[cardcrimson]

This makes me wonder out loud - what’s the societal good that comes from reserving spots for athletes and placing them ahead of other academically qualified kids who didn’t win the VO2 max lottery but might nevertheless be excellent well-qualified students? I mean, in the NIL and money era, I can at least see why big DI schools are in the game to make money, but what justification is there to do this for a place like Williams, or Pomona, or even for schools like Stanford, or Northwestern, or Brown? Like BC, I’m saying this as a fan, and it makes me sad that I’m struggling to find a moral justification for my fandom.

Never in a million years did I expect my kid to be in the middle of a collegiate recruiting cycle. But here I am. 

I think athletes add a lot to college student bodies--drive, commitment, and at good schools, intelligence. They also add someone local to connect to and perhaps cheer for, and I think that's a good thing. Athletes can also provide diversity, in more aspects than just race. When I look back at my years at Stanford, did any of the athletes add to my academic experience. No. If you were to ask if I added anything to any of my classmate's academic experience, the answer would be the same. All of the students contributed to the culture that was Stanford before it hated fun.

In water polo, DIII schools started a national championship just a few years ago, and the enthusiasm has been off the charts. In the inaugural tournament, over a thousand fans showed up, and the winning team went nuts when they won. That's what's collegiate sports is about and it was great to see. Even without the scholarships, the NIL, and the like, the kids still want to compete at a high level, and college sports can give them that. 

One of my daughter's best friends is headed to Wagner College to play D1 polo next year. Before this year, I'd not heard of Wagner or knew they had a D1 program, but I guarantee, I'll be rooting hard for them. That's one of the great things about college sports, it's personal.

[cardcrimson]

This makes me wonder out loud - what’s the societal good that comes from reserving spots for athletes and placing them ahead of other academically qualified kids who didn’t win the VO2 max lottery but might nevertheless be excellent well-qualified students? I mean, in the NIL and money era, I can at least see why big DI schools are in the game to make money, but what justification is there to do this for a place like Williams, or Pomona, or even for schools like Stanford, or Northwestern, or Brown? Like BC, I’m saying this as a fan, and it makes me sad that I’m struggling to find a moral justification for my fandom.

Never in a million years did I expect my kid to be in the middle of a collegiate recruiting cycle. But here I am. 

I think athletes add a lot to college student bodies--drive, commitment, and at good schools, intelligence. They also add someone local to connect to and perhaps cheer for, and I think that's a good thing. Athletes can also provide diversity, in more aspects than just race. When I look back at my years at Stanford, did any of the athletes add to my academic experience. No. If you were to ask if I added anything to any of my classmate's academic experience, the answer would be the same. All of the students contributed to the culture that was Stanford before it hated fun.

In water polo, DIII schools started a national championship just a few years ago, and the enthusiasm has been off the charts. In the inaugural tournament, over a thousand fans showed up, and the winning team went nuts when they won. That's what's collegiate sports is about and it was great to see. Even without the scholarships, the NIL, and the like, the kids still want to compete at a high level, and college sports can give them that. 

One of my daughter's best friends is headed to Wagner College to play D1 polo next year. Before this year, I'd not heard of Wagner or knew they had a D1 program, but I guarantee, I'll be rooting hard for them. That's one of the great things about college sports, it's personal.