The Lovely, Young Sportswomen
Not so fast!
In his latest commentary for NPR, Frank DeFord discusses the impact of Title IX. I was ready to hear the oft-repeated argument that this legislation takes opportunity away from male, minor sport athletes in favor of women athletes with little commitment to sport. Instead, he talks about a whole other issue, one that affects sport in general, and to a lesser degree society, the apparent sense by many athletes that they can behave any way they wish, without consequences. DeFord's point is that these days, some of the women athletes often behave as poorly as the worst of the men. I think colleges should require acceptable behavior, and should require it. Like the uproar several years ago related to academics, the NCAA should require that athletes who represent their schools behave in a manner that won't embarass the school. They should require that scholarships be yanked from athletes who misbehave (I am less sure if a "zero-tolerance" policy or a "two-or-three-strike" format is more appropriate, though I'm inclined to say that there are some behaviors that should be immediate scholarship death penalties.)
It's a report that I think is worth a listen. You can find it here.
In his latest commentary for NPR, Frank DeFord discusses the impact of Title IX. I was ready to hear the oft-repeated argument that this legislation takes opportunity away from male, minor sport athletes in favor of women athletes with little commitment to sport. Instead, he talks about a whole other issue, one that affects sport in general, and to a lesser degree society, the apparent sense by many athletes that they can behave any way they wish, without consequences. DeFord's point is that these days, some of the women athletes often behave as poorly as the worst of the men. I think colleges should require acceptable behavior, and should require it. Like the uproar several years ago related to academics, the NCAA should require that athletes who represent their schools behave in a manner that won't embarass the school. They should require that scholarships be yanked from athletes who misbehave (I am less sure if a "zero-tolerance" policy or a "two-or-three-strike" format is more appropriate, though I'm inclined to say that there are some behaviors that should be immediate scholarship death penalties.)
It's a report that I think is worth a listen. You can find it here.
posted by Scooter at 10:41 AM
1 Comments:
College athletes, male and female, are afforded far too much wiggle room in the collgiate atmosphere. Instead of appreciating the privledge they have been granted to play sports at that level, they act as though they are the privledge bestowed upon the university. Until they understand the true nature of their relationship with the university, they won't understand what should be expected of them.
I agree that tighter restrictions need to be enforced to ensure that they represent the college appropriately. Yank their money, suspend their play, and they'll feel differently about their status.
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