students are continuing to trail behind their peers in a pack of higher performing nations

Scores from the 2009 Programme for International Student Assessment

the U.S. performing about average in reading and science, and below average in math

Fact 1: Enthusiasm for football has never been higher -- not just for the NFL, but with young boys and teens. Participation in prep football has increased 21 percent in the past 20 years, by nearly 200,000 boys per year, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations. Many states have begun to allow what is essentially year-round football practice. Youth-league tackle football is expanding. American boys are devoting more time and effort to football than ever before.

Fact 2: In higher education, student populations are increasingly female. Twenty years ago, there were more men in college than women. Now there are more women, and the ratio of college women to men is rising.

On many levels, considering the size and profile of the school, this could be considered a disappointment,

The first thing that catches the eye is the nearly $4-million drop in ticket sales from 2010 to 2011, that offset contribtuions and other revenue increases.

Overall, ASU's revenue of $55,294,113 was well below the conference median of $62.5-million (not including Utah or Colorado).

Football Revenue: SEC ($49.9m) Big Ten ($40.6m) Pac-10 ($24.6m) ACC ($20.9m)

Football Expenses: SEC ($20m) Big Ten ($17.9m) Pac-10 ($16.2m) ACC ($14.8m)

Football Revenue Univ of Washington $33,919,639.00 Arizona State $29,587,236.00 Univ of Oregon $29,505,906.00 Univ of Southern California $29,080,117.00 Univ of Arizona $24,398,253.00

he Northern Arizona University Football sports team has 89 men

1 head coach(es), 10 assistant coach(es), and total revenues of $2,617,797, total expenses of $2,617,797 and profits of $0

Enrolled Percent Men41%Enrolled Percent Women59%In-State Tuition (2009-2010)$6,632Out-of-State Tuition (2009-2010)$17,858Acceptance Rate74%Average SAT (Combined Score)1560

Other improvements and renovations include: * For the players: New locker rooms and improved training and weight rooms * For the media, staff and coaches: A new press box with elevator access and new, upgraded administrative offices * For the fans: New entryways, concourse areas, restrooms, enhanced retail space and new, more comfortable seating that allows for an enhanced viewing experience

2010 Football Budget Expenses        Scholarships                1,198,000 Salary and Benefits     532,000 Operational Costs       618,000 Total Expenses          2,348,000

Revenues Gate Receipts              138,000 Guarantees                  320,000 Donations                    45,000 State Support              365,000 Institutional Support   1,480,000 Total Revenue           2,348,000

Roughly 70 to 75 percent of ASU's Intercollegiate Athletics revenue is derived from Sun Devil Football

he financial catalyst that will generate the department's projected Fiscal Year 2000 $26 million operating budget.

It is this revenue that supports ASU's 21 men's and women's sports.

This was particularly true for football players, as their average SAT scores were some of the lowest.

Nationwide, football players average 220 points lower on the SAT than their classmates

Players also spend more time on their sport than their homework and see themselves more as athletes than as a students.

Once athletes start attending the university that paid them to play a sport, it is perfectly understandable why they commit more to training than to studying.

examined the SAT scores of 53 schools, there was at least an 88-point difference between the student body’s average and that of football team members’ average score.

Average SAT Scores Overall Male SAT Male Athlete SAT Men’s Bball  Football  *Ranking Arizona 1145 990 1016 924 #30 Arizona State 1111 988 906 937 #46

GPA and other data Overall Special Admit % Special Admit % athletes M Bball GPA Football GPA GPA overall % admitted Arizona 4.6% 14.3% 2.56 2.70 3.40 80.5% Arizona State N/A N/A 2.65 3.25 3.39

(GPA and SAT scores for all enrolled football players) covering several years through the late 1990's and early 2000's

Ariz: 2.76, 948 Ariz St: 2.76, 937

75% of parents let their child skip an exam for an important game, and only 47% of musicians’ parents would let them skip an exam for a concert or performance.

Also, the all-star players said the schools help give them extended deadlines for essays, homework, reports, etc., while the musicians only had 44% and the sport leagues 33%. In addition, 63% of all-stars said the schools helped them with tutoring sessions, while those in sport leagues had 11% and only 8% musicians.

After those facts, it is no surprise that the principals interviewed said,” Sports is one of the most popular interests in the school. This can be seen by the fact that the athletes’ needs are met through designing special programs, consideration of their needs, consideration of their teachers, competitions and placing the school athletics program high on our list of priorities

It seems that Alabama is making a pretty big statement by canceling classes, and it is that football is much more important than the classes being taught at the university.

Alabama decided to cancel classes starting on Wednesday, January 6th until Friday, January 8th in order to allow more fans to make their way out to California.

Laying off 1153 people.  On the other hand the athletics department is cutting almost $500,000… from it’s 11.3 MILLION dollar budget.

What really sad, is by eliminating athletics, they could immediately save 220 jobs (assuming each of those jobs cost the district $50,000 a year (which it probably does not)).

Based on the stipends in the article, they could keep up to 1.3 teachers per coach fired.  That’s probably 10 teachers per high school and 3-5 per middle school.

A 2004 study, meanwhile, revealed that football players with multiple concussions were 7.7 times more likely to experience a "major drop in memory performance"

What's most disturbing, perhaps, is that these cognitive deficits have a real-world impact: When compared with similar students without a history of concussions, athletes with two or more brain injuries demonstrate statistically significant lower grade-point averages.

say current and former teachers and parents. Red Lion, they say, has undermined its mission by admitting students who haven't met academic or faith-based requirements and bent or disregarded rules to field a competitive football team.