ABSTRACT
On crisp fall afternoons, college and university athletic fields, gymnasiums, and courts fill with athletes. By spring the tracks and softball diamonds come to life. Participating in these colleges athletic pursuits are often cast as an idiosyncratic student pastime of American higher education. Athletics are also thought to be separate from the rest of the institution, further reinforcing the unique nature of college sports. Assumptions of separation, especially from the curriculum, are fueled by the physical distance of many athletic facilities that sit on the periphery of campus. In the years after the 1929 Carnegie Report, the response from university presidents was uneven. Popularity for college sports among the public and institutional desires for success continued to grow. The idyllic narrative of a college sports program reveals much about a college or university. The chapter also presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in this book.
