NY Times Runs Letter from CSC Chairman

In response to last week’s New York Times series on the rise of club sports in collegiate athletics, College Sports Council Chairman Eric Pearson wrote the following letter to the editor that appeared in Saturday’s newspaper:

To the Sports Editor:

The single biggest factor in the growth of club sports in college may be the stringent enforcement of Title IX, which makes it all but impossible to add men’s varsity teams. The vast majority of college club teams consist of male athletes, while most varsity teams on campus are for women.

The sad truth is that, because of Title IX’s gender quota restrictions, men’s club teams that apply to become varsity are shut out.

In the Big 12 Conference, to cite one example, men’s club soccer teams have been denied varsity status at every university, while their female counterparts enjoy full varsity sponsorship.

Men’s teams in myriad sports have also been told no, explicitly because of Title IX.

Instead of seeking out those male athletes who are barred from competing at the varsity level because of their gender, The Times presents a separate-but-equal picture that obscures real and troubling harms that are being done in college sports.

Eric Pearson
Washington

The writer is the chairman of the College Sports Council, a national coalition of coaches, athletes, parents and fans.