Opinions

Minority student-athletes

Harry Edwards, author
Lexington Herald Leader

"As things now stand, the overwhelming majority of young Blacks who seek to fill the shoes of O.J., Dr. J, Reggie J., and Magic J., in all likelihood will end up with no J at all -- no job whatsoever that they are competent to do in a highly technological modern society. Thus, big-name athletes who tell black kids to 'practice and work hard and one day you can be just like me' are playing games with the future of black society. And as I have repeatedly stated over the last dozen years, Blacks have a principal responsibility to understand that sports must be pursued intelligently and that Afro-America's involvement with sports is no game."

Olin Shurn, administrator
Kansas City School District
Lexington Herald Leader

"It never fails. I'll ask (young Blacks) the question: 'So, what do you want to be when you grow up?' And almost all of the young boys will say: 'I'm going to play in the NBA or NFL.' If not that, it's: 'I'm going to be a rapper.' It's like they see all these commercials and videos and start believing that those are the only careers available. It's crazy."

Baseball recruiting

Jim Morris, head baseball coach
University of Miami (Florida)
Chronicle of Higher Education

Discussing the climate factor in baseball recruiting:

"If a kid comes in and he's gone to Tennessee, which has a great indoor facility, he asks me about our indoor facility. I say, 'We only do one thing inside, and that's shower.' The fact is, we do have that advantage (of climate). But ice hockey has an advantage in Minnesota over Miami."

Sports wagering

Koleman Stumpf, economics professor
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Orlando Sentinel

"There are two world views about sports betting: Either you have a moral opposition to it, or you think it's something that should be permitted. Either side makes sense. But for the people who oppose gambling, it's pretty evident the current state of affairs isn't successful. They're not really catching people who are betting on the Internet, and they're finding it hard to catch the people who are running Internet gambling sites. It might make sense to legalize and regulate it."

Divisions II and III

Mark Murray, president
Grand Valley State University
Detroit Free Press

"This year, Grand Valley State University won the Directors' Cup for Division II. This means that we have been recognized as having the best overall sports program in Division II -- joining Stanford (Division I), Williams (Division III) and Simon-Frasier (National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics) in this very prestigious award. This is the first time a school from Michigan has ever won this trophy -- in any division.

"Grand Valley's athletes are very skilled. They know the thrill of victory, and they bring great credit to a university in which athletics is in a more traditional balance with our core educational mission.

"Our football team won its second consecutive national championship last fall in a game broadcast nationwide by ESPN and seen in more than a million households. They did it wearing five- to six-year-old uniforms. They did it practicing outdoors. And only eight of the 115 players were on full scholarships.

"Our players were just like most of the participants in college sports -- true student-athletes. ...

"While Grand Valley's programs have received some wonderful recognition in recent years, few think of our teams as typical of college athletics. But they are.

"In fact, the less common situation is the school that has an annual operating budget exceeding $40 million or even $50 million. The relatively few programs at this level are household names. But the Florida States and Penn States of the land do not represent the day-to-day of college sports throughout the country and this state. ...

"The leaders of the NCAA and future Knight Commissions (there are likely to be more) examining ways to improve college sports would do well to look up from their rule-making, and work to create incentives for schools to embrace the most widespread form of college athletics -- Division II and III competition."