There have been several recent subscribers comments, on the
subject of the proper role of athletics in higher education,
specific athletes who seem to have abused the system, schools that
seem to encourage abuse of the system by paying lip service to the
concept of the student-athlete, and the very few schools that still
have and enforce academic standards as a precondition for
participation in varsity athletics.
 
On the Sunday "Impact" TV program there was an extensive interview
with LSU basketball coach Dale Brown who is resigning because he
could no longer accept the harm being done to college athletes by
the "professionalization" of college sports.
 
A solution suggested by Brown (or my interpretation of his views)
was for basketball to adopt the farm system used by baseball,
thereby providing a non-academic avenue for those athletes
interested only in aiming for the pros.  The advantages are fairly
obvious; just about everybody comes out ahead--outstanding athletes
not interested or qualified in academics, can prep for the pros,
true student-athletes have the opportunity to play varsity
sports, then move on to the pros or professions, and universities
can perhaps get back to the business of education (and working on
their tarnished reputations).
 
It seems to me that the solution Brown suggests for basketball has
significant similarities to the Canadian hockey Major Junior
A/University programs.  Perhaps if there is enough concern over the
professionalization of college hockey in the U.S. the Canadian
dual-track system should be adopted here, in combination with an
even more basic step to de-professionalize college hockey and
reestablish its proper role in higher education:  starting the time
clock for the four years of varsity eligibility immediately after
graduation from high school or prep school.
 
Floyd W. Sharrock
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