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Stanford Athletics

May 2, 2013
Athletics at Stanford, Stanford University Athletes, Stanford University Athletics

Stanford should show that they’re proud of Jason Collins. Retire his number. Write about him on your homepage and on your athletic site. Seriously (photo credit: Jawed Karim).

Hey, Stanford Athletics — it’s ok to run a story on the Stanford Athletics homepage (or heck, even the Stanford University homepage) on Jason Collins. It’s very nice that the student newspaper ran a story on someone who should be one of your favorite sons, but the university administration should be singing his praises too. The President of the United States took the time to do so. So too did a former President of the United States, the First Lady, Oprah, Martina Navratilova, and so many more. What would it take to land a story on your homepage? On the Stanford Athletics homepage, it’s nice that you have a Q&A with a men’s volleyball senior, an NFL free agency recap on former Stanford players, and an update on the tennis team but seriously? Nothing on the LGBT community’s Jackie Robinson?

Wouldn’t Stanford be proud to have Jackie Robinson among its alumni? You’d think. And now they do have a figure who broke down an important barrier for the gay community in the macho world of sports. But they don’t seem to be too proud of him based on their online marketing. Beyond online marketing, we are calling on Stanford to retire Jason Collins’ jersey number on the moment that he laces up his shoe-laces and takes the court as the first openly gay male athlete in one of the four big league sports. This shouldn’t even be a question. Collins’ remarkable play for Stanford University, his solid and long NBA career, coupled with his strength of character, courage, and conviction make him an obvious candidate to have his jersey retired. No player should be wearing his number. Not now. Not ever again.

Stanford, retire Jason Collins’ number. Write a story about him on your homepage and on your athletic page. It’s not asking too much. Get with the program. You’re supposed to be a university that is extremely supportive of its LGBT students and alumni. Show that support by championing a hero from The Farm.

Categories: College Athletes  Tags: , , , ,
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Harvard Victory

March 21, 2013
Harvard Win, Harvard Basketball Win, Harvard Basketball Tourney Win

Harvard is a Cinderella story of this year’s NCAA Tournament.

A Harvard victory! David has indeed topped Goliath. We are proud to report that Harvard University, the 14th-seeded little underdog that could, pulled off the biggest upset thus far in March Madness today with a victory over 3rd-seeded New Mexico. According to “The AP,” “The university where John Adams, Teddy Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy earned degrees was making just its third trip to the tournament — and it had never won — though the Ivy League advanced in 2010 when a Cornell team made the regional semifinals.” The basketball team where Jeremy Lin once shined has now gone further into the NCAA Tournament than ever before in the university’s long history. At 20-9, the Crimson pulled off a spectacular victory, taking down the favorite by a score of 68-62 in one of the most memorable First Round games we’ve seen in years.

Next up, Harvard will face Arizona. But they’ve already busted their bracket so why not bust it up a bit more? Harvard just might be this year’s Valparaiso, Miami of Ohio, or George Mason. All of those schools once pulled off spectacular upsets in previous NCAA Tourneys. And just think how good the Harvard basketball team would be this year had their co-captains not been suspended prior to the season in the fallout from the cheating scandal at Harvard? Maybe they’d have a shot to make the Final Four. Maybe they still do!

Congratulations to Tommy Amaker and the Harvard Crimson on your remarkable victory. You are representing the Ivy League well in March Madness and we think you’ve got a real shot to pull off another upset. We’re rooting for you and so is the rest of the country. Because only in March Madness is Harvard ever an underdog!

Categories: College Athletes  Tags: , , , ,
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March Madness and College Admission

March 18, 2013

If you’re a regular reader of our blog, you probably know that we write every year about the impact of March Madness on various universities. Remember our piece on the impact of George Mason’s Final Four run a few years back on the university’s admissions statistics? The fact is that March Madness does impact college admissions figures the following year. If a highly selective college like Duke University advances far into the NCAA Tourney, expect significantly more students to apply to Duke than the year before. If the Blue Devils bust and go out in Rounds 1 or 2, you won’t see that same kind of correlation.

March Madness and College Admissions, Admission and March Madness, NCAA Tourney and Admissions Stats

March Madness can indeed impact admissions statistics the following year.

So which highly selective colleges have a chance to impact their admissions figures for next year in this year’s NCAA Tournament? Well, there’s Duke of course. Duke takes on Albany in Round 1. Some years ago, Albany nearly orchestrated the first 16 over a 1 in the history of the Men’s NCAA Tournament. So maybe they should watch out for the SUNY team in this 2 vs. 15 matchup of David vs. Goliath. Harvard University is also in the NCAA Tourney this year. They’re the 14th seed, taking on the University of New Mexico in Round 1. Let’s go Harvard!

Cal made the field this year, too, as they’ll be taking on UNLV in Round 1. Georgetown University is a 2-seed so there’s a good chance they’ll go far. How far? We’ll just have to wait and see. UCLA is a 6-seed, taking on the University of Minnesota. The University of Michigan is a 4-seed, taking on South Dakota State University. UNC and Villanova face off in an 8 vs. 9 matchup. Davidson also made the field, facing off against Marquette in Round 1. Did we leave off a highly selective college in this year’s March Madness field? If so, let us know! Or let us know who you think we should have written about! It’s possible that we don’t consider the school to be as highly selective as you (or at least as the schools we brought to your attention). And, no, South Dakota State isn’t one of those schools. We just happened to list the opponents of the highly selective universities in Round 1.

Categories: College Admissions, College Athletes  Tags: , , , ,
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Ivy League Standings

March 7, 2013

Let’s check in on the Ivy League standings in basketball. In men’s basketball action, the leader of the pack is Princeton University. The Tigers have a 9-2 record this far into the season. Sitting in second place in the Ivy League is Harvard University with a 9-3 record. Next come Brown University and Yale University, both with 6-6 records on the year. The University of Pennsylvania is at 5-6, while Cornell University is at 5-7, Columbia University is at 4-8, and Dartmouth sits at 3-9. Looks like it’ll be Princeton and Harvard vying for the Ivy League title and the right to play in the NCAA Tournament. As you may know, the Ivy League has an automatic bid to The Big Dance.

Ivy League Standing, Rankings of Ivy League Schools, Ivy League Rankings

Princeton tops the men’s and women’s Ivy League basketball standings so far this year.

In terms of their overall records on the year (both in and out of Ivy League play), Harvard has the best record at 17-9. Princeton is right behind them with a 16-9 record. Every other team in the Ivy League has a losing overall record. Brown sits at 12-14, Yale at 12-17, Penn at 8-20, Cornell at 13-16, Columbia at 12-14, and Dartmouth at 7-19. Not a great season for the Big Green this year. But, hey, it’ll make their Ivy League championship next season all the sweeter.

In women’s Ivy League basketball action, the Princeton women are also in first place. They’ve got a 10-1 record in Ivy League play. In second place is also Harvard University (just like in men’s basketball action), but they’re tied with Penn. They both have 8-3 records. Yale sits at 7-5, Cornell and Dartmouth at 4-8, Brown at 3-9, and Columbia at 2-9. Overall, the Princeton women sit at 19-6, Harvard at 17-8, Penn at 15-10, Yale and Cornell at 12-14, Dartmouth at 6-20, Brown at 9-17, and Columbia at 4-21.

Do you think both the Princeton men and women will advance to The Big Dance? Let us know your thoughts by posting below! And how far do you think the representative of the Ivy League will be able to advance in March Madness? Do you think the league has a Final Four shot this year? Or is that a remote possibility?

Categories: College Athletes, Ivy League  Tags: , , , ,
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Ivy League Hockey

February 12, 2013
Ivy League Hockey Teams, Ivy League Hockey Standings, Ivy League Hockey Play

We’ve got the Ivy League hockey standings to date for you (photo credit: Alexis Monroe, “The Dartmouth”).

Let’s check in on the Ivy League hockey standings for the year. On the men’s ice hockey side, Yale University sits atop the standings with a 6-1 mark in Ivy League play. Dartmouth College sits in second with a 4-2-2 mark in league play. Princeton University has a 4-2 mark, Brown University a 3-4 mark, Harvard University a 2-5-1 mark, and Cornell a 0-5-1 mark. Overall, Yale has a 13-6-3 mark. Dartmouth is at 11-8-4, Princeton is at 9-10-4, Brown is 8-9-5, Harvard is 6-15-2, and Cornell is 8-13-2. Cornell has lost seven straight games.

In women’s ice hockey, Cornell University sits atop the Ivy League with a 7-1 mark. Harvard University is at 6-0-1, Dartmouth College is 4-2-1, Princeton University is 2-6, and Yale University as well as Brown University are at 1-6. Overall, Cornell sits at 20-5 on the season. Harvard sits at 20-3-2, Dartmouth at 13-7-4, Princeton at 9-14-2, Yale at 4-17-2, and Brown at 4-17-1.

It’s interesting that Cornell and Harvard are at the top of the women’s ice hockey standings in the Ivy League but sit at the bottom of the pack in the men’s ice hockey Ivy League standings. Why do you think that is? Let us know your thoughts on the hockey standings by posting below. And do you know what is traditionally thrown onto the ice during Princeton-Dartmouth men’s hockey games in Hanover? Tennis balls.

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Ivy League Swimming

February 4, 2013
Swimming in Ivy League, Ivy League Sports, Ivy League Athletics, Ivy League Swim

Harvard sits atop the Ivy League in men’s and women’s swimming.

Remember when the Dartmouth College swim team was cut back in 2002, only to be reinstated after a fury of public outcry — including the boyfriend of a then-student swimmer posting the Division I team for sale on eBay? Well, if you’ll recall, one of the main reasons why it was cut was because the school could never field a competitive team. Dartmouth regularly finished at the bottom of the Ivy League swimming standings. Well, just as the fate of the Dartmouth swim team was reversed when it was un-eliminated, the school’s swimming program has risen in the Ivy League standings!

The Dartmouth men’s team at 3-3 in the Ivy League and 4-3 overall is firmly in the middle of the pack. At 6-0, Harvard sits in first place, with the 5-1 Princeton Tigers in second. In third is Yale at 4-2 and in fourth is Columbia at 3-2. Behind Dartmouth is Brown at 2-4 in addition to Penn and the winless Cornell Big Red. And how about on the women’s side, you ask? Dartmouth has done a bit better since the team was reinstated but they’re not in last right now with a 4-5 overall record and 1-5 Ivy League record. Cornell sits in last place (just like their men’s swimming program). On the women’s side, Harvard too sits in first with an undefeated mark of 7-0 in Ivy League play (and 9-0 overall). Princeton is next at 5-1 overall as well as in League play.

What do you think about the rise of this Ivy League program? Let us know your thoughts on the matter by posting below. Have another story of a team that was cut, only to be reinstated, and later thrive? Tell it to us in the comments section! We look forward to hearing from you.

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Ivy League and Athletes

February 1, 2013

There’s a great op-ed in “The Columbia Spectator” by first-year student Josh Fram in which he writes about why athletes belong in the Ivy League. In the op-ed, Fram writes about how athletes on Columbia’s campus are often asked, “Oh…so you’re an athlete?” With this question, it’s implied that student-athletes aren’t as good academically as are non-athletes. According to the op-ed, “Objectively, it is clear that these sentiments are based in truth. A 2007 study conducted by sociologists Douglas Massey and Margarita Mooney shows that Ivy League athletes scored on average 93 points lower than non-athletes on the SAT. They reported a similar discrepancy with regard to high school GPAs. And according to James Shulman and William Bowen’s book ‘The Game of Life,’ published in 2002, these same trends persist in college.”

Ivy League Athletes, Athletes from Ivy League, Ivy League Athletic Achievements

Ivy League athletes often become quite successful in the real world after college. Josh Fram has a great piece about this in “The Columbia Spectator.”

But others argue that student-athletes are more successful after college than their non-athlete peers. They’ve worked as member of teams. They’ve held leadership positions. They understand their role. These are some of the things that are inherently intwined with sport. And shouldn’t a highly selective college seek out students who they think will be successful after college? After all, don’t they want to admit the next President of the United States and CEO of IBM and founder of the next big startup? You bet. As referenced in the op-ed, “But as former Harvard Dean of Admissions William Bender famously proclaimed, ‘If you let in only the brilliant, then you produce bookworms and bench scientists; you end up as socially irrelevant as the University of Chicago.’”

What do you think would happen to a university if they admitted only students with perfect SAT scores and grades? Do you think they’d be more or less likely to pick the next President of the United States? Do you think the college would be stronger or weaker for this decision? Let us know your thoughts on the matter by posting below!

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Northwestern University Basketball

January 28, 2013
Northwestern Bball Player, NW Basketball Player, Jewish Basketball Player, Northwestern Jewish Bball Player

Aaron Liberman is a redshirt freshman for Northwestern University’s men’s basketball team (photo credit: Northwestern University).

There’s a terrific article in “The New York Times” today about Aaron Liberman, a freshman at Northwestern University. Aaron, at 6’10, as you may guess, is a Northwestern University basketball player. He’s currently redshirting his freshman year due to shinsplints, but we wanted to bring his story to your attention as it’s a really cool one. Liberman is an Orthodox Jewish student. He is believed to be the third Orthodox Jew to play for a Division I team. According to “The New York Times” article by Ben Strauss, “Tamir Goodman is widely recognized as the first Orthodox Jew to play Division I basketball. He received a scholarship to Maryland, but chose to play at Towson because the university tailored its schedule to his decision not to play on the Sabbath. Naama Shafir, a fifth-year senior at Toledo, is the first Orthodox Jewish woman to play Division I basketball. Shafir, who wears a short-sleeve shirt under her jersey to keep with customs of modesty, scored 40 points in the National Invitation Tournament championship game in 2011.” We remember Tamir Goodman well. If we remember right, there was a “60 Minutes” segment on him.

Apparently, Liberman will be the first Division I athlete to wear zizit (the tassels on a prayer shawl) under his uniform! How awesome is that? And remember how Sandy Koufax — a cousin of our Founder — bravely refused to pitch in a game of the World Series because the game fell on the high holy day of Yom Kippur? And, as previously mentioned, Tamir Goodman received a scholarship to play ball at the University of Maryland but ultimately transferred to Towson because Towson changed its schedule so they didn’t have to play on the Sabbath (Friday after sundown and Saturday until sundown). Well, it seems that Aaron Liberman has given a lot of thought to playing on the Sabbath and has come to a really interesting conclusion: According to “The New York Times” article, “Liberman has decided, after much reflection and consultation with rabbis, to play on the Sabbath, the Jewish day of rest. On one Saturday afternoon, he walked eight miles to practice. ‘Actually, playing basketball is not breaking any of the 39 laws of the Sabbath,’ he said. ‘But I’ll only be taking cold showers afterward because you can’t use hot water.’”

Are you excited to watch Liberman take the court next year? Do you think he’s going to be a Division I star? Let us know your thoughts on the matter by posting below!

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Ivy League Competition

January 5, 2013
Ivy League Competitors, Ivy League Rivalry, Ivy League Sportsmanship, Ivy League Sportsman

Shame on Yale University’s Tony Reno for his display of poor sportsmanship. It’s bad karma, Coach Reno (photo from Yale).

Ivy League competition on the gridiron need not be unclassy. In Ivy League sports, coaches of rival teams often share a mutual respect for their counterpart’s program. It’s not like Harvard vs. Penn or Yale vs. Dartmouth is Florida vs. Florida State in football or Duke vs. UNC in basketball. But this year during the Ivy League football season, the head coach of the Yale football team demonstrated a lack of class and a lack of respect for his Ivy League counterpart at Dartmouth, Buddy Teevens.

According to “Dartmouth Alumni Magazine,” “The football team beat Yale for the first time in 10 years despite leaving a key piece of equipment in Hanover: a kicking tee. The problem appeared to be resolved during warmups when Yale’s equipment manager agreed to lend Dartmouth a spare tee — until Bulldogs head coach Tony Reno approached and asked for it back. Backup kicker R.C. Willenbrock ’13 quickly cut and taped a plastic water bottle to fashion a makeshift tee, which Riley Lyons ’15 successfully used for seven kickoffs during the 34-14 victory. Would he ever use it again? ‘I might bring it out for next year’s game against Yale,’ Lyons said.”

Shame on Bulldogs head coach Tony Reno for not sharing a kicking tee with an Ivy League opponent. Was he that insecure? Apparently he should have been since his team lost for the first time in a decade. What was it to him to share a kicking tee? His equipment manager had showed class by sharing it. He showed a lack of class by asking for it back. Good for Dartmouth’s inventive backup kicker to come up with a solution. What a good idea to use part of a water bottle.

Shame on Yale University’s Tony Reno for displaying a lack of sportsmanship. His actions are counter to the philosophies of Ivy League competition in sports.

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Ivy League Basketball Standings

January 1, 2013
Ivy League Bball Standings, Basketball Standings in Ivy League, Ivy League Standings

Do you think Cornell will make a trip to the NCAA Tournament this year? In 2010, they advanced to the Sweet 16.

Let’s check in on the Ivy League basketball standings. While league play hasn’t yet begun, all eight Ivy League universities have kicked off their 2012-2013 campaigns. In men’s basketball, Harvard University currently sits atop the league with a 7-5 record. At 6-5, Columbia University sits in second. Al other Ivy League schools currently have losing overall records. Cornell University is at 6-8, Princeton University at 5-7, Brown University at 4-7, Yale University at 4-10, and Dartmouth College and the University of Pennsylvania at 2-9. But, remember, at least one of these schools will qualify for the NCAA Tournament since the Ivy League sends its champion with the automatic bid.

And how about the women? The Ivy League sends at least one representative among the women to the NCAA Tournament as well. While the Ivy League women’s teams haven’t yet begun playing against each other, their seasons are also well underway. Princeton University sits atop the Ivy League standings with an overall record of 8-5. Penn sits in second at 6-4. Harvard sits in third at 7-5, Cornell in fourth at 6-5, Brown in fifth at 4-6, Yale in sixth at 3-8, Columbia in seventh at 2-10, and perennial women’s basketball powerhouse Dartmouth in last at 1-11.

Who do you think will claim the men’s Ivy League basketball title this year? And the women’s title? Let us know your thoughts on the Ivy League basketball standings by posting below!

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