Colgate's Quest to Offer the Best Package
The Purple Heart award is used to commemorate those who have been injured in battle. The rich tradition of this award should not be taken lightly, so it was with careful deliberation that I have decided to hand out the first ever “Sports Strolls Purple Heart” award. Which one of our athletes is worthy of such award? Many of our players have been injured while representing us on the athletic field, but only one has managed to take so much abuse so consistently. So, Bob Vandersluis, this one is for you. I first noticed this trend several years ago in a game against Union, Bob was just skating around, minding his own business, when BOOM! He’s nailed, knocked right out of the game. This is fairly common, and anyone who has played hockey, is bound to have this happen to them once or twice. But Union, Yale, Cornell and St. Lawrence and maybe others have all taken out some repressed rage on Vandersluises head. These are not all legal hits I’m talking about. A year ago at Lynah Rink, a Cornell player attempted to wrap his stick around the right wings head as he was heading to the bench. The referee didn’t seem to even notice. Bob was driven headfirst into the boards last year at Ingles rink, this time drawing a 5-minute major. I watched on this past weekend, as a St. Lawrence player knocked him over way behind the play, ripped off his helmet, and gave him one or two shots to the head. Once again, the ref was not even watching, and even if he was, he did not seem to care much. This phenomenon of sudden, unprovoked violence is rare, but what did Bob do to incite this rage? Was he born with a magnet in his head that only attracts fists, sticks and boards? “I think they are jealous of my hair” was the only possible explanation Vadersluis could offer when reached for comment. And as to which one of these hits stood out the most? “I can’t remember any of them.” One thing is for sure, if the athletic department sold Bob Vandersluis stress relief dolls, we could afford a new hockey rink by the time I graduate!
Moving onto more serious matters, athletic recruiting. What process do Colgate student athletes go through on their way to being admitted, and how is it similar and different to what we non athletes experience. Dean of Admissions, Gary Ross, “We look for smart, highly capable young men and women, who are going to be drawn to Colgate for it’s many outstanding qualities, but first and foremost because of the educational opportunities. When we first initiate contact with potential applicants we do so without regard to whether a student might be an athlete or not.” The admissions offices job is to make sure Colgate brings in the top students, and to ensure that all students or student athletes are capable of doing a high level of work, and will be the best possible representatives of the University. When a student athlete is recruited, an initial transcript is provided to the Admissions office. After a careful review, the prospective student is grouped into one of three categories: “Likely”, meaning that as long as the student doesn’t make any unexpected changes, they will be admitted. “Possible,” meaning either the student is on the borderline, or the admissions office need to see more information. Or “Unlikely,” which means the coach would be better off breaking off recruiting efforts, and looking elsewhere. Once a student is classified as likely, the coach and future student can complete the application process, but as Dean Ross points out, “Coaches do not have the authority to admit students…. The people who have that authority are those who work in the admissions office. So until that student has a commitment in writing from the Colgate admission office, we do not view that student as being admitted…. This can only happen after the full application has been filed and completed. I am aware of some schools that are perhaps in some instances better known that Colgate, where a student signs his or her name, and that’s it, the admissions process is over and they’re in. They just need to produce evidence that they have graduated from high school.” The Admissions offices standards are in place to make sure that we take every application seriously, and to ensure that Colgate attracts and admits the best and brightest.
The Patriot League was founded on the basis of academic integrity, so they to have a say in the entrance standards of member institutions. The league has developed a formula to make sure student athletes are representative of the institution as a whole. The standard used is called the academic index, and it is arrived at by reviewing the average SAT’s scores, High School class ranks and GPA’s of the previous four classes admitted by the University. This means, that everyone at Colgate, has an academic index, and the average index of everyone currently at Colgate will determine what students may be recruited next year. The targeted Academic Index of student athletes is within 1 standard deviation of the average. Student athletes can fall below one standard deviation, but there is a firm floor set at two standard deviations below the average. According to Assistant Athletic Director, Frank White, Colgate rarely uses the floor as a guideline, and most student athletes are well above it, commenting that the academic index for some teams, is higher than that of the class at large.
Not all teams are treated equally however. There is a certain level of academic excellence expected of athletes, but there are 62 “Preferred athletes” slots. These 62 positions are divided up among all the teams, with some coaches getting more or less depending how much the sport is emphasized by the department. Students admitted under these circumstances will have a lower academic index than Colgate would normally admit, but they are required to be above the floor level. Most students are not too far below the normal admittance level, because the academic work could quickly become overwhelming, and distract the student from their extra curricular activities.
Colgate’s average SAT scores for all admitted students are the highest in the league (based on information from US News and World Reports), and they continue to grow higher. Navy is our closest academic competitor, about 25 points behind, and American University has SAT scores that are about 125 points lower.
According to Dean Ross, “Early decision applications this year are up 22%…. The class of 2005 is by statistical measures, the brightest class Colgate has ever enrolled” As our academic standards increase, we are put in more of a recruiting battle against the Ivy League, battles that we tend not to win with any consistency except in football and basketball. However, as Colgate has increased it’s academic standards to levels higher than what they were just two years ago, the Ivy League is lowering theirs. “(They) are now reaching lower for some of their players, because there aren’t as many prime time impact players” commented Frank White, “They are bringing in students in some instances that can’t get admitted here.” In the past year, there have been several instances of students who were judged to be not academically qualified by Colgate, who have gone on to play at Ivy League schools. This has forced the athletic department to take another look at their policies, and to review these cases. While we want the best student’s possible, there is something about these policies that defy the laws of common sense.
At a recent Patriot League meeting in Baltimore this past week, Colgate, Lafayette and Bucknell were questioned on their progress towards merit scholarships, all three schools representatives stated that they were watching for what the other two would do first. Colgate is currently looking at facility and recruiting improvements that could compensate as the recruiting battle against the Ivy League heightens. Our own athletic department stated that their goals were to remain competitive. Mr. Ross looks forward to more recruiting against the Ivy League, “Bring it on.” Was his battle cry. And why not? Students who are being recruited by the Ivy League, and take a serious look at Colgate, often find themselves in Hamilton, and in a situation that they find preferable. The more personal touch of Colgate, and academic and social atmosphere is one that many student athletes thrive in. The question is, are there enough students athletes who will turn their backs on an Ivy League diploma to make up for the ever raising floor of Colgate’s athletic recruiting?
I’d like to thank everyone for taking part in last weeks trivia quiz. Several of you got the right answer, with Tim “Everybody’s” Favorite, winning the big prize, which was an oversized white T-Shirt with the words “I’m Smart” written on it with a magic marker. Congratulations. The question was, what famous New York Yankee was beaten up pretty badly in a football game against Colgate. The answer was the one and only Lou Gehrig. The “Iron Horse” was a student at Columbia in the early 20’s, and quickly found himself outmatched by the Colgate line. Shortly after that game, Lou decided to concentrate solely on baseball, and that ended up working out pretty good for him. This week’s question might be a bit easier. What infamous sports movie had one of its games filmed right here at Colgate? E-mail me at gbraham@mail.colgate.edu with your guesses, and good luck!
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