Balancing grades and gridiron

Balancing grades and gridiron

NBC recently renewed its television contract with Notre Dame football through the 2015 season, betting the bank that the Irish, who have not won a national championship since 1988 or a bowl game since 1993, can consistently deliver television ratings that keep corporate sponsors happy and revenue streams flowing.
Notre Dame’s attempt to return to glory raises a fundamental question: Can the nation’s top-25 academic institutions — Stanford, Duke, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Vanderbilt and Michigan are examples — successfully compete in the world of corporate college football without substantially compromising academic standards?

latimes.com
7/14/08