FACTORS THAT POSITIVELY AFFECT ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF

AFRICAN-AMERICAN FOOTBALL STUDENT-ATHLETES

WHO GRADUATE FROM SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE INSTITUTIONS

A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment

of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Education

By

DERRICK LAMONT GRAGG, B.S., M.A.

Vanderbilt University, 1992
Wayne State University, 1999

May 2004
University of Arkansas

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 This dissertation is approved for
recommendation to the
Graduate Council

Dissertation Director:

Janfes/0. Hammons, Ph.D.

Dissertation Committee:

ames IT Swartz, PhJT

v
V
Michael T. Miller, Ed.D.

xu
Sharon L. Hunt. £d.D. 1 v
.,

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

Societal Roles and the Contemporary African-American Male

The declining social, economic, and educational status of young African-

American males in our society has been one of the most actively discussed, and

sometimes vigorously debated issues since the 1980’s (Garibaldi, 1992). Perhaps more

so than any other demographic category in contemporary America, this group seems to

bear a disproportionate burden of negative, harmful life experiences such as drugs,

incarceration, violence, and poverty (Bateman & Kennedy, 1997). As a result of these

influences, African-American male youths have a 50% higher chance of dying by age

20 compared to White male youths (Parham & McDavis; Staples; U.S. Bureau of the

Census, cited in Blake & Darling, 1994). Unfortunately, negative outcomes for these

youth follow a well-traveled path: an unmarried mother living at or below the poverty

level; a poverty-stricken neighborhood or community plagued by drugs and crime; and

finally, a failure to complete school (Bateman & Kennedy, 1997). According to

Garibaldi (1992):

The negative indicators that describe a substantial share of this group’s

depressing condition in unemployment statistics, homicide rates (as both
victims and perpetrators), their overwhelmingly disproportionate representation
in the criminal justice system, as well as their last-place ranking on many
measures of educational performance and attainment have become so
commonplace that it has caused many to view the majority of these young
men’s futures as hopeless and impossible to salvage, (p. 4)

One need not look further than popular media outlets to find African-American males

portrayed daily as thugs, violent hip hop rappers, dope fiends, murderers, pimps,

rapists, and drug dealers. Rarely do we see African-American males depicted as

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 upstanding professional men, dedicated fathers and husbands.

Discriminatory institutional barriers are perceived by African-American males

to be in place at almost every segment of the American opportunity network.

Consequently, many African-American males feel they are left with few visible

opportunities (Sailes, 1998). Therefore, according to Oliver (cited in Sailes, 1998), they

are forced to look outside the mainstream o f American society for opportunities to

success.

“For many African-American males, sport appears to be one of the few

allowable and available opportunities for success in a perceived racist and oppressive

society” (Sailes; Edwards, cited in Sailes, 1998, p. 24). During the past few decades,

sport has taken on particular importance in America’s poorer African-American

neighborhoods. Due to their athletic achievements on the fields and courts of play,

many African-American males who would have otherwise not been afforded

opportunities to attend college have matriculated at some of America’s most prominent

institutions of higher learning. Those African-American student-athletes have

conquered the stereotype that Edwards (1984) describes as the “Black dumb jock” by

achieving success both on the field of play as well as in the classroom.

Motivation for the Study

During the past 15 years I have been involved in intercollegiate athletics in

various capacities. I attended Vanderbilt University as a football student-athlete from

1988 to 1992. In 1993 I began my career as an athletic administrator when I became

my alma mater’s first “hands on” academic counselor for student-athletes. As both a

student-athlete and an athletic administrator, I am very aware of the negative

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 stereotypes used to describe and label young African-American male college athletes.

Despite the fact that I am concerned about the welfare and futures of all student-

athletes who attend American colleges or universities, as an African-American, I am

particularly concerned about the educational progress of African-American males who

participate in football and basketball, the two sports that produce the most revenue for

all Division I institutions nationwide. According to a study conducted by Northeastern

University’s Center for the Study of Sport in Society, during the 1998-99 academic

year, fifty-six percent of Division I men’s basketball players and forty-six percent of

football players were African-American (Suggs, 2001). In many instances, African-

American student-athletes (AASAs) make up an even larger percentage of starters

(those who are on the field or court when a contest commences) or major contributors

to their teams. Despite the fact that a large number of African-American males

participate in Division I football and basketball, graduation rates for these two groups

are often much lower than graduation rates of their White male teammates and their

female counterparts. Thus, it appears that overall, their institutions may be failing to

support them academically.

Many of these student-athletes leave their institutions after four or five years no

more prepared to survive in the real world than when they first arrived on campus.

They then return to their respective communities feeling exploited, harboring negative

thoughts about their former coaches, athletic departments, and institutions. To counter

this trend, I have studied African-American football student-athletes who graduated

from college. This study will analyze their success and serve as a base for future

research.

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 Background

The inauspicious relationship between higher education and intercollegiate

athletics has always been a major topic of debate. Throughout its history,

intercollegiate athletics has simultaneously served as both the consummate pride and

the ultimate embarrassment of institutions in this country. From the time athletics was

introduced to American institutions of higher learning, its inclusion has been

challenged, questioned and criticized, often with good reason. That intercollegiate

athletics contributes contributes to the overly poor academic performance of its

participants; therefore, it has no true place in higher education is a major argument

against college sport. According to Adler and Adler (1985):

Most studies of college athletes have found a negative relationship between

athletic participation and academic performance. These studies conclude that
athletes are unprepared for and uninterested in academics, that they come to
college to advance their athletic careers rather than their academic careers;
therefore, they have lower grade point averages (GPAs), higher attrition rates,
and lower chances of graduating than other students (Cross, 1973; Edwards,
1984; Harrison, 1976; Nyquist, 1979; Purdy, Eitzen, & Hufnagel, 1982; Sack &
Thiel, 1979; Spivey & Jones, 1975; Webb, 1968). (p. 241)

African-American Student-Athletes o f the Past

Although a number of current studies and articles emphasize poor academic

performance of African-American athletes, African-American athletes of past years

were known for their athletic and academic prowess. Throughout the days of Jim

Crow, numerous African-American male college athletes accomplished impressive

feats both on the fields and courts of play as well as in the classroom. Despite nearly

unbearable conditions a number of the most outstanding athletes between 1870 and the

1890 were African-Americans who were often better educated than their White

counterparts (Entine, 2000). According to Wiggins (1991), “These men, by whatever

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 standards employed, were an elite group of individuals who approached sport with the

utmost seriousness, but unlike many college athletes of the future, always considered

sports less important than academic success and educational achievements” (p. 165).

During the late 1800’s William Henry Lewis became one of the first African-

American scholar-athletes to enroll at a predominantly White institution. While at

Amherst College, Lewis became class orator, college senator, president of the

Hitchcock Society of Inquiry, and captain o f the football team, thus, proving that he

was an exceptional student as well as an accomplished athlete (Wiggins, 1991). Lewis

went on to become the first African-American All-American football player and

subsequently graduated from the Harvard School of Law. He was then appointed as the

first African-American to hold the position of United States Assistant Attorney

General. Other impressive African-American scholar-athletes of the period include

Lewis’ teammate William Tecumseh Sherman Jackson who became an instructor in

Greek and Latin after graduation, and University of Nebraska star running back George

Flippin, who later became a physician. Despite the success of these student-athletes

and others, the “model” AASA was yet to arrive on a college campus. That model

athlete was one Paul Robeson.

Paul Robeson

The legendary Paul Robeson, a scholar-athlete who attended Rutgers

University, entered the university in 1915 and became the epitome of athleticism and

scholarship. Robeson is widely considered an individual who accomplished more

athletically and academically than any other AASA past or present. Before his

enrollment at Rutgers, Robeson was the top-ranked student in his high school

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 academically, a soloist in the glee club, a member of both the debate and drama clubs,

as well as an excellent athlete (Wiggins, 1991).

Before the Civil War, Rutgers had generally denied admittance to African-

Americans, allowing only two African-Americans to attend the institution before

Robeson enrolled (Duberman, 1989). As only the third African-American student in

Rutgers’ history, Robeson had been thoroughly trained by his father to embrace the

concept that he should conduct himself in a manner that reflected his race in a positive

fashion. According to Yeakey (1973), Robeson once stated:

[My father] had impressed upon me that when I was out on the football field or
in the classroom or anywhere else I wasn’t there just on my own. I was the
representative of a lot of Negro boys who wanted to play football and wanted to
go to college, (p. 491)

Robeson went on to become not just one of the greatest athletes in Rutgers

history, but also one of the best student-athletes of all time. While attending the

university from 1915 to 1918, Robeson was named as an All-American football player

twice, earning an astonishing twelve varsity letters in four sports (Stewart, 1998).

Considering the racism, isolation, and economic obstacles he faced, this

accomplishment is astounding. Most of today’s college athletes, regardless of race,

only compete in one sport with a small number of student-athletes competing in two

sports during their college careers.

Despite his athletic prowess, Robeson’s academic and extracurricular

achievements were even more notable. Robeson was one of only four undergraduates

(in a class of eighty) admitted to Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society during his junior year

at Rutgers (Duberman, 1989). He also won first prize in every speaking competition for

which he was eligible (Lynch, 1976). When Robeson graduated from Rutgers he was

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 not only a famous athlete, he was also an articulate class valedictorian and a member of

the Cap and Skull Honor Society, a senior honor society (Stewart, 1998). According to

Yeakey (1973), “Single-handedly, Paul Robeson seemed to have destroyed the myth of

African-American physical and athletic inferiority” (p. 495). More importantly,

Robeson’s academic success shattered the myth of AASA intellectual inferiority.

Statement of the Problem

Unlike the legendary Paul Robeson, many of today’s AASAs achieve

academically at much lower levels than their athletic forefathers. Overall, student-

athletes at many institutions graduate at similar or higher rates than their classmates

who make up the general student body; however, this statement does not hold true for

African-American male student-athletes who participate in revenue-producing sports

programs (football and men’s basketball). What is often overshadowed during the

quest for athletic glory is the invaluable education one can obtain as a college student-

athlete. According to Edwards (1984), “By the time many Black student-athletes finish

their junior high school sports eligibility and move on to high school, so little has been

demanded of them academically that no one any longer even expects anything of them

academically” (p. 9). According to Eitzen (1987):

African-American student-athletes are the least prepared of all categories

academically. They receive the lowest grades in college and are the least likely
of the athlete subgroups to graduate. Moreover, they are concentrated in high-
pressure revenue sports. They are more likely than the other athletes to avoid
courses leading to graduation, cluster in easy majors, and engage in other
practices that subvert their education, (p. 25)

Division I-A African-American football and men’s basketball student-athletes

consistently graduate at lower rates (often much lower rates) than other students and

student-athletes at their respective institutions. In 1999, student-athlete graduation rates

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 were at their lowest level in seven years for football and basketball players (Suggs,

1999b). According to Snyder (1996), a lack of academic preparedness for college,

lower SAT and ACT scores, feelings of alienation, high demands of sports

participation, and low levels of achievement motivation have all been offered as

explanations as to why the graduation gap between White and African-American

student-athletes exists.

Today, society appears to place increasingly less importance on education than

winning games and participating in professional athletics; therefore, many student-

athletes, African-American male student-athletes in particular, often define success as

leaving college to pursue professional sports rather than obtaining degrees. Due to the

enormous amounts of wealth professional athletes can obtain in this country, athletics

is often seen as a viable means of escaping poverty and gaining a perceived acceptance

for many African-Americans. A survey conducted by Northeastern University’s Center

for the Study of Sport in Society reveals that sixty-six percent of African-American

males between the ages of 13 and 18 believe they can earn a living participating in

professional athletics (Simons, 1997). While only one out of every 10,000 high school

athletes will ever compete on the professional level (Simons, 1997), African-American

families are four times more likely than White families to view their children’s

involvement in sports as a “start in athletic activity that may lead to a career in

professional sports” (Oliver, cited in Edwards, 1984). Unfortunately, the majority of

today’s African-American athletes are in for rude awakenings. As Edwards (1983)

says:

The Black athlete who blindly sets out today to fill the shoes of Dr. J., Reggie
I., Magic J., Kareem Abdul-J. or O.J. may well end up with ‘No J.’ - no job that

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 he is qualified to do in our modern technologically sophisticated society. At the
end of his sports career, the Black athlete is not likely to be running through
airports like O.J. He is much more likely to be sweeping up airports - if he has
the good fortune to land even that job. (p. 33)

Although a minute percentage of student-athletes participate on the professional level

after college, African-American males continue to be “programmed” at an early age by

parents, communities, schools, and universities to pursue athletics while placing less

and less emphasis on education. Wiggins (1991) illustrates this point by stating:

The sad fact is, in short of abolishing college athletics altogether, there seems
little chance of finding large numbers of Black scholars, and White scholars for
that matter, to grace college playing fields in the manner of yesterday’s campus
heroes like William Henry Lewis, Howard Drew, and Paul Robeson. The
contemporary university’s hunger for victories combined with such factors as
poor academic training, lack of nurturing support systems, and undue emphasis
on sport in America’s Black community has virtually guaranteed many Black
college athletes will place little emphasis on intellectual pursuits and devote
most of their attention to sport in an effort to realize elusive dreams of
professional sporting contracts and everlasting glory, (p. 175)

Despite such “doom and gloom” perspectives espoused by Edwards, Wiggins and

others, many African-American male student-athletes overcome poor academic

preparation, negativity, stereotypes, and racism, while resisting the temptations of

leaving college to pursue wealth on the professional level and persisting as college

students. That many African-American males who participate in revenue generating

sports of football and men’s basketball underachieve academically is apparent.

However, there are others who fulfill their academic obligations and graduate from

college.

Purpose of the Study

The purpose for conducting this study was to identify the factors that affected

academic persistence and graduation rates of African-American male student-athletes

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 who participated in the sport of football at Southeastern Conference (SEC) institutions.

This study sought to answer these and many other questions. This study differs from

most studies that focus mainly on student-athlete academic nonperformance by

focusing mostly on the student-athletes who successfully navigate the academic

processes of higher education and ultimately graduate. Why do some AASAs graduate

while others do not? What is it about the individuals who do graduate that separates

them from their African-American teammates who do not succeed academically? Are

there any modern-day “Paul Robesons”?

Research Question and Subsidiary Question

The primary research question for this study was: What are the main factors that

positively affected academic performance of African-American football student-

athletes (AAFSAs) who graduated from Southeastern Conference institutions? The

subsidiary research question was: What do AAFSAs and SASP staff members feel are

the main obstacles to African-American student-athlete graduation?

Significance of Study

Graduation rates for African-American football student-athletes at most

Division I-A institutions are abysmally low. Such rates are typically lower (sometimes

much lower) than graduation rates for the general student body, rates of White

teammates, and rates of female student-athletes. Thus, African-American football

student-athletes are in an academic “state of crisis.” This study analyzed the influences

on those who succeeded despite the current culture of African-American football

student-athlete academic failure.

This study is significant because of the lack of research that currently exists

10

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 regarding African-American student-athlete academic success. This study broadened

and enhanced the current literature that exists for this topic and drew significant

implications for improvement. This study is also significant because, compared to

research on White student academic success, there is a dearth of research discussing

academic success of African-American students in general, African-American males

and African-American male student-athletes specifically.

Finally, this study provides vital information to faculty members, leaders of

Southeastern Conference institutions and interested parties across the country seeking

to improve the academic performance o f student-athletes. This study is the initial step

toward a program and/or a book for institutions seeking to improve the academic

performance o f AASAs, particularly those who participate in revenue-producing sports

programs.

Limitations and Delimitations

Such a vast purpose necessitates a recognition of the potential weaknesses or

problems with the study itself. Advancing limitations provides a useful bridge into

making suggestions for future studies that are needed to address these weaknesses

(Creswell, 2002). In order to narrow the scope and establish boundaries for this study,

it was limited and delimited in the following ways:

1. Rather than focusing on all African-American football student-athletes, the

study focused only on student-athletes who received athletically related

financial aid while in college.

2. Only student-athletes from 6 of the 12 SEC institutions were interviewed.

3. The study was restricted to former student-athletes who competed in the SEC.

11

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 4. Participants who are former student-athletes of the study graduated from a SEC

institution between the years of 1993 to 2003.

Definition of Terms

Defining terms is the basis of scholarly accountability, therefore, a number of

terms used throughout this study were defined. These terms include:

Academic Performance - This term refers to the academic progress student-athletes

make towards earning a baccalaureate degree.

Bowl Championship Series - This term refers to the four postseason football bowl

games that guarantee a match-up between college football’s number one and

number two ranked teams. This series generates millions of dollars for the

participating institutions and the participants’ member conference institutions.

Division I-A - This term refers to the 117 institutions that sponsor at the highest

feasible level o f intercollegiate competition the traditional spectator-oriented,

income producing sport of football (NCAA, 2003). Division I-A institutions

also spend more money on their intercollegiate athletic programs than Divisions

I-AA, II, III institutions.

Graduation Rates - This term refers to NCAA graduation rates based on a comparison

of the number of students who enter a college or university and the number of

those who graduate from the institutions within six years.

National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) - This term refers to the governing

body of Division I, II, and III intercollegiate athletics.

Position Coach - This term refers to an assistant coach who oversees student-athletes

playing a particular position on a football team.

12

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.
 Southeastern Conference (SEC) - This term refers to intercollegiate athletic conference

made up of 12 Division I-A institutions located in seven Southeastern states of

the United States. Founded in 1933, the SEC was the last major intercollegiate

athletic conference to integrate its teams.

Student-Athlete - This term refers to a student whose enrollment was solicited by a

member of the athletics staff with a view toward the student’s ultimate

participation in the intercollegiate athletics program. Any other student becomes

a student-athlete only when the student reports for an intercollegiate squad

(NCAA, 2003).

Student-Athlete Support Program (SASP) - This term refers to support services

mandated by NCAA regulations to provide academic support, career

counseling, and life skills training to student-athletes.

Walk-On Student-Athlete - This term refers to a student-athlete who participates on a

varsity intercollegiate team but does not receive athletically related financial

aid.

13

Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.