Give Optimism a Chance

I returned recently from a trip to China, where I was a guest of the Ministry of Education. The Chinese had a successful Olympics, and they want to expand their approach to sports from one that focuses on preparing elite athletes for international competition to one that also includes coupling sports and education in their universities. In addition to meeting with the leadership of their equivalent to the NCAA, I met with university presidents, administrators and officials in several cities.

It was my first trip to China. Like others who visited China recently, I was impressed by the urban building boom and the evidence of economic advancement. One city I visited was Shenzhen, an hour north of Hong Kong. Twenty-five years ago, it was a small village. Today, it is a modern city of over eight million, complete with, what seemed to be, hundreds of new skyscrapers.

As I talked with those both inside and outside the universities, there was one thing that caught my attention and that distinguished the current social milieu in America from that of China. It was not the enormous investments made in infrastructure or technology, but the attitude of the population.

There was almost a complete lack of cynicism.

I know that I met with a select and selected population. I spent the time in major cities, not rural areas. It was limited exposure, to be sure.

But there was a common attitude that I found remarkably refreshing. There was some willingness to disagree among themselves and with those in authority; but it always occurred matter of factly, not with the kind of cynicism that takes any situation, even a very good one, and focuses on the negative.

I spend my time these days, as president of the NCAA, in the college athletics community. College sports, I strongly believe, is one of the great subcultures in America. The athletes are enthusiastic and capable young men and women and the fans are avid supporters of the university teams for which they play. There are not many events that are as enjoyable as watching a hard fought football game on a sunny fall Saturday afternoon, or a basketball game between two teams proud of their university affiliations.

But, as good as college sports is, it is also embedded in and surrounded by cynicism. You read it every day in the press, hear it from media commentators and know that it is never far below the surface of fan exuberance.

Of course, college sports are not perfect. More than a few participants are moved by externalities -- by future prospects for money and fame, rather than the joy of the game. The competitive urge sometimes overpowers the sense of fair play, for coaches and fans alike. But the cynicism in the air detracts from the overwhelming good of the activity.

Actually, I do not blame the cynics in college sports. They caught the virus from the rest of American culture. Americans these days permit and, indeed, encourage cynicism to pervade their lives. Well, maybe, the Chinese do too, and I just met an unrepresentative sample. But the refreshing example of the sample -- whether it is representative or not -- made me realize that it certainly would be more pleasant if we managed to keep our cynicism in check.

Being exposed to those who seem to have done so, makes obvious the benefits of not letting cynicism dominate.

I am a pathological optimist. It may be that, with the leadership of President-elect Obama, our culture will move away from its cynical attitude. Maybe, the good will not always be overwhelmed by the marginal or just imagined negatives. As we repair our broken economy, and as we relearn to lend a helping hand when needed, we can change the dominance of cynicism in our culture.

Such change, if it comes, is not likely to begin with sports. Cynicism is deeply rooted in the contemporary college sports culture. But, as we change as a nation, it should eventually reach the sports culture.

As I said, I am an optimist.

Comments

[Nommo]

Geez, am I being cynical when I wonder about the hypocrisy of exploiting young men and women for their
athletic ability when only a tiny fraction will ever become professional athletes and may very well leave college with nagging life long injuries and minimal education. All this while the institutions of higher learning make millions in revenues off these athletes.

Brand, are you for real?

[ebo64]

Mr. Brand wants all cynics (especially academic elites like he once was) to stop questioning the system, especially the national print media. So shame on the reporters for USA Today who published a brilliant expose on the clustering of athletes in less rigorous majors. (http://www.usatoday.com/sports/college/2008-11-18-majors-cover_N.htm) Quit opening your readers’ eyes to the hypocrisy of big-time sports. All is well.

Therefore, in Mr. Brand’s world, sit back and enjoy the Texas Tech-Oklahoma matchup later this evening. Don’t think about the exorbitant salaries paid to Mike Leach and Bob Stoops (or for that matter, Mr. Brand’s $900K+ salary) while those who throw their bodies around the field are limited to the compensation of their scholarship. That is, don’t try to calculate how much WR Michael Crabtree would make should he be appropriately compensated for his skills. Block out the fact that over 80% of the Oklahoma players were admitted to the university as special admits or that Tech’s athletic budget has increased $35M over the last decade (it was only $9M back in 1996).

In other words, grab a brewski, whip out the chips and dip, and for crying out loud, DON’T ENGAGE IN ANY CRITICAL THINKING! There is too much of that already in American society. Mr. Brand thanks you.

[ebo64]

So China wants to couple sports with higher education? Who better to help them than Mr. Brand. Actually, he may be the secret weapon to help turnaround the U.S. economy against foreign competition. If he can convince the Chinese to implement the professional sports model adopted by Division I sports schools, then Chinese higher education can become as misguided as many U.S. universities. With their misplaced priorities, it will only be a matter of time before many of their students graduate woefully unprepared to compete in the global economy. However, to best emulate the American model, they will somehow have to find a way to import a large number of young African-American male football and basketball players to exploit.

On a more serious note, Mr. Brand’s entire piece comes off as an indirect threat to anyone who happens to question the status quo of college sports. Forget all the academic scandals, escalating coaching salaries despite red ink in most athletic departments, increasing athletic fees placed on students to fund stadium renovations, multimillion dollar “academic centers” for the exclusive use of athletes to remain eligible, among others.

Mr. Brand reminds me of Chip Diller (Kevin Bacon’s character) in Animal House. As all hell breaks loose in the homecoming parade, he futilely tries to restore order by yelling, "Remain calm. All is well."