<p>
You seriously can’t possibly believe this after reading these series of articles. </p>
<p>Lets see, the athletic department did the following.</p>
<ul>
<li>Admitted athletes that were not even close academically</li>
<li>Placed them into programs that they didn’t want to be in</li>
<li>Signed them up for classes against their will</li>
<li>Pushed them towards certain classes because of the lenient grading</li>
<li>Found ways to make them eligible (independent study grade boosters)</li>
</ul>
<p>But no, that is in no way academic fraud. Those transcripts are 100% representative of the athlete’s academic capability, right?</p>
<p>You guys are saying in a sense that all that is going on here in this investigation is that they are admitting athletes who are below average, and that every university does this, therefore it’s not a big deal. That’s not even the main issue at hand, or what this thread is even about. It’s about the University of Michigan denying spots for qualified applicants in the sport management program because that’s how they’re getting their athletes into the university. That’s not what my institution does, that’s not what most institutions do. We don’t take away opportunities from students deserving of them, which is something Michigan has apparently been doing for years. That’s what my post said.</p>
<p>But if you want to talk about other athletic departments and what they do, then that’s fine. No, not every D1 athletics institution puts their admitted athletes into programs against their students will, signs them up for classes without the students knowing, steers them towards certain professors that will grade more lenient making them eligible. If you’re not taking my word (someone who actually works in the Big Ten, works in an athletic department), do your research. Go and talk to people outside of Ann Arbor about their athletic departments and how they deal with the student athletes. Don’t have the time? Look at the charts presented in the articles about how Michigan is “different” than other institutions.</p>
<p>I find it awfully hard to believe that people who graduated from a decent university as Michigan would just dismiss everything being said in an article as “Oh, everyone does it.” Did you take ENG 101 with these athletes or something? It’s not hard comprehension. Not every school in the country has classes full of athletes. No, it’s not a coincidence that the average GPA of this class far exceeded what the average GPA of the enrolled students were. </p>
<p>"When asked what they learned in Hagen’s courses, some athletes described being taught how to take notes, use a day planner, make a calendar and manage their time. In many cases, athletes said the main content of these courses was study skills and time management, although Hagen called the material “learning styles.” How did they get this course approved by the state? Since when do people who enroll at Michigan and qualify academically by the NCAA not know how to take notes, use a planner, make a calendar? I know 1st graders who can do those functions.</p>
<p>What’s funny is that the person laughing most about all of this is Jim Harbaugh. Did he not say that all of this was going on, and the arrogant Michigan alums shrugged it off and called him bitter?</p>