Lamenting over the the “decline” of academics for student athletes or being concerned for the quality of education, or lack thereof, that transfer portal is inflicting on these players, is completely misplaced and just plain unnecessary, and this is coming from someone who went on to get a PhD from an Ivy League school after graduating from U of I and seriously considered becoming a professor.
These kids are/were getting as valuable an education on the court/in their practice/in the film room/in the locker room as you did in the classrooms, if not more practical. Unless you are training to become an academic, a scientist, a doctor or a professional in only a few select fields, like engineering or accounting, a *strictly* defined college education that some of you want to impose is completely overrated and outdated. Most of us learn on the job and it’s the *ability* to learn that’s the most important thing a higher-education can help train. Being an athlete actually provides more than enough of that opportunity. In fact, I would argue, the kids having to navigate NIL and transfer portal, make them even more resilient learners.
