College Sports used to feel more "pure" than the Pros. Its feels the opposite to me nowadays. Am I alone?

[storrsroars]

On the bright side, NIL probably eliminates players point shaving for a couple thousand bucks.

I don't know how much I really care about this, I just want to see UConn win.

But it's certainly not the "opposite" of pros. It's simply not as "pure" as it once was.

 

[uconndogs]

To the OP point, major college athletics are now full fledged professional franchises associated with a given school. The portal and NIL allow for uninterupted free agency. This has nothing at all to do with playing for school pride, loyalty and god knows, academics.

There are going to be a lot of very good athletic departments (including some currently in the P4) that are going to be on the outside looking in trying to compete at the highest levels. I think UCONN hoops may very well be facing that future. It's probably 40 or so programs that compete at the highest level, and take most of the money. The balance will play at a level that currently looks a lot like FCS football or the way the Ivies run their athletics.

Sad for sure.......

 

[RSTuthill]

Yup, must be a newbie. Those of us that have been here more than a couple months are far too jaded now to have written the OP. The original post is right, of course. The old system used to make cognitive dissonance possible. Plausible deniability. But yeah, the sport has been "dirty" since the early 1900's if not earlier. The Courant 25 years ago published a piece about the abuses at Nebraska for instance. Everyone just shrugged. The on field player and fan enthusiasm covered up a lot.

I will still go to games on sparkling autumn afternoons if they hold the promise of being competitive. Or a bowl game like Fenway regardless of the weather. But there may come a time when getting on the bicycle, into a kayak, or onto a hiking trail becomes more attractive on a glorious home game Saturday.

 

[Waquoit]

It was never pure. Nostalgia for a time that never was.