Looking back on this semester, I can say that Sport and Gender was an interesting class. I really wasn't sure what the class was going to consist of at first. I really liked how open all of the discussions were as well. It was a very comfortable atmosphere to speak freely. Dr. Spencer did a great job covering a lot of different issues throughout sports. She is truly a sports fanatic.

As far as the blogs, journals, and comments, I started out doing I think only one journal. After that I decided to comment on other people's blogs. I was very interested in seeing what other people had to say and then giving my opinion. There were a lot of blogs every week that were able to implement very unique aspects about the topics we were covering which made it fun to see them and then think about that topic in their point of view.

Overall, I think that this was a very interesting class that pointed out a lot of flaws in the sports world. I would definitely recommend this class to other people and think that it opened my eyes to a lot of different issues throughout the sports world.

Matt Pitzulo

Conclusion- Paxin Stern

When I first took this class, I wasn't sure what to expect. I thought it was all it was going to be about was the women and sports. But, as the semester got started, I learned that it was much more than that. It was comparing females to males, looking at disabilities in sport, looking at the racial aspect, the sexuality aspect of it. This class covered much more than I thought it would when I first came into it. My favorite part of the class was picking a group at the beginning and sticking with the group and being able to work together on the in class assignments as well as the outside. This helped be able to discuss the topics more in-depth and get others point of view on it, since not many people speak out in class discussions. Another part of the class that I enjoyed was the blog/comments every week. This also allowed you to be able to read what others were thinking, and it helped grasped concepts more. It was interesting to read each week what my peers thought about certain topics. Overall, I really enjoyed this class and the topics discussed. Coming into the class, I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy it because I wasn't sure what to expect. But, as time went on, this came to be my favorite class. The variety of topics were also rather interesting to me, and were always fun to learn and talk about.

Conclusion-Mike Frank

Coming into this class I expected it to be focused on women in sport and how they are constantly fighting an uphill battle. My first impression was that I was right with the way discussions started out but that changed as the semester went on.

            I learned a lot about the history of sport in this class. I did not know anything about hockey history of some of the Olympic history and I found that all to be very interesting. It was also to see the views of people outside the game of baseball compared to mine.

            

           The blogs gave me a chance to voice my opinion on topics that I wanted to. I mainly did comments all semester and this was because I had a hard time typing 250 words on a specific topic.

            I have not seen all of the presentations yet but I found the radio show presentation very interesting and creative. It was also very informative and well done. I really thought it was creative how they put the callers into their presentation.

            The most important thing I take from this class is the knowledge I have gained about the history of sport. It will help me when I encounter problems out in the field to know what has happened in the past. I will be able to better assess the situation and make a more educated decision. 

Conclusion - Tyler Clifton

Coming into this class this semester i also wasnt really sure what to expect or what i was getting into. After the first day when everyone said that they were sport management majors and then got to me and i said communication major i felt a little awkward. But after going through the class i realized that my major didnt really matter and i found this class to be very interesting and fun and i really am glad that i decided to take it this semester. For the class we were asked to do blogs, journals, or comments and i just thought that i would tell everyone what i did this semester. I started out doing journals for like the first 3 weeks of class and then i started to do comments every week which i found to be much easier than writing a journal. Just to comment on the blogs and stuff that we did this semester i thought that it was pretty cool to do that because you got to see a lot of the other classmates opinions and thoughts about the topics that we talked about in class.

As i said earlier i wasnt really sure what i was getting myself into when i registered to take this class. But after all the class discussion and articles that we had to read i am really glad that i did take the course. I thought that there was alot of good discussions for some of the articles that we had for the class. For me though i think my favorite topic in the class was the topic on Micheal Jordan just because growing up i watched him play the game of basketball on TV. Now granted i never played baksetball in high school or anything like that but when i would play with my buddies at school or at home i would try and do some of the moves that he would do and it never worked out as well for me as it did for him. I think that Micheal Jordan is the greatest player to ever play the game of basketball and i think that he has done alot for the game of basketball wether it is on the court or off the court.

To conclude my conclusion for the class this semester i really just want to thank Dr. Spencer and Kara for making this class really interesting and fun. You guys really made me feel good about the class even though i didnt have a sport management major and i really appreciate that very much. So to just conclude i just want to say Thank You!!! for a great semester.

Conclusion - Joey Durant

Being part of this Sport and Gender class has made me aware of some aspects of sport that I never considered as an influential factor. The most eye-opening thing that sticks out to me from our class is the lack of homosexual athletes and support for them in different sports. Throughout our discussions in class we found it extremely difficult to identify many of these athletes, and most of the support was more of the "it doesn't matter" ideology rather than actual support for homosexual athletes. It is amazing that this hasn't seen much overwhelming support for change in any major sport industry. 

My favorite part of the class was being able to debate and discuss certain topics that I wouldn't normally get the chance to do. I don't get the chance to debate race or sex in sports with more than one or two people on a regular basis, so it was really interesting to get a wide range of views on these different topics. I also really liked learning about the influence Michael Jordan had on sport marketing because it is an area I would like to get in once I graduate. Jordan essentially created a new segment of sport management and created jobs by being the marketable face that he was.

Overall, this class was definitely enjoyable and I feel like a lot of the information that was taught will be useful to me in my pursuit for a job in sport marketing. I have a much better understand of the struggle that has happened for women and different ethnicities in sport, and can see how it will help me make changes in my views to create a better marketing environment in the future. Thanks for the great semester Professor Spencer and Kara!

Conclusion - Marc Horwitz

Our Sport & Gender course has really opened my eyes to the vast differences in sport when it comes to the divide between how men and women are perceived.  Not only did this course show me that the perception of the difference in skill is so vast, but we also covered concepts that I had never put any thought into such as individuals who are intersexed, who look to compete with the opposite gender, and who undergo extensive surgeries in order to alter their gender.  I think these topics, along with others such as covering the budgeting and equity in sport, were very important to all of us in the class.  As each of us in the class hope to someday obtain a position within the field of sport, I think it is important that we become acquainted with each of the topics that this course touched on, especially so that we can learn from how instances of gender differences were handled in the past so they can be improved upon in the future.

As I had stated during my portion of the presentation that my group had given last week, my favorite portion of the class was when we covered the Canadian Identity, and discussed the impact of hockey in the sport.  Being from the East Coast, I feel as though I may be even less familiar with Canadian culture than some individuals who are from this part of the country, being just an hour or so south of the border.  The discussion, along with having a member of the class being Canadian (thanks Ryan), really gave me a better appreciation for their culture in regards to sport, seeing as hockey has been my favorite sport for as long as I could imagine.  With this discussion, as well as the discussions regarding Lebron and Kobe in comparison to Jordan, I found it very interesting to look at players of the present and compare both their athletic talent as well as marketability to their Hall of Fame predecessors.  I also enjoyed how well the class interacted during these topics, as it seemed these discussions brought about some of the best classroom discussion that we had throughout the year.

While on the topic of discussion amongst classmates, I found the blogs to be equally as beneficial.  Being an individual who wrote a blog each week, I thought that these were a great way to put some of my ideas out there for the rest of the class to read since I am not one to necessarily speak up in the classroom.  Each week, I tried to post relevant blogs that went along with that week’s class discussion, and also looked to bring in outside sources such as videos or news articles that corresponded to what I was writing about. I hope that my blogs were interesting for my fellow classmates to read, as I know that I enjoyed looking through the postings of my classmates as well, especially those of my groupmates Aaron and Geoff, who always provided great information in their writings.  As mentioned in our presentation, I hope that blogs become a mandatory aspect of the class in future semesters, as I feel that they were very beneficial to become more acquainted with the given topic and found it very interesting to read about what my classmates thought.

As we conclude the course and give our final presentations, I feel as though each group that has presented thus far has brought something valuable to the classroom. I would have no problem pulling pieces of each presentation to highlight, as I thought every group that has gone did a great job. That being said, my favorite presentation so far was “Are Athletes Overpaid?”.  The group did a fantastic job breaking down salaries for each sport, and discussing why they believed that athletes are not overpaid. I agree with everything that this group brought up, and feel as though it is important that we do not overlook what these athletes go through to earn these salaries. The key thing to remember is that these salaries are earned. The top athletes in the league earn the highest revenue, rookies and lesser impact players work for league minimums; like any occupation, their salaries are earned and justified.

Overall, this course has been one that I thoroughly enjoyed.  While many of these concepts may not be things that I can put to further use in my future occupation which will hopefully be in professional sport, there was also plenty that I can take out of this course and consider in future endeavors.  Sport & Gender was definitely one of the more interesting Sport Management courses that I have taken, and one which I have enjoyed considerably.

Conclusion Ryan Viselli

As the class comes to an end, I have thoroughly enjoyed the class and in class discussions that took place.  I’ve learned a lot about not only gender in sports but also the sociology in sports and how it affects our society.  There were many examples and visuals shown throughout the class that explained the topics we were learning during in each discussion.  I thought it was very helpful and help me engage in the class.

     Something that was new to me in a classroom was writing a blog.  I have never written a blog before and I thought it was an interesting method of communicating with one another.  There were many topics and discussions that translated to class discussions, which I though was great interaction between students and Dr. Spencer.  There were also many group assignments that allowed people to voice their opinions.  This class provided a lot of interaction, which made me, stay focus through each class.

     There were many different topics and discussions that I was interested in and learned a lot from.  The most interesting topic for me was the business side of sports and how athletes are involved with endorsing products.  Learning about how Michael Jordan not only became the biggest star in the NBA but also a marketing genius.  He opened the door for today’s athletes and has allowed them to market products and not only expand their brand but also their own.  It showed that athletes aren’t just athletes, they are versatile in society. We put so much focus on them because society puts so much importance on sports and athletes are the people society wants to see. 

    I am really happy I took this class and now can look at sports from a different perspective.  I can understand the differences between genders from a female perspective and how they feel.  I know that the knowledge I’ve learned from this course I will use in the future whether it’s my job or talking about sports to others.  It will help me have an unbiased opinion when discussing different topics and appreciate different opinions when talking about sports.      

Aaron Crouse - Conclusion

In Sport and Gender SM 4250 we covered topics such as gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and physical disabilities as they related to sport.  While progress has been made throughout the past century in providing equal opportunities for all individuals to be able to participate in sport, there is clearly still work to be done.  These issues exist at all levels of sport including youth, high school, college, and professionally.  As sport managers, it is our role to make sure that the opportunity to participate in sport is provided to all willing participants while at the same time making sure that there is a safe and competitive environment available for individuals that face unique challenges to play in.

The information in the class that I found most useful were the articles and examples discussing athletes playing with the opposite gender, especially in youth and high school.  The stories of athletes such as Keeling Pilaro (Field Hockey), Erin DiMeglio (Football), and even Sam Gordon (football) have really made me think about the issue of mixing sport and gender, especially considering that I will most likely be faced with many of these issues in the future.  While I believe it is easy to support and cheer on these athletics from a fan’s perspective, it is a much different viewpoint when looking at these situations from the shoes of an athletic director or administrator.  As we watched videos and went over the articles in class relating to these athletes, I constantly asked myself “What would I do in these situations?”.  I think hearing about these athletes, their stories, and arguments in favor of playing with the opposite gender have definitely helped me to face a similar situation in the future.  While there are obviously certain Title IX and MSHAA/OHSAA guidelines that must also be followed in high school athletics, these athletes make a great case to why mixing sport and gender can be acceptable.

The reading that was most interesting to me was The Athletic Director’s Dilemma: $$$ & Women’s Sports written by Charles Kennedy.  I found his team index ratings based upon participation, scholarship, operating expenses, recruitment budget, and coaching salaries to be quite intriguing as he discussed the amount of money that is wasted in collegiate athletics.  As I want to be a high school or college AD in the future, I enjoyed working on the high school budgeting activity and making sure I was able to not cut any sports while taking care of the basic needs and accommodations necessary for student athletes to participate in sport.  It was an assignment that I definitely took personal pride in and put in a good amount of time to complete.  While I feel as if many other students felt it would not be a huge deal to cut certain sports or only providing funding for more successful or notable teams, I truly believe that a high school athletic program should be about providing opportunities for students to engage in an extracurricular competitive environment.  All successful high school athletic programs are able to develop student athletes by promoting high standards of academic excellence, character, and citizenship and this should be taken into higher consideration than winning, team record, or profitability when preparing a budget.

Keeping a blog helped me to provide my own opinion on the concepts discussed in class.  In writing blogs, I was able to review the articles that were talked about in class and also find additional resources that either shared the same opinion or provided a counter argument to what we had gone over.  I think there was a definite advantage to writing blogs in that I was able to receive feedback and comments from my classmates while also being able to see what they had to write about.  Obviously, there are a wide number of opinions on issues as many of us come from different athletic backgrounds and parts of the country.  Personally, I really enjoyed hearing the different sides to every argument and I would suggest that blogs become mandatory going forward rather than having a journal option available.

My favorite presentation was the topic focused around the question: “Are Athletes Overpaid?”.  As fans, I think it is very easy for us to complain about a professional athlete who is making millions of dollars for playing a game that we may have in our youth, high school, or college days.  However, when you look deeper into the situation and analyze sports as a business, the injury risks, time spend in training, and time athletes must spend away from their families the massive salaries suddenly appear more justified.  After analyzing the sacrifices that these athletes make, I have actually changed my viewpoint and now believe that most salaries, provided that the athlete performs, are justified.  As the presentation stated, as long as we (as fans) continue to purchase tickets, team apparel, and provide television ratings then we cannot complain about how much money goes into professional sports leagues.

As previously stated, the information from this class that I will be especially useful in my career are the guidelines and cases that have been made in support of and against mixing gender in sport.  Having discussed Title IX litigation along with the high school state rulings from around the country (Michigan, Ohio, New York, Florida) I know more about the legal aspects of having boy and girls play together on the same field at the high school level.  Almost more importantly, we have viewed the specific individual stories based upon these issues and have I have heard how the governing rules have had impacts on individuals, teams, and families. I am sure that at some point in my future I will be forced to handle a similar situation and I now have a better idea of how I am going to handle it as a result of taking this class.

Conclusion-Chelsea VanAssche

Coming into this class I really had no idea what to expect! I honestly cannot pinpoint just one thing I learned from this class. I swear every week I was learning new information about the concentrated topic we were discussing in class. I found several tools useful in learning the information in class. First, I enjoyed the blog/comments we were able to participate in every week. Unfortunately, I would love to see more participation of my peers in the blog/comments. I found it interesting from those who did decide to do a blog or comments, their opinions on certain topics we were discussing in class or applying what we have learned to sport news happening currently. I also found useful was being able to work in a group throughout the semester, by putting our heads together it gave myself a better comprehension of the material and allowed myself to see their opinion on a topic that maybe I did see before. Some topics that were interesting to me were sport, gender, and disabilities. I found this topic interesting because in the sports world I have only been introduced to those with disabilities participating in the Special Olympics. But based off the articles and class discussion, it opened my eyes to what those with disabilities can do and I never realized how much of a role gender played in sports for these individuals. The next topic I really found interesting was the dynamics of homophobia in men's sports. Generally, I find this topic really interesting because out of all the male athletes that participate in professional sports it crazy to comprehend that male athletes say in the closet during their career. In our society, as time has gone on it has been more acceptable to be gay, so why is it any different for gay males in sports? I hope to see progression for athletes in professional sports and I will continue to follow this topic as time goes on. By doing blog/comments, it opened my eyes to how others felt about topics and from their experiences were able to relate to our class discussion. In class, I would jot down ideas I could blog about and what I found most interesting from week to week which influenced my writing. I often found myself researching topics and information that I wanted to learn more about based off of reading someone else's blog entry which expanded my knowledge beyond our class discussions/lectures. I felt all the presentations in class were interesting because I felt in every class I was engaged in the material from class discussion, group discussion to group activities. But I found the most interesting that caught my attention every time with the topics were the videos that correlated with the information. For example, when our class discussed Kobe and his sexual assault allegations I was able to see firsthand the press conference in class understanding his emotions we talked about prior to seeing the video. I found the information I learned in class to stick with me throughout the semester if I had we had an in class video. The information I found useful in this class that I plan to take into my career is understanding that differences of gender face in sport. For example, my dream job is to work for the Detroit Tigers as Director of Community Relations, when planning any events I will take account equal opportunities for boys and girls. I want to work hard to provide equal opportunities to those such as athletes with disabilities or of the LBGT community to connect with sports through my career. This class has opened my eyes to information and individuals in the sports world I never knew existed, my keeping an open mindset like I did throughout my class will not only benefit myself but the organization, sports fans, and athletes I work with. This has been my favorite sport management class I have taken thus far because I was constantly engaged in the class and continually made me aware of topics/issues in the sports world I never knew existed. Thank you Dr. Spencer for a great class and semester! (Kara too!) :)

Conclusion - Geoff Roberts

This semester has been a whirlwind for me personally.  There has been a ton going on and I am thankful that it is near the end.  On top of classes, my participation in athletics broadcasting was increased more than ever.  I was the main play-by-play for volleyball, did a few football games, basketball games, and have served as one of the main color commentators for hockey so far.  This class was one of the more interesting classes that I had this semester. 

One of the most interesting portions of the class has been blogging.  It is interesting to see what people think about the topics in class.  It seems that people are much more open with opinions in the blog as opposed to in class.  This is definitely understandable though.  It is harder to voice a thought on the spot verbally than it is to take some time and write a blog.  I want to thank my group members Marc Horwitz and Aaron Crouse for providing a lot of really good discussion.

The most interesting topics to me were Latin/Asian Identity in Sport, Males in Female Sports like Field Hockey, and Canadian Identity.  I liked Canadian Identity the most probably because I love Ice Hockey and I grew up across the border from Canada.  My hometown of Port Huron, Michigan is the place where Lake Huron flows into the St. Clair River and Sarnia, Ontario is right across the river.  Because of the location, I grew up with CBC and have experienced a lot of Canadian Media on that channel.  Canada always fascinates me with their devotion to sports like hockey and their general goodwill.  I certainly would not mind living and working in that country someday.  The exploration of Canadian Identity helped to supplement the understanding of Canadians that I gained from the somewhat extensive amounts of time I spent in places like Sarnia, Toronto, London, Niagara Falls, and Windsor growing up (all in Ontario). 

I think doing a blog helped me really break down the information and content and apply it to a real-life situation.  It also helped to force me to look more into the issues presented in class.  In future uses, this will be vital.  As we all move up in our chosen careers in sport, it will become increasingly more important to take issues like the ones discussed in class into consideration.  The world is certainly changing.  People are more open with who they are and rightfully demand the opportunity to enjoy and succeed in sport.  It will be our job as future sport managers to use what we learned in class to ensure a level playing field for all.  I, for one, am excited to get to it. 

Conclusion

The semester is almost over! Boy did time fly by! My overall impression of the class was good. I really learned a lot in the class. I believe that a lot of the different topics that we covered in class can really help me out in my career, especially since I want to do Sport Psychology. I was able to look at the different aspects of sports when it came to gender and the relationships among gender, sexuality and sport and I really think that this is something that I can take and apply it into my career. I really enjoyed doing the blogs, because I was able to see everyone’s opinions on certain topics. I wish there was more people that did blogs, because it did get kind of boring after a while, seeing the same people post blogs. I can say that Aaron Crouse and Marc Horwitz were a few of the best bloggers! I really enjoyed reading their blogs, especially the one that Aaron wrote about Magic Johnson and South Park. I would have never thought to do something like that, so good job to him. What I found most useful was the PowerPoints, in class discussions and also the blogs. It helped me understand things better when I didn't understand something first off in class. The reading that I found most interesting was the Williams Sisters one that we read at the beginning of the semester or during the middles of the semester. Still to this day, I find it very shocking how fans reacted and I don’t blame the sisters for ever going back either. Keeping a blog really helped me express my opinions on things that I wasn't able to in class, because I know that I can be pretty shy and not talk during class. I really enjoyed the class because we were able to do in class discussions, so class didn't get boring. I would definitely recommend all my peers to take this class with Dr. Spencer! (: 

Alicia Jefferson 

Competitive Balance

Throughout the history of sports, there have been numerous athletes that earned the title of being controversial. Some athletes create controversy because of their attitude, while other athletes seem to never stay out of trouble with the law. In class Tuesday, we talked about Richard Raskind who is now known as Renee Richards. I never heard of Renee Richards before learning about her in class and I really thought that she was a unique person to talk about. She is the first person that I know in sports to do a sex change. I know alot of tolerant people may consider Raskind to be a cheat just because she is actually a male playing a woman’s sport. I believe that if a man chooses to have gender reassignment surgery, that's his own decision, but I believe they ought to then forfeit the right to compete in women's sports. I mean if a male chooses to become a woman and they feel as though they should have the right to play in a women’s sport, I think that is unfair. I have nothing against people who wish to do a sex change, but when it comes to then playing in sports, I disagree. I don’t know why or how people could get upset about that. Being male gives distinct physical advantages (size, muscle build, and ability to gain muscle mass) that are an unfair advantage against actual females, so of course most males would be dominate in a women’s sport unless the women is like a BEAST (which is always cool for a woman to beat a man J). But then I think to myself, what if a female did a sex change to become a male. Should they be denied to play a male’s sport? Then as I was reading in the PowerPoint slides from class, "that at the time she fought for the right to play women's tennis, she suggested that due to loss of strength (from taking hormones) , she was more like a woman" (N. Spencer, Personal Communication, November 20, 2012). Should that be taken into consideration? I believe to keep everything fair, men who were born men should play in male sports and the same goes for women and if they wish to pursue sports after having a sex change that they should forfeit.

Alicia Jefferson

Notre Dame Back on Top - Pat McFall

As many of you probably know, I can be seen sporting a Notre Dame pullover along with a Notre Dame hat almost every day in class. With their recent success this season, they have secured the #1 spot in the BCS rankings and will most likely play in the National Championship. While I am most happy for them because I am a die-hard fan, I also think this is one of the best things to happen to college football in a while. There are two kinds of people. People who love Notre Dame, and people who hate them. I'll be honest and say that Notre Dame really hasn't been relative since the 80's, winning their last National Championship in 1988 against West Virginia. There was a spurt between 04'-06' where we were on the right path, but took a wrong turn somewhere and got smacked by Ohio State. We have had some close games this year against Michigan, Stanford, Pittsburgh, and BYU. However, we are the only team that can be ranked in the BCS ( Ohio State ) to have played a full schedule and remain undefeated. This is good for college football because Notre Dame has one of the biggest fan bases in the country. The National Championship will get so many people watching the game because of our storied tradition. It also seems like the powerhouses of college football are returning to glory. These teams being Notre Dame, Alabama, Ohio State, etc. I just wanted to throw this out there, and see what everyone else had to say about this situation. I know it might seem like we can't stack up against the SEC in Alabama or Georgia, but stranger things have happened. No one expected Ohio State to beat Miami in 2002, Alabama to lose to Texas A&M, or Ohio State to go undefeated this year. Hopefully when the game is all set and done, Manti Te'o is holding the crystal ball.

There is also a pretty good article I found that will explain how the T.V. ratings for this game will be the highest in some time.

http://sports.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474981776940

Patrick McFall

Aaron Crouse - Turkey Trouble

The Thanksgiving holiday can largely be summed up into the three F’s: Family, Food, and Football.  At my typical family Thanksgiving, we usually attempt to time it so the turkey is finished cooking right when halftime of the Detroit Lions game is set to take place so we can miss as little of the game as possible.  The NFL has scheduled its Thanksgiving games to include games being played by the Detroit Lions, Dallas Cowboys, and a third primetime flex game that features different teams on a rotating basis.  These games have become traditions in many households across the country and events that families build their holiday around.  While the NFL has made a conscious effort to preserve these traditional games, the same cannot be said for the NCAA.  Much to my disappointment, this year marked the first time in a while that Texas and Texas A&M did not face off on Thanksgiving night.  Even though the “Lone Star Showdown” was one of the oldest and fiercest rivalries in the country, money has gotten in the way of providing this matchup.

            In 2010, the University of Texas signed a 20-year, $300 million deal with ESPN in order to produce the Longhorn Network.  This deal (in my opinion) was the first step that lead to the NCAA seeing conference realignment explode out of control.  Much like the Notre Dame situation with NBC, members of the Big 12 Conference were extremely upset at the idea of the Longhorn Network, especially considering its advantages in media coverage and as a recruiting tool.  As a result, we have seen massive movements of teams throughout the country.  Texas A&M (who still would like to have Texas on its schedule) along with Missouri moved to the SEC, TCU (who Texas played this Thanksgiving) and West Virginia take their sports, the WAC, Conference USA, and Mountain West losing many of their top teams (Boise St, San Diego St, UCF) to the Big East, and most recently Maryland and Rutgers joining the Big 10.  There is no longer a geographical sense to college football conferences.  The whole landscape of college football has become all about who can land the largest TV deals, highest ticket prices, and automatic bowl bids and less about maintaining rivalries, being feasible for fans to attend games, and making travel for athletes realistic.  As I turned on Texas vs. TCU for a brief moment on Thanksgiving night, I could not but help being disappointed in thinking that I could have been watching Heisman favorite Johnny Manziel and #9 Texas A&M battling it out against their arch rivals in a game that could have had huge BCS implications.  Instead, I am left to hope that the NCAA bowl committee may matchup up these two teams in the Cotton Bowl so that their storied tradition can be continued.  What is going on right now in college football is just not right.  As much as I loved watching the sport, it is getting frustrating to see money and greed getting in the way of putting the best product on the football field.

Who Gave Magic Johnson HIV?

Did you ever think to yourself, “who was the person who actually gave Magic Johnson HIV?” If someone knows this answer I would like to know. I could not find anything off the internet that said who gave him HIV. It's surprising that we don't have any good enough answers as to how Magic Johnson ended up getting this disease or at least I don’t know. You would think that the answer would have been solved by now or that lady would have stepped forward to say that “hey, I’m the one who did it”. But Magic Johnson has done a great job to keep the story focused on his incredible triumph in the face of what many people assumed to be a death sentence. The hows and whys of how it all started have surely been forgotten, but somewhere out there, there's someone who has a good idea of just how this whole thing came to pass. There are some people who argue that men absolutely can't get HIV from women, saying that Magic contracted the disease from another man, but it's much harder for men to get HIV from women, but it does happen. HIV can enter at the opening of the tip and through cuts or sores. I'm sure there are people out there who think that they gave Magic the disease, but I think he purposely never went back and tried to find the answer because he didn't want to put his wife and family through any further embarrassment, but I hope he does.

Alicia Jefferson

Magical Support - Aaron Keyer

Everyone now knows the different ways of attaining the HIV/AIDS virus. However in 1991, not everyone was as educated about the disease. Back then, attaining the disease was thought to of come from only a few ways, gay sex and excessive partnerships. Both of these things were not highly supported in the early '90's when Magic came out with his disease however, somehow he received incredible support after announcing his retirement. Why did he receive such incredible support from his family, friends and peers at this time when in today's society, a miscue of that magnitude by a celebrity of his stature gets completely torn down.

When Magic announced his retirement and disease he was one of the most recognizable sports figures in the United States. He was married at this time and had already had one son with another one on the way. Magic openly admitted that he tried to "accommodate” as many women as possible, even while he was married. So why wouldn’t he get reprimanded by the public in the same ways that Tiger Woods and other professional athletes have gotten reprimanded. Tiger Woods was found to be cheating on his wife with several women, just as Magic Johnson admitted, however as Tiger Woods was faced with undeniable scrutiny, Magic Johnson was garnered with incredible support. Was it because Magic had attained the HIV virus which trumped his infidelities and created a sympathetic feeling for him having to give up the game he loved?

            The ESPN 30 for 30 documentary “The Announcement” is a story which gives the whole background of Magic from his playing days at Michigan State, to the aftermath of his retirement announcement. It is quite revealing and shows just how Magic came to be Magic Johnson. He was no different than any other athlete of his same popularity, but for some reason when he made a mistake and was forced to leave the game, he received support and sympathy where as other athletes received scrutiny and get labeled as selfish and not worthy. Magic did not deserve the support he received, he was a great player yes but was also a married man who contracted the HIV virus from someone other than his spouse.

Do You Believe In Magic? Not Everyone Did... - Marc Horwitz

Magic Johnson is remembered as an extraordinary player on the court before his 1191 announcement that shocked the sports world when he declared that he had contracted HIV, the precursor to the AIDS virus.  While he may be recognized more for his phenomenal play and now his work with HIV advocacy as he continues to live prove that the disease can be overcome, now more than 20 years after the announcement, he should also be recognized for overcoming incredible stereotypes and his lasting impact on the NBA in regards to safety.

One highlight of the entire Magic Johnson HIV announcement is the fact that from the beginning, he received incredibly positive support from the media, teammates, and fans. This, however, was challenged fairly early on, especially following his personal reinstatement to the Lakers organization.  It was Johnson’s perseverance, however, that I feel should be highlighted in this blog, as he overcame many harsh words that were kept out of the media as to not take away from the incredible feat that he was looking to trounce.

Just about every story that was published regarding Johnson’s return to the NBA was positive, filled of inspiring words and encouragement from fellow Lakers and others around the NBA.  There was, however, some very harsh words that Magic had to endure as he made his return in an effort to make a statement for all people infected with the disease that there is no threat those surrounding them, a common fear.

Although doctors quickly made efforts to disprove this theory at the time Johnson announced he would like to return, a common fear was that others involved risked contamination from being in contact with Johnson.  In an independent study of readers of the Los Angeles Times, when asked if Johnson should play in the NBA All-Star game, “the newspaper reported that 2,941 responded no, 1,810 yes” (Almond, 1992).  The majority of the respondents gave the reasoning that Johnson could transmit the infection to another player through physical conduct, even though experts stressed the unlikelihood of an occurrence.  While that same article said that “all the players talked to said they support Johnson’s return to the game,” (Almond) there was still another side of the argument that wasn’t as publicized, especially on the West Coast.

Karl Malone, All-Star forward for the Jazz at the time, was one of the most outspoken regarding Johnson’s return.  In an interview with the New York Times published one year after Johnson’s HIV announcement and just before his efforts to return to the NBA, Malone made it known that he was challenging the widespread belief that a return was universally welcomed.  Malone’s main argument, much like the LA Times reasoning for their disapproval to his playing in the All Star game, revolved around the possibility of contamination through contact.  “Look at this, scabs and cuts all over me. I get these every night, every game. They [doctors] can’t tell you that you’re not at risk, and you can’t tell me there’s one guy in the NBA who hasn’t thought about it. (Araton, 1992)  This statement is not only saying that he is against a Johnson return, but that his feelings aren’t isolated, and perhaps he was right.  Gerald Wilkins, who was with Cleveland, was quoted in the same article in agreement with Malone, stating that “everybody’s talking about it. Some people are scared. This could be dangerous to us all, but you’re dealing with Magic Johnson, so people are handling it with white gloves. They’re not going to say how they really feel.” (Araton)  The article goes on to say that although there was great support from many players around the league, there were countless players, many who requested to remain anonymous, that expressed emotions from concern to fear of playing against Johnson.

With the concern of playing against Magic being voiced by many, there then comes the question of the game’s legitimacy, as many players voiced that they would be backing off from defending Johnson because of the virus.

When looking at these arguments, many which come from Johnson’s NBA peers, I think it is even more extraordinary that he had the courage to make a comeback to the NBA, and actually make an impact.  In his 1995-96 NBA return, Johnson recorded 468 points, averaging just over 14.5 over 32 games, with 9 starts, numbers significant lower than his pre-HIV playing days, but still impressive with the controversy that stirred around him and his return.

Another aspect of Johnson’s return that is not frequently highlighted is his impact on the game from a behind the scenes aspect. Not only was Johnson making headlines for his return to the game, paving the way for HIV patients to live a more “normal” life as Johnson’s return may disprove the common theory that the virus could be caught as easily as the common cold, but he also had a lasting impact on NBA medical staff regulations.  Following Johnson’s announcement, the NBA implemented several precautionary measures regarding player safety when handling injuries.  These measures, which seem like common sense to most, are really thanks to Johnson’s return efforts. Had it not been for Johnson and his advocacy, player safety may had gone on to be at risk due to the lack of strict rules regarding player injuries on the court.  “Among the precautionary measures [enacted following Johnson’s announcement] is the rule that players who get cut during a game must immediately leave the court.” (Araton)  In addition to this rule, another which is hard to believe that it wasn’t enacted far sooner is that trainers were now instructed to wear latex gloves while treating players, and that they must handle each player’s towels and items such as water bottles separately.

Of course, Magic’s ability to overcome the HIV virus and live a very lengthy and strong life despite contracting the disease is commendable, and the work he has done off the court as an advocate for the virus is remarkable as well, but it should be noted that his return to the league was not welcomed by all. It was this perseverance that should be noted, as many forget that for all the positive encouragement he received from teammates and the commissioner, there were countless players and fans opposed to his return, a lot to overcome for a player that was in such a spotlight his whole career. He also changed the way the game was handled, and how injuries were dealt with on the court, leaving a lasting impact on the game for many reasons.

http://www.nytimes.com/1992/11/01/sports/basketball-johnson-s-return-to-league-isn-t-welcomed-by-some.html?pagewanted=2&src=pm

http://articles.latimes.com/1992-01-29/sports/sp-888_1_magic-johnson

Aaron Crouse - Magic Longevity

Earvin “Magic” Johnson shocked not only the NBA community and the entire world when on November 7, 1991 he announced that he had tested positive for the HIV virus.  Johnson was not only the first major sports star to contract the virus, but he also did not fit the common description of someone that would have been though to contract HIV, being a wealthy individual with a straight sexual orientation and no know drug additions (he later admitted the virus was contracted due to having numerous sexual partners during his playing days).  While contracting HIV at the time was almost considered a death sentence, Magic’s longevity and ability to overcome this virus has proven just how far medical research has come in the past 30 years.  One of the top advocates of HIV and AIDS prevention today, Johnson founded the “Magic Johnson Foundation” in 1991 and continues to be a major spokesperson for HIV awareness today.  However, Magic Johnson has had some financial and medical benefits that many other HIV patients are not afforded during his fight with the virus.  While it is truly remarkable what Magic Johnson has done in staying healthy (yet alone alive) and helping spread awareness about the HIV virus, a 2008 South Park episode featuring Magic Johnson did highlight some important stereotypes and issues with HIV prevention on a worldwide basis.

South Park has featured episodes around athletes including Tiger Woods, Ben Roethlisberger, and Magic Johnson within the past few seasons.  While this show is in no way, shape, or form educational, their comical take on serious life issues can often shed light onto a side of a story people fail to consider.  In the episode “Tonsil Trouble”, Eric Cartman becomes infected with the HIV virus following a blood transfusion during surgery at South Park hospital.  While most of the others characters are concerned about his health, his friend Kyle finds it to be ironic and funny (because Cartman has made many AIDS jokes in the past).  Angry, Cartman plots revenge by drawing some of his own blood with a syringe and injecting it into Kyle as he sleeps (because this is South Park, again not always realistic).  As Cartman and Kyle are both now infected with HIV, the entire town now believes that the two of them are “two brave lovers”, exploiting the stereotype that most males that contract the HIV virus are homosexual (as many skeptics believed Magic Johnson was at the time of his announcement).  Seeking help, the boys fly to Los Angeles to meet Magic Johnson and figure out his secret to neutralizing HIV.  Upon their visit, they discover that he has a personal medical team working 24/7 in an attempt to find a cure for AIDS and that Johnson injects himself with a concentrated dose of $180,000, meant to symbolize that the only true way to prevent HIV from spreading once it has been contracted is to have the money available for drugs, treatment, and research from a highly skilled medical staff.  The show claims, “The success (fighting HIV in Magic Johnson) may eventually be able to be replicated in others that suffer from HIV, but it will likely be very expensive” (Tonsil Trouble, 12 March 2008, South Park).  The point being made here is that while Magic Johnson is the most notable spokesperson from HIV who has accomplished great lengths towards advocating awareness, he is far from the typical patient.  Most people with this disease do not have the money, name recognition value, or medical team that Magic does in order to fight HIV.  South Park makes a point that there is still no cure for HIV or AIDS and that many individuals still suffer from the disease.  Just because Magic Johnson has done so well combating it does not mean that others around the world are having the same success.  While I personally applaud what Magic Johnson has been able to do, we cannot forget that HIV is still a huge problem in many parts of the world and that not everyone is fortunate enough or has the resources to fight against it in 2012.

The Growth of NHL Goaltenders - Marc Horwitz

Throughout class last Tuesday, we discussed what we considered to be the "ideal" body of an athlete. There was plenty of discussion as to whether there should be a body steal more ideal for an individual sport, or even more specifically for a certain position.  This discussion led to me looking at the sport I am most familiar with, hockey, and thinking about the "ideal" body style of those at the most elite level of the game, the NHL.

It is fairly easy to say that there is an ideal size for certain positions among those in the league, with defenseman easily towering over the other players on the team, and forwards being of shorter stature, providing them with the ability to be more quick and agile.  The position that has seen the most change over the years, however, has been that of the goaltender.

In the early decades of the National Hockey League, goaltenders were known for their standup style, with their smaller stature and less pronounced padding not taking up much of the net. In today's game, simply standing in the net and relying on a kick save or a pad stack is not going to cut it. Today's goaltenders are much more quick and agile, with the game evolving into something that would not even be recognized by earlier competitors.  Not only are these goaltenders much faster, but they have become much larger.  A lot of debate has circulated around the league regarding the size of the goaltender's equipment, but regardless of the argument, it is easy to see that it is not just the size of the equipment getting larger, but more importantly it is the actual height of the goaltenders.

According to The Globe and Mail, a Canadian newspaper that often has extensive NHL coverage consuming their sports section, the goal frames are being taken up by larger goalies each year.  According to a 2011 article titled, "NHL Goalies are Getting Bigger and Bigger," goaltenders averaged  just under 6 foot 2 inches in the 2010-2011 season, an increase of 5 inches over the past 20 years (Mirtle, 2011).  A prime example of this constant goaltender growth can be seen when looking at the Nashville predators, who roster Pekka Rinne and Anders Lindback at 6'5" and 6'6" respectfully, the tallest tandem in the league.

There are many reasons why taller goaltenders are being preferred by NHL scouts in today's game. Much of that has to do with the butterfly style being more prominent, with taller goalies having an advantage because they are still able to take up plenty of net while still covering the base of the net along the ice.  Taller goaltenders also have an advantage when it comes to fighting off screens as they are able to see through more traffic in front of them.  When it comes to goaltenders being scouted, if a taller goalie has the same skill set as one of shorter nature, the taller one is generally going to be chosen simply because of the natural advantages they will have for the position.  Nashville goaltender coach Mitch Korn is an advocate for the taller goaltender evolution, making the prediction that "within the next five years, we won't seen any goalies under six feet, and we might not see very many under six one or two" (Mirtle).

Chris Osgood, known as being one of the smallest goaltenders to play in today's game at 5'10" and see success, says in an interview that he isn't surprised with the new phenomena of the taller goaltenders getting all the attention.  He states, "I talk to my friends I used to play against that are scouts now in the league and they say that they can't look at somebody that is under 6'1" now.  These guys are all big huge guys, but they are athletes and train to be a goalie since they are 8 and 10 years old, where we were always just told to stop the puck" (Hutchison, 2010).  Osgood also mentions that the athleticism in part with the taller stature is what is helping the taller goaltenders become the norm in the NHL, mentioning that "it's not the equipment.  It's the guys, they're bigger and they are good athletes, whereas you used to have a big goalie but he couldn't move.  Now you have the 6'5" guy that can move and play goal and that's the biggest difference" (Hutchison).

With the average height seeming to be increasingly on the rise for the average NHL goaltender, who knows what we may see in the future.  It will be interesting to see to what level the league restricts equipment size with the goal frame being taken up more and more due to natural height.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/hockey/nhl-goalies-are-getting-bigger-and-bigger/article587724/

http://ingoalmag.com/general/nhl-goalies-have-grown-a-lot-over-the-last-decade/

Preference for Male Coaches

In class Thursday, we talked about the different variations of apologetic responses to the lesbian bogeywoman image. There were eight different variations; silence, denial, promotion of feminine heterosexual image, promotions of heterosexy image, search for heterosexual-only space, attacks on lesbians and acknowledgement and disassociation from lesbians. The variation that I mostly found interesting was the preference for male coaches. When asked do you think focusing on not hiring lesbian coaches is actually safer for the team or the team’s image, I really did not know how to answer the question. I think that it all depends on how good the team actually is. I know of head a coach personally that is gay, not lesbian and still gets a hundred percent support from family, friends and fans and have no problems with people downgrading him or his team, but his team is also very high ranked. I think it varies on the situation. I think that with him being a male he kind of has more leeway. I think that it would different if it were a lesbian being the head coach of a women’s team, because your players are women, so that may cause some problems. I do believe that men have more experience playing sports, just because a lot of the sports started out with just men and not women, for example sports like volleyball. Plus, you don’t see many women that are head coaches of football teams or wrestling teams, because women just don’t play those types of sports, so therefore men do have that advantage of being more experienced.  I know for me, I never had a female coach for track and field. I don’t know how that would go for me personally, but I know most of my teammates do not like female coaches, just because of the different emotions that women go through, that it would cause too much trouble. Personally I prefer a male coach, just because that is what I have been use to, so why change.    

Alicia Jefferson 

Aaron Crouse - The Larger Than Life NFL QB?

This past week, we discussed what it means to have the “idea sports body”.  It was largely determined that not only the sport, but also the gender of the athlete along with the position an athlete plays should play a role in determining an acceptable body type.  Following the Washington Redskins vs. Pittsburgh Steelers game on October 28 (a 27-12 PIT win) ESPN radio personality Colin Cowherd, who is also a co-host on the show SportsNation, criticized the body type of Redskin quarterback Robert Griffin III on his show, The Herd. Cowherd suggested that RGIII would not last long in the league given his slender, cut build and tendency to be a running quarterback.  He claimed that players such as Brett Favre, Jay Cutler, Ben Roethlisberger, and Matthew Stafford have “ideal” bodies for NFL quarterbacks as, “In the NFL, you WANT your QB to have a little pudding in the middle” (Cowherd, 29 October 2012, The Herd: ESPN).  Cowherd argued that these bigger bodied quarterbacks are able to absorb big hits to a better degree than a quarterback who would be said to have “all muscle”, giving the example that “2 years ago Peyton had a nice little “pouch” and it didn't hinder him (I don't if it protected him any though either)”.  He used the statistic that the average NFL QB has a body fat percentage of around 14-15 (with deviations of +/- 9%). While he explained that there is a difference between appearing a bit “pudgy” such as Roethlisberger and Stafford do and eating yourself out of the league like in the case of Jamarcus Russell, Cowherd still argued that carrying a little bit of extra weight is better than having the body of a lean, cut track star like in the case of RGIII, Michael Vick, or even Jake Locker (he used and explained this example to prove his point had nothing to do with race).  While there is no scientific reasoning or evidence that can back up this theory of the Pillsbury Doughboy NFL QB (as Roethlisberger, Stafford, Vick, and Locker have all battled injury), Colin Cowherd’s argument is an interesting take on the ideal sports body.  While NFL fans generally conjure up an image of teams having a strong, imposing, fit quarterback, maybe an extra trip to the buffet line or a late night snack once in a while for an NFL quarterback isn’t the worst thing in the world in the long run.