Over the course of the semester there are a few things I've learned about doing a blog. First of all it is important to keep up for a few reasons. For my own sake I need to keep up so that I am not overloaded at the end of the semester and for the aid of other students I need to keep my blogs up to date. It is easier to understand information by looking at it in another perspective and by keeping up with my blogs I can give that other perspective. I really liked being able to learn more about a topic not through experiences in class but from reading other people's blogs and thoughts. I also liked researching outside information on topics to share with people to give them different ways of looking at topics and maybe help them understand a bit more.
As I go further in life and eventually reach my career goal of being an athletic director I think some of the things I've learned in this class will aid me. One topic that we talked about that I think will help me most is Title IX and schools losing programs. As an AD it would be my responsibility to make sure the school complies with the rules of Title IX and has enough money to keep other programs up and running. I would hate to be in a situation where I had to make a final decision on cutting a program. So I will do anything I can to make sure that every program has enough finances to operate through booster clubs and other ways of funding and if necessary cutting jobs that aren't as necessary as others. This is a real problem that I may one day have to face and I'm glad I got some perspective on it.
Overall, blogging is a very interesting experience. It is definitely a great way to share ideas and perpectives on issues. In this way I think blogging is growing and will continue to grow. I would not be surprised if I had to keep a blog in a future career. It is a great way to get and share information for new ideas. By now haveing two semesters of blogging under my belt I think I am definitely prepared if I have to blog in the future. I actually hope I get another chance to keep a blog.
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Title IX and the cutting of programs
Title IX has done wonders for women's sports in America. It has brought on so many new opportunities for female athletes to receive scholarships and continue doing something they love. They now have more opportunities to start playing sports and don't have to stop at high school or college. However, as I love what it has given to not only women but all sports I have to look at is as a double edged sword.
The problem I am talking about is not ingrained in what Title IX is supposed to do but can be a result of it. I am talking about other sports having to be eliminated to accommodate more women's sports. The elimination of these sports can't be blamed by implementation and compliance with Title IX but by the athletic departments and universities that don't do what is necessary to comply and have enough money to finance other sports. These universities need to be aware that they must comply and develop a plan to make sure they have the funds to keep all of their sports. ADs need to do what is necessary and possibly eliminate little things that eat up funds in order to keep their teams. Just recently Hofstra University had to drop their football progam from their school. I am not saying it is a direct result of Title IX but the athletic department had to know that some things needed to be done in order to keep all of their programs especially in this economy. Start low and cut jobs that aren't necessarily needed. Raise awareness and funds through boosters and alumni. There are steps that need to be taken to ensure that programs do not get cut.
So I guess this post wasn't as much about Title IX as it was about the tragedy of losing college programs and that there are ways to prevent it. I am all about adding women's sports and expanding women's college athletics. But no team, in any circumstances should have to be cut because of budget restrictions whether it be from recession or trying to comply with Title IX
The problem I am talking about is not ingrained in what Title IX is supposed to do but can be a result of it. I am talking about other sports having to be eliminated to accommodate more women's sports. The elimination of these sports can't be blamed by implementation and compliance with Title IX but by the athletic departments and universities that don't do what is necessary to comply and have enough money to finance other sports. These universities need to be aware that they must comply and develop a plan to make sure they have the funds to keep all of their sports. ADs need to do what is necessary and possibly eliminate little things that eat up funds in order to keep their teams. Just recently Hofstra University had to drop their football progam from their school. I am not saying it is a direct result of Title IX but the athletic department had to know that some things needed to be done in order to keep all of their programs especially in this economy. Start low and cut jobs that aren't necessarily needed. Raise awareness and funds through boosters and alumni. There are steps that need to be taken to ensure that programs do not get cut.
So I guess this post wasn't as much about Title IX as it was about the tragedy of losing college programs and that there are ways to prevent it. I am all about adding women's sports and expanding women's college athletics. But no team, in any circumstances should have to be cut because of budget restrictions whether it be from recession or trying to comply with Title IX
Women's Athletics take a back seat
It seems that women's sports are overlooked and accomplishments by women's teams sometimes go unrecognized whereas there male counterparts are much more glorified in their success than they are. The example I want to look at is this past year's Connecticut Lady Huskies and their more than impressive 39-0 championship season. As a side not I want to add that they are called the "Lady" Huskies which is a prime example of gender marking and that they won the "Women" national title. Anyways, the women's national championship game that pitted the Huskies against the Louisville Cardinal couldn't even be seen on national television. They put it on ESPN, which is actually a step up when most of the tournament coverage was seen only on ESPN2. Also, if I wouldn't have followed the season of the Huskies I probably wouldn't have even known the game was on because not nearly as much attention was paid to this team as was teams in the men's tournament. The men's tournament featured lengthy pre-game and post-game shows and whole programs dedicated to breaking down the tournament. The women's tournament featured very little of that. The only game that really got any pre-game attention was the national championship. On the verge of doing something spectacular of not only winning a national championship but doing it on an undefeated team that may be the best in history for men or women, you would think a lot more coverage would be necessary.
I would find this as an insult as anybody who follows UConn or women's college basketball. For a team to go 39-o, which is the best record any collegiate team has ever accomplished, and get very little recognition for it is absurd. Say the same school, UConn, and their men's basketball team went 39-0, you wouldn't stop hearing about it and they would be mentioned as one of the greatest teams of all time. By the way, the Lady Huskies beat every opponent they faced by 10 or more points all season. These accomplishments should not go overlooked and still are rarely even referenced. Maybe someday a men's team even be compared to this team because they certainly deserve to be known as one of the best of all time.
I would find this as an insult as anybody who follows UConn or women's college basketball. For a team to go 39-o, which is the best record any collegiate team has ever accomplished, and get very little recognition for it is absurd. Say the same school, UConn, and their men's basketball team went 39-0, you wouldn't stop hearing about it and they would be mentioned as one of the greatest teams of all time. By the way, the Lady Huskies beat every opponent they faced by 10 or more points all season. These accomplishments should not go overlooked and still are rarely even referenced. Maybe someday a men's team even be compared to this team because they certainly deserve to be known as one of the best of all time.
Yo Yao
I don't think there is a bad thing to say about what Ya Ming and other Asian athletes have brought to professional sports in America. They have transformed what have been traditionally American sports with American audiences to the global stage.
Yao Ming and other athletes like Ichiro Suzuki and Hideki Matsui have really contributed to the expanding of American sports. These athletes have paved the way and opened the door to welcome even more foreign athletes to the American sports arena. All of these players have achieved much success in their respective sports and expanded the market of American sports. As a fan this brings more enjoyment to watching the game because now not only are we watching the best athletes from around North America but from around the world. This makes teams better and boost attendance and fan base for professional teams bring a lot of money into the sports. In Asian countries where these athletes are from, almost all of their games are broadcast thus making a teams fan base and revenue increase. Along with them they also brought new styles of play like the Ichiro slap hit and Yao's finesse big man play. Along with Yao's success on the basketball court Ichiro has won batting titles and Matsui recently won World Series MVP.
With the success of these athletes it is no wonder sports are taking over the world. That is because the best players in the world are starting to play in the best leagues in the world. The visibility of the sports have grown dramatically and now players like LeBron James are being endorsed and worshiped in Asian countries. I think the globalization of sports with these athletes from different countries has done great things for professional sport and will just continue to make enjoying sports even better.
Yao Ming and other athletes like Ichiro Suzuki and Hideki Matsui have really contributed to the expanding of American sports. These athletes have paved the way and opened the door to welcome even more foreign athletes to the American sports arena. All of these players have achieved much success in their respective sports and expanded the market of American sports. As a fan this brings more enjoyment to watching the game because now not only are we watching the best athletes from around North America but from around the world. This makes teams better and boost attendance and fan base for professional teams bring a lot of money into the sports. In Asian countries where these athletes are from, almost all of their games are broadcast thus making a teams fan base and revenue increase. Along with them they also brought new styles of play like the Ichiro slap hit and Yao's finesse big man play. Along with Yao's success on the basketball court Ichiro has won batting titles and Matsui recently won World Series MVP.
With the success of these athletes it is no wonder sports are taking over the world. That is because the best players in the world are starting to play in the best leagues in the world. The visibility of the sports have grown dramatically and now players like LeBron James are being endorsed and worshiped in Asian countries. I think the globalization of sports with these athletes from different countries has done great things for professional sport and will just continue to make enjoying sports even better.
Female athletes and sex appeal
I recently read an article in the Chicago Tribune entitled "Danica Patrick, other female athletes sell sex appeal first" by Andrea Adelson. I think this article directly related to the article "Two Kicks Forward" in that it discusses one of the issues in the reading about how media constructs the image of these women through sexualizing them.
The article explains how female athletes have been celebrated for their "bikini shots", not their athleticism. It talks about how these sexualized female athletes have become even more recognizable than women in their sport that actually perform better than them. In saying that the assumption is made that it is more important for a female athlete to be attractive than to be the best at their sport. This may also be true financially where these athletes that are sexualized have more endorsement opportunities and therefore may make even more money than the leading money winner or player with the highest contract in their sport. Many more opportunities are sent the way of the female athlete that is attractive and will pose in magazines. This is a perfect example of how media constructs female athletes to sell sex appeal first and then their game.
Danica Patrick, other female athletes sell sex appeal first
Magic Johson and Jimmy V
Just recently it was Jimmy V week around the world of college basketball. I think that there are many similarities between what Magic Johnson and Jim Valvano did to bring awareness to their disease.
Magic Johnson started it all when it came to starting funds and bringing awareness to different diseases. He helped bring a movement into sports to support these diseases and create funds to help find a cure. Magic has a special case in which not many people knew a lot about the AIDS virus or HIV. Prior to Magic Johnson contracting the disease it was well thought to be a disease contracted amongst those in the homosexual community and through sharing needles. Although awareness had to come at the cost of Magic contracting the disease I think it definitely helped people realize that it was a serious disease and that anybody could contract it. He went onto a lot of talk shows and did a lot of interviews to let people know about the disease and how it can be contracted. This really helped people understand the disease and this may have been a blessing in disguise to help people understand the disease.
Jim Valvano did something similar when he contracted cancer. Last week was Jimmy V week and prior to one of the games they aired his speech he gave at the ESPY awards just before he died. I live with three other guys and there is rarely a time when we are all quiet and focused on something and his speech did it, for 12 minutes. His message he wanted to send was that something could be done to stop this dreadful disease. That we didn't all have to wait and see the person who contracts it pass away. With awareness and research this disease can be stopped and save the lives of many people. To this day over 15 years later I still get chills listening to his speech and his message. I think it is a video everybody needs to see. His message has brought on funds to raise awareness through his charity The V Foundation. He now has a week and a tournament dedicated to his foundation. Again it was a tragedy that the life of a coaching legend had to be taken, but it has done a lot make people aware and save lives.
Jimmy V speech
Magic Johnson started it all when it came to starting funds and bringing awareness to different diseases. He helped bring a movement into sports to support these diseases and create funds to help find a cure. Magic has a special case in which not many people knew a lot about the AIDS virus or HIV. Prior to Magic Johnson contracting the disease it was well thought to be a disease contracted amongst those in the homosexual community and through sharing needles. Although awareness had to come at the cost of Magic contracting the disease I think it definitely helped people realize that it was a serious disease and that anybody could contract it. He went onto a lot of talk shows and did a lot of interviews to let people know about the disease and how it can be contracted. This really helped people understand the disease and this may have been a blessing in disguise to help people understand the disease.
Jim Valvano did something similar when he contracted cancer. Last week was Jimmy V week and prior to one of the games they aired his speech he gave at the ESPY awards just before he died. I live with three other guys and there is rarely a time when we are all quiet and focused on something and his speech did it, for 12 minutes. His message he wanted to send was that something could be done to stop this dreadful disease. That we didn't all have to wait and see the person who contracts it pass away. With awareness and research this disease can be stopped and save the lives of many people. To this day over 15 years later I still get chills listening to his speech and his message. I think it is a video everybody needs to see. His message has brought on funds to raise awareness through his charity The V Foundation. He now has a week and a tournament dedicated to his foundation. Again it was a tragedy that the life of a coaching legend had to be taken, but it has done a lot make people aware and save lives.
Jimmy V speech
Cool Pose and "The U"
After the Heisman Presentation on Saturday I watch the ESPN movie "The U" directed by Billy Corben. The movie was about the rise of the University of Miami's football program through the 80s. The interesting thing about the movie that I can relate to what we studied in class were the examples of the "cool pose".
Before the 1980s the Miami program was seen as a joke around college football. The team never won many games and attendance at games was abysmal. They even started giving away tickets at Burger King to get people to come to their games. It all turned around when they hired Coach Howard Shnellenberger. Coach Shnellenberger committed himself to recruiting all of the talent around great Miami where other coaches were reluctant to go because of the bad neighborhoods. He recruited these underprivileged athletes around Miami and they a lot of them decided to come to their hometown school to build the program. That they did. Through the 80s and with three different coaches the Miami program grew to be one of the best in the nation.
The examples of the "cool pose" I saw was in the swagger of these inner city players during game day. They would have elaborate celebrations and became very visible in the college football world. This "cool pose" was an expressive lifestyle behavior that was a response to the limitations they faced growing up in underprivileged households. They were out to show people that although they may have been suppressed growing up they can still play and put together a winning program. The program talked about how the players high visibility and stellar play led to them being somewhat "superstars" in the Miami community. They even garnered support from local rappers and celebrities.
I think this movie was a perfect example of the "cool pose" because it showed and talked about the celebrations and the different things the players did to draw attention to themselves and the program. They were out to gain respect from other programs and the country. They wanted to show people that they were confident and ready to play. I think the University of Miami in the 80s was the start of the "cool pose" and celebrations in college football.
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