NCAA History Guide

Women have played a huge role in golf, dating back to the 1500s when Mary Queen of Scots, was critisized for golfing more than she dealt with royal matters. The Women’s Professional Golf Association (WPGA) was then founded in 1944 (later replaced by Ladies Professional Golf Association). In 2002, Golf 20/20 established a Diversity Task Force to focus on women’s participation in golf. This is all according to the Nancy Berkley Women’s Golf Timeline. And year after year, women’s golf continues to dominate the sports pages. Continue reading “The History Behind Women’s Golf” »

Up until now, it’s been speculation and talk about how the NCAA College Football Playoffs would work. In just a few days, we get to see it unfold right before our eyes. The four teams have been chosen by the committee: Alabama will play Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl while Oregon plays Florida State in the Rose Bowl both on January 1^st. Continue reading “Welcome to the Era of College Football Playoffs” »

The social media alternative website Reddit did a survey on the most hated teams in college football in the lead up to the 2014 season. Although this type of survey is highly separated from a scientific study at one of the many university listed, but Reddit hating of all trolls on the internet. And the survey says…

Continue reading “Analyzing the Most Hated Teams in College Football” »

After the announcement by University of Maryland president of the university’s move from the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) to the Big Ten, he was met by a string of protests and dismay from the alumni and board of regents. But despite the call from the ACC commissioner and threats of donations getting pulled, the system’s chancellor William Kirwan decided to push ahead with his decision. Continue reading “Maryland: From the ACC to the Big Ten” »

The College Baseball World Series takes place in June.

The NCAA and college sports are key players in the American sports landscape. Television contracts and merchandise rights have made the NCAA a tycoon organization reaching almost a billion dollars in revenue last year. They compete seasonally with the NFL, NBA, and NHL throughout the academic year, which is also the heights of American sports coverage. But the untapped season for NCAA athletics is the summer.

Continue reading “Will the NCAA Have Summer Sports?” »

Bob Bowlsby, Big 12 Conference commissioner, has been making sports headlines as he speaks out against the college sports overlord that everyone loves to hate- the NCAA. The main source of contention? The elite leaders of NCAA sports- the 20% that win 92% of championships- are increasingly unable to pass legislation because the smaller schools are voting them down.

Bowlsby is speaking out against the democratic system of the NCAA itself, saying that ” it’s virtually impossible right now to configure legislative proposals that have any chance of getting through the system intact that would accomplish anything in the way of meaningful change.” He, along with many others in the college sporting world, are frustrated by the bureaucratic roadblock to creating the real change that the NCAA needs to see.

Continue reading “Pressure to Reform NCAA is Mounting” »

The NCAA is often criticized for its commercialism and lack of true collaboration. With the NCAA-run March Madness tournament just completed, however, it’s hard to imagine a world of college sports in which the NCAA does not play a pivotal role. In football, on the other hand, strides are being made that just might change the relationship between universities, conferences, and the NCAA.

The first, seemingly unimportant, development is the branding of the new College Football Playoff. The new format, set to debut after the 2014 regular season, hopes to resolve some of the arguments for reform that have become increasingly prevalent in the last several years. The logo has just been chosen this week, and the gaining momentum for the new playoff leads to a startling realization: unlike the championships for nearly every other college sport, the branding of the College Football Playoff features no mention of the NCAA. This may in fact be a deliberate choice. As college football seeks to reformat their playoff process, they may also be looking to refocus on college football, rather than the NCAA.

Continue reading “The NCAA Fate in Football” »

It’s about that time of year again, basketball fans – March Madness! Whether you’re on spring break now or next week, you’ll still return in time to catch the start of the tournament on March 19. Or, maybe you’ll be on break during the tournament, but most bars and sports restaurants will broadcast the games.

Schedule

This year’s complete schedule, courtesy of the NCAA website, is as follows:

• First Four – March 19-20
• Second/Third Rounds – March 21-24
• Regionals – March 28-31
• Final Four – April 6 & 8

Continue reading “March Madness is Upon Us” »

While rifling through old files on my computer, I came across a pretty old post about Les Miles and LSU. Time sure flies. And, he’s still head coach of the LSU football team, which I suppose isn’t that much of a surprise, but still worth mentioning if you didn’t think he would be (or just don’t know who he is). Just for fun, here’s the post:

Les is More, Sorta

This week LSU announced they had extended the contract through 2010, bumping his annual salary from $1.25 million in 2005 to $1.65 million in 2006. This seems to me like a bit of a kneejerk reaction on behalf of LSU and am not sure that Miles is a proven commodity that would warrant a raise after a great season with Nick Saban’s players. I for one really enjoyed his sideline antics and moments of panic during the Tennessee loss last year. Deer meet headlights, headlights meet deer…

Continue reading “In College Football History: Les Miles” »

Okay, you’ve probably heard it enough by now – Alabama won the BCS championship. As much as I was rooting for the underdog, the outcome wasn’t much of a surprise. The only negative about it was listening to my stepdad walk around the house shouting “Roll Tide Roll!” and “Back to Back!” After about 2 or 25 times, it gets old. I can’t blame him for being excited, though. Having back-to-back championships is an impressive accomplishment. Nick Saban gets a pat on the back.

Continue reading “Roll Tide Roll!” »