re: Athlete-friendly curriculum?

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If people actually read the article, they will see the quotes and data all come from years ago Likely when the SACS stuff was happening.

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Yes because a FOIA request was made to get the data which takes a long time and the Aub prof trying to stop this couldn’t so he got frustrated and went to the press

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That article is nothing more than "I can't believe athletes take easy majors"

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Ok sure

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Article literally says no money from the athletic department was used Stop lying Eta

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Which is why I said “tried”. From the article:

Working on multiple tracks, Waters at one point asked Patricia A. Duffy, the chairwoman of the University Senate’s Academic Program Review Committee, whether some extra money might help to keep the program open. "The Athletics Department," Waters wrote, "would welcome the opportunity to make an investment in the academic side of the university." When Duffy asked if she could share this offer with her fellow committee members, Waters demurred. "In the past, when we have made investments of this type, it has not been publicized," Waters wrote in January of 2013.

LINK /
James Brooks keeps on giving.

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I just assume denial of wrongdoing is taught in Auburn's freshman seminars.

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It's obvious that all the Auburn alum on this board were in those seminars.

We love our easy classes

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What's the problem with this? Can no money from the AD to towards academics?

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There's no problem when it comes as a general donation to the Academic side to be used at the discretion of the Provost or President for the betterment of the University. But Athletics can't have a say in how the money is used as it poses a conflict of interest.

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There's a difference between catering to athletes and funneling them into majors that have been identified or even made easier and more flexible for the sake of maintaining eligibility on the field. For one, this is gaining a competitive advantage over other universities that are actually making an effort to help student-athletes obtain a meaningful degree. For another, it diminishes the value of the University and the degree program when it becomes public knowledge that it is easy to graduate from a given University.

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I agree with you, but either by utilizing curriculums designed for athletes or ridiculous "legitimate" degree paths like Sports Management, African-American Studies, General Studies etc... to allow "Student Athletes" to pass through an institution in order to trade their talent for a boat load of cash is nothing new and nothing anyone really wants to do anything about.

Obviously, there are athletes that are there to use athletics as a way to better their future prospects and I salute them for it. But to feign outrage for the practice of making it easy for athletes to pass through the system is disingenuous at best and downright deceitful at worst.

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Are their fans who actually believe every student athlete is chasing a degree similar to the average student? Asking for a UNC grad.

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Every Student-Athlete? No. Not is every regular student pursuing a degree that is actually in their best interest. But meaningful efforts need to be made in that direction. Not just letting but encouraging football players (especially those that have been given special admittance due to low grades or test scores in college) to pursue otherwise worthless degrees for the sake of maintaining eligibility is tantamount to using them as cannon fodder when the average career in the NFL is only 2.5 years.

While, sure, they get to put a degree on their resume assuming they don't leave school after their eligibility ends, have they actually learned anything useful in their college experience? If they've been hand-held through the whole college process to keep them eligible, do they know how to function outside that environment when they graduate/leave?

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I agree with you, but either by utilizing curriculums designed for athletes or ridiculous "legitimate" degree paths like Sports Management, African-American Studies, General Studies etc... to allow "Student Athletes" to pass through an institution in order to trade their talent for a boat load of cash is nothing new and nothing anyone really wants to do anything about.

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There's nothing wrong with those degree paths so long as 1.) every student on campus has equal access to pursue them if they want and 2.) Athletes aren't actively being encouraged to pursue those specific majors because of their ease.

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But to feign outrage for the practice of making it easy for athletes to pass through the system is disingenuous at best and downright deceitful at worst.

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Disagree. Universities can and should hold themselves to a higher standard. Not every athlete admitted is going to major in Finance or Engineering or Romance Languages. Fine. But Universities have the ability to make meaningful efforts toward helping all student-athletes make major decisions that actually matter. The students shouldn't be allowed to use Athlete status as a crutch and neither should the adults running the Athletic programs or Universities.

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This reasoning can be applied to regular students as well. It's not like it's athlete specific

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The first part can. But regular students don't have to contend with NCAA eligibility rules. Their passing classes doesn't directly impact a team's performance or a coaches tenure.

Still, the mission of a University should be - at its base level - to make efforts to grow and develop all undergraduate students that attend that institution. Doesn't matter if they're an athlete or an academic scholarship recipient, Universities have to make a reasonable effort to make better the students that they agree to admit.