be registered to vote, and follow the news closely than their peers. A full copy of the report in pdf format is available at the group’s…

Studying the SAACs

Campus student-athlete advisory committees (SAACs) were mandated by NCAA legislation in 1995 to represent the voices of student-athletes on issues affecting their collegiate experience. Lately, we hear more about SAACs organizing visits to local hospitals than in taking on difficult topics with athletics administrators. At the January Summit on the Collegiate Athlete Experience, a number…

NCAA sued (again) over scholarship limits

According to a story on ESPN.com, three former Division I athletes are suing the NCAA because of its rules limiting scholarships to tuition, room, board, books, and fees. The lawsuit alleges that the NCAA’s limits violate federal antitrust laws. The lawsuit, according to ESPN reporter Tom Farrey, claims that “”While big-time college sports have become…