Yale President Jeremiah Day probably had no intentions of promoting balanced athletics when he and fellow Bulldog faculty published the landmark Yale Report in 1828.
The document, which successfully defined and defended classical education, has served as the definitive model for American colleges and universities ever since.
Though the Report advocated the importance of studying traditional topics, Day and his colleagues conceded that a gradual expansion of curriculum was both necessary and important to the future of the American educational system--so long as colleges and universities continued to serve their purpose: "to form in the student a proper balance of character."
Along with Yale, dozens of top-tier universities such as Duke continue to pride themselves on well-balanced academics. But as the Oct. 7th issue of Sports Illustrated indicates, institutions of higher education are increasingly prideful in the prowess of their athletic programs.
The sports magazine evaluated all 324 Division I athletic programs and rated them based on the following criteria: 2001-2002 performances in athletics; last year's Sears Director's Cup standings; the number of varsity, club and intramural sports; the range of recreational facilities; and the presence and fervor of spirit-boosting events.
Duke was ranked 19th overall, placing it second in the ACC behind No. 8 North Carolina. Among private schools, Duke
"To be ranked in the top 20 is good," Director of Athletics Joe Alleva said. "To be the third highest private school is good and to be second in the ACC is good."
Sports Illustrated attributed Duke's high ranking to its pair of top-five basketball teams, a national championship in women's golf, and success in men's and women's lacrosse and tennis. Unlisted factors most likely included Cameron Crazies and Krzyzewskiville, new indoor and outdoor tennis facilities, the $20 million Yoh football center, Wilson and Brodie Recreation Centers, and competitive club and intramural sports.
Duke's Achilles' heel, according to Sports Illustrated, was a lack of success in the traditional sports football and baseball. Duke was winless in football in 2001, while the baseball team went 4-20 in the ACC en route to a 24-34 overall record.
Each school and ranking was accompanied by a brief explanation that included information not used in the rankings, such as amusing statistics and famous alumni.
"We would rather be 19th than 190th," Kennedy said.
Though the ratings were to judge the overall success of sports colleges, Sports Illustrated all but admitted to having a clear bias toward success in the few sports that generate the most revenue for schools. In a section entitled, "How We Ranked Them," Sports Illustrated wrote that one of the factors in rating the schools was performance in the big five sports--baseball, football, hockey and men's and women's basketball.
"[The rating] doesn't matter to us in terms of decisions we make about how to run a program," Associate Director of Athletics Chris Kennedy said.
Criticism of Duke's comparably weak football and baseball programs has not fallen on deaf ears, however. Duke is clearly taking strides to strengthen its football and baseball teams.
This is evidenced by the new Yoh football building, the recent declaration of Duke's football goals, and more determined and successful recruiting in both sports.
"We do have to address these sorts of rankings if we do not rank as high as those we are recruiting against since those schools will use them as a boost to their recruiting," assistant women's basketball coach Gale Valley said. "It can definitely be used as a recruiting tool. The recruiting process is usually quite a lengthy one so anything fresh will be used to help promote your university."
Kennedy and Alleva agreed that recruiting can be positively or adversely affected by rankings, but were quick to point out that graduation rates, student-athlete experiences and education are far more important than performing well in a Sports Illustrated poll.
"There is more to running an athletic department than winning, although winning is important," Alleva said.
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