Long before the landmark passage of Title IX in 1972, the landscape of women’s athletics was defined by a quiet but fierce rebellion against the restrictive dogmas of the 19th century. In an era where "experts" claimed women had a limited, fixed amount of energy that could be dangerously depleted by "brain labor" and physical exertion, female pioneers were already carving out space for sport on the American campus.

But what if I told you that the early history of women’s sports wasn't just a quest for inclusion, but a battle to protect the "educational soul" of the university from the commercial "warrior model" that defined men’s athletics? What if the organization built by women, for women was so successful that it sparked a calculated, hostile takeover by the NCAA to secure political and financial control?

In today’s podcast, we tackle the evolution of women’s college athletics: from the early years of "Play Days" to the legislative earthquake of Title IX and finally the explosion of modern-day primetime female athletes.

Far predating the establishment of the NCAA in 1906, amateurism was a core concept underlying elite sport throughout the world. Dating all the way back to the ancient Olympic games, scholars declared that only those who participated in sport for the love of the game and character and moral growth that came from such pursuit were true amateurs and gentlemen. But, what if I told you true amateurism never existed... that it was an invented tradition created to separate social classes and keep only the wealth involved in various sports? And what if those corrupted principles were the core concepts that underlay the establishment of intercollegiate athletics and the amateur model upon which it was built?

In today's podcast we will tackle the history of amateurism, its ties to college athletics, and how it fits the past, present, and future model of higher education. So, if you ever wondered why the NCAA has clung to the notion of amateurism so tightly, even while allowing its student-athletes to bring in scholarships, NIL money, and direct pay-for-performance, this is the podcast for you. So, just sit back, relax, and enjoy this episode of The Sport Professor Podcast.

Today we deep dive into the Division I governance changes that were instituted in 2025 by NCAA, paying particular attention the the College Sports Commission. More specifically, we discuss how NCAA governance has grow, change, and shifted over time and what brought about those shifts.

College sports have a the focal point of public controversy and debate since the 1850s. The NCAA was founded to address these issues in the early 1900s but has had minimal success. More specifically, they are seen as a polarizing entity, with stakeholders having strong feelings about a plethora of topics that make up the college sport debate. This notion is voiced well by the current university president Gordon Gee, who stated in 2007,

"I am an avid supporter of intercollegiate athletics. But I believe intercollegiate athletics is in danger of losing its direction and its soul. By that I mean it has become corporatized, it has become isolated and it has become disconnected from the vitality and the values of the university."

But where did these issues begin and how have they evolved over the last 125 years?

Today we will deep dive into the history of men's college sports and the NCAA to try to answer these questions and more.

This is an copy of my in-class lecture undergraduate Sport Law lecture introducing students to Constitutional Law.

This is a recording from our 2025 Sport Law course. The lecture focuses on premise/facility liability in sport.

This is the audio from a undergraduate sport law lecture introducing legal defenses for negligent acts in the field of sport.

This is a recording of an lecture for my Fall 2025 Sport Law course. The lecture focuses on defining legal duties/obligations in sport.