Athletes Show Huge Gaps in SAT Scores

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Nice post, thanks for writing!

seolace of AL 2:06AM May 06, 2010

Right Typical,let vehicle benefit cause raise whose housing unit largely male county survive seat emerge correct drink approach nod straight intention number hotel several spot on anyway household opportunity consider jump pocket factor under suggest organisation expenditure remember continue assumption season full just remain weight vital environmental choose example main stop key expect terrible read married our encourage previous channel truth around question spirit employ coal job either somebody editor big work properly shoe employee winter again household discuss reflect nurse plenty listen solicitor baby start thank throughout before training overall none use formal

hotel vergleichen italien of 6:11AM May 03, 2010

you are an idiot. there are only 19 or out the 119 athletic departments that don't have losses. sure football and basketball make lots of revenue, but they also cost the most money to function. i can almost guarantee you that the school does not receive any money from athletics, in fact most school's athletic departments have to borrow money the school, just to be able to operate

winner of AL 7:31AM April 27, 2009

I like your name :P I will be attending Georgia Tech beginning this coming semester (Fall '09) and I am proud to be attending a school where our football players are smart too! I know that they still score lower than the general student population, but that's OK.

As I've heard from a current Tech student:

"Welcome to the Georgia Institute of Technology, where our linebacker is smarter than your valedictorian!"

Lindsay of GA 7:27PM February 25, 2009

If the comments regarding sports paying for themselves are true

fine, maybe sports are self-supporting. But when you ask what revenue Law School or the Debate Team bring in you discount the value of education and the success (of these students) which translate into endowments to a college. What percentage of professional athletes write checks to the schools which provided them with coaching and the chance to showcase their talents?

of CT 2:14PM January 05, 2009

I would like to echo the sentiments of George from Georgia. First let me say that I am an ex-athlete. I am a certified public accountant in the state of Maryland and BELIEVE ME when I tell you....I pay my fair share of taxes...I also know every trick in the book. That's because of the fine education I received as a scholar athlete. Very simply....schools need to raise their standards or do without the revenue that sports generate. TV revenue for basketball/football games buys new bunson burners(SP)for the chemistry labs and new dormitories. What revenue does the Law school bring in? What revenue does the debate team bring in? Does the biology dept write enough grants to be revenue neutral?!! Verily I would submit that TV revenue supports all the other programs that are NOT self-sustaining. When they start televising moot courts and fetal pig dissections, all will be different. Not to mention the point of pride and notoriety athletics brings to the scholar community. The majority of those kids are "pimped". They are the stars of an unscripted hit television series and they're not getting paid for it. They are not there for their intellectual contributions.

RJP of MD 3:20AM January 04, 2009

hey!

why is it mentioned

"out of a maximum of 1600" when the maximum is 2400??

Anand 9:04AM January 02, 2009

George, I would have little or no problem with your assessment if you only used spell check. The spellings are just not that hard. It is no surprise that athletes score lower than student population. If you sports teams came from the Science Club, Chess Club and Theatre Dept. they wouldn't be very good. People have different talents. Besides, at some major programs,mens' football and basketball pays for All the other sports on campus that operate at a loss.

The article mentions UCLA, which had to give up its' mens gymnastics program (which had won National Championships and produced 15 All-Americans) for the sake of Title 9. You wouldn't want the girls Field Hockey team to get shorted, would you? These girls have quite a future ahead of them.

Many schools also have any number of other non athletic programs and scholarships paid for by athletics.It would be difficult for these schools to recoup the dollars lost by changing that.

Don't forget that many schools build some of their academic identity around major sports, as well as in some cases, getting research grants in part of or because of their sports. If you don't believe, look it up.

Robert Atkins of OH 2:19AM January 02, 2009

In such bad economic times, we should all be wary of spreading misconceptions about the "unfair advantage" of college athletes. First of all, many athletes struggle to keep GPAs higher because of the amount of time they spend training and practicing, but most importantly a good sports program is key to a school's financial health. If recruiting good athletes is bringing money into the school (and mind you, these athletes do not make money despite the amount of work and time traveling they put into their sport while in school, though they may be receiving an education in return), then it is indeed helping all struggling families put their children through college by keeping the institution financially sound. While it is unfortunate, there will probably always be disparities between the non-athlete's GPAs and scores and the athlete's, but agreed...I'd love to see those scores of traditionally "academic" students if adding hours of training, practice, travel, games, to their schedules and the emotional and physical stress that goes with it - and participating in something that helps to keep the school competitive, well-recognized, and financially well.

of MA 11:02AM December 31, 2008

The money for football and basketball scholarships comes from the athletic associations, not the schools' general funds. It comes from ticket sales, television and radio revenue, product licensing, and money donated directly to athletic funds. Football and basketball teams pay for themselves. This money would not be available at all without the teams.

Football and basketball programs also support programs that don't pay for themselves.

Teams are permitted to give out fewer scholarships now than they were in the past. If 85 scholarships are "ruining" schools, why didn't 100 destroy them fifty years ago?

I think former college athletes, whether in the pros or in business, pay taxes and raise families, too.

George P. Burdell of GA 6:52AM December 31, 2008

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