“Why should we have to go to class if we come here to play FOOTBALL, we ain’t come to play SCHOOL, classes are POINTLESS.”
~ Cardale Jones, former Ohio State quarterback (2012)[1]
Southern Virginia University (SVU) launched the nation’s first Sport-Performance major in Fall 2025.[2] Other schools are exploring similar paths: Lindsey Wilson University proposed a major limited to athletes and awarding credit for participation; Boise State University is piloting certificates or minor pathways and hosting symposiums to experiment with curricular design; American University and UNC faculty have discussed integrating athletics into academic credit; and NYU’s David Hollander continues to champion sport as a liberal art.[3] Together, these efforts reflect a growing national conversation, coordinated in part by the Sports Major Collective, an informal network of scholars, coaches, administrators, and students formed to promote the idea of treating competitive sport as a legitimate academic discipline.
What is a Sport-Performance Major?
It’s no surprise that students are increasingly interested in sports as a field of study. The existence of a College Board FAQ about “Is there a sports major in college?” signals a clear demand. However, the majors listed–sports communication, marketing, facility management, journalism–focus on business, media, or administrative aspects of sports, not athletic skill.[4]
A Sport-Performance major fills that gap. It treats competitive sport as a form of liberal arts education rather than mere career preparation. Students pursuing this major engage in both the practical aspects of sports–training, practice, and competition–and academic study in areas such as exercise physiology, sports analytics, philosophy of sport, history of sport, leadership, and so forth. The aim is to cultivate both physical and moral virtues, including strength, discipline, courage, fairness, and judgment, alongside critical thinking and ethical reasoning.[5]
As one professor argues, competitive sport should be reconceptualized as a liberal art. Drawing from Plato’s vision of education and the evolution of American liberal arts curricula, he suggests that athletics, like music or dance, can cultivate the mind as much as the body.[6] The educational potential lies in performance itself, not only the business of sports.
Yet, the need for legitimate Sport-Performance programs is clear when considering past abuses. The NCAA investigated UNC athletics over alleged academic violations in the African and Afro-American Studies Department, where “bogus” classes with inflated grades were reportedly taken by football and men’s basketball players between 1997 and 2011.[7] Moreover, Cardale Jones’ 2012 “we ain’t come to play SCHOOL” comment captures the cultural mindset that often drives such violations where athletes frequently perceive class as secondary to sport.[8] A Sport-Performance major addresses this by validating athletic expertise.
Compliance Considerations under NCAA Rules
This major has the potential to redefine the intersection of athletics and academics, but it also tests NCAA compliance boundaries. Universities already grant academic credit for experiential learning, from internships and clinical rotations to music ensembles and theater performance. Similarly, supervised athletic participation can (and should) qualify for credit, provided it follows bona fide educational processes.
A. Scholarship Requirements
Division III bans athletic scholarships, but it does not prohibit academic credit for supervised athletic participation. That distinction becomes precarious when universities consider programs that integrate sport into the curriculum. Institutions like Vassar and Ithaca allow student-athletes to earn college credit for playing varsity sports, typically on a “satisfactory/unsatisfactory (pass/fail) scale.”[9] Similarly, schools like MIT require all students to complete physical education credits to graduate, with varsity athletes able to earn this credit through seasonal participation.[10] Yet, financial aid decisions must remain independent of athletic participation.[11]
In 2020, Ursinus College was sanctioned after awarding $335,000 in aid to 64 student-athletes across 17 sports by considering athletics participation.[12] Under NCAA Division III Bylaw 15, aid decisions must remain completely independent of athletic participation and coaches and athletic staff are barred from influencing financial-aid packages.[13] This creates a fundamental tension for a Sport-Performance major: if academic evaluation relies on athletic performance, it becomes difficult to fully separate academic merit from the student’s athleticism. In Division III, programs must structure aid evaluation so that learning outcomes are measurable and independent of this athletic ability.
D-I schools already award athletic scholarships, but creating a parallel merit scholarship for Sport-Performance majors could raise double-dipping concerns. A student could receive two forms of aid for the same activity–one through an athletic scholarship and another through academic merit. To prevent this, academic aid must be based strictly on scholastic achievement. Financial-aid offices must control all awards independently from coaches and document each decision with a clear academic rationale, ensuring it is fully separate from athletic performance.
B. Eligibility Requirements
Program design is complicated by NCAA eligibility rules, which require student-athletes to complete 16 approved core courses. Eligibility statuses include Full Qualifier, which allows scholarship and competition; Academic Redshirt, which allows practice and scholarship but restricts competition in the first year; and Nonqualifier, which renders the student ineligible for scholarship, practice, or competition. Division II also recognizes Partial Qualifier. Students who do not meet these standards may have limited access to practical components, potentially constraining the integrative experience of a Sport-Performance major.[14] Even students who meet initial eligibility may face interruptions from injuries that limit participation and disrupt learning outcomes abruptly.
Flexible curricula can address these challenges by integrating required core courses while remaining adaptable to student-athletes’ needs. Alternative academic assignments such as case studies, video review, or simulation exercises can fulfill “participation.” The practical component is likely pass/fail or ungraded to prevent coach coercion or inflated GPAs. Then, independent academic advising should track eligibility and accommodations, ensuring students maintain full academic credit despite unexpected athletic limitations. By integrating these contingency plans, the major can preserve both rigorous learning outcomes and NCAA compliance.
Governance and Ethical Oversight
Strict governance preserves both academic integrity and compliance. Ideologically, a Sport-Performance major challenges the NCAA’s traditional distinction between “student” and “athlete,” as education becomes the practice and performance of sport. Protecting amateurism preserves the separation between college and professional athletics, which justifies scholarships and maintains the NCAA’s authority.
NIL introduces additional complexity. Treating athletic participation as curricular work could legitimize commercial activities such as branding, sponsorship negotiations, and media appearances as applied learning.[15] While this equips athletes to monetize their labor, it risks creating the appearance of institutional sponsorship or control.[16] Assignments tied to securing NIL deals could blur the line between independent student action and institutional influence.
Corporate involvement, such as Nike-sponsored symposiums, helped advance discussion of this major but introduces additional ethical risks.[17] Nike likely seeks to cultivate elite athletes, increase visibility among future sports professionals, and position the brand as a leader in sports education. A formalized major could help identify and develop athletes early, some of whom may later become sponsored. Sponsoring programs extends Nike’s presence on campuses and connects the brand to the next generation of athletes, coaches, and sports managers. However, if curricular assignments primarily serve corporate interests or future NIL monetization, they risk compromising academic integrity, exploiting student labor, or creating the appearance of institutional sponsorship.[18]
Coaches evaluating practical components of this major creates even more risks. Because coaches control playing time, recruitment, and team culture, students may feel pressured to enroll in the major to gain competitive advantages on the team. To prevent this coercion, faculty must have full control over the curriculum and grading.[19] Maintaining this separation is essential to uphold academic freedom and protect students’ educational interests.
Practical Safeguards for Implementation
Practical safeguards preserve both the pedagogical promise and institutional integrity of a Sport-Performance major. Faculty must retain full ownership of curriculum design and assessment. Hollander describes sport as “a discipline unto itself, unique and rich” and envisions courses that integrate participation with the study of sport history, ethics, physiology, and performance analysis.[20] Participation credit should thus remain modest, satisfying accreditor definitions of valid academic credit. Governance structures must ensure the major functions as intellectual advancement rather than a commodified credential.
SVU’s Sport Performance major is not per se contrary to NCAA Division III rules so long as it awards academic credit through bona fide academic processes (faculty oversight, measurable learning outcomes), and does not provide financial aid or other benefits based on athletic ability/participation nor permit coaches or boosters to determine grades, admissions, or aid.
So, creating a Sport-Performance major is both legally and ethically feasible under the right circumstances. Why should there be an ideological distinction between creative performers and physical pursuits? Why can someone major in voice performance but not in sport performance?[21] This major may benefit students by validating athletic expertise academically and developing marketable skills for careers in sports, law, media, and management. Yet, as athlete autonomy grows, programs like this must ensure they are not another tool of control. They should not serve as disguised athletic aid, NIL incentives, or a way for coaches or corporate partners to influence academics. With faculty-led curriculum design, transparent governance, clear separation, and flexible accommodations, a Sport-Performance major can exist as a legitimate academic discipline.
Katelyn Kohler is a graduate of Suffolk University Law School in Boston, specializing in Sports & Entertainment, Intellectual Property, and Labor & Employment Law. She holds dual degrees from Ithaca College in Business Administration: Sports Management and Legal Studies.
[1] Ryan Wilson, LOOK: Cardale Jones, Who Once Said, ‘We Ain’t Come Here to Play SCHOOL,’ Graduates, CBS SPORTS (May 7, 2017), https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/look-cardale-jones-who-once-said-we-aint-come-here-to-play-school-graduates/. (quoting Cardale Jones).
[2] Lacy Pullan, New Sport Performance Major Announced, Beginning Fall 2025, SOUTHERN VA. UNIV. (June 11, 2025), https://www.svu.edu/news/new-sport-performance-major-announced; Lacy Pullan, SVU’s Sport Performance Major Receives Standing Ovation at Nike New York Headquarters, NIKE (July 24, 2025), https://news.svu.edu/2025/svus-sport-performance-major-receives-standing-ovation-at-nike-new-york-headquarters/.
[3] Nell Gluckman, Get Ready for the Sports Major, CHRON. HIGHER EDUC. (Oct 17. 2025), https://www.chronicle.com/article/get-ready-for-the-sports-major. (discussing Lindsey Wilson, Boise State, American University, and NYU); Tania Ganguli, What’s Your Major? Some Say ‘Sports’ Should Be an Acceptable Answer, N.Y. Times (Jan. 25, 2025), https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/25/business/sports-major.html. (discussing advocacy from schools including UNC); David A. Hollander, Clinical Professor, Preston Robert Tisch Institute for Global Sport, New York University,NYU (last visited Oct. 24, 2025), https://www.sps.nyu.edu/faculty/david-hollander.html. (“In 2025 Hollander founded The Sports Major Collective, leading a national movement of academics, athletes and business leaders to create an historic first-ever “Sports Major” in higher education where the performance of sport is central to the degree.”).
[4] College Board, Is There a Sports Major in College?, BigFuture, https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/help-center/there-sports-major-college (last visited Oct. 24, 2025).
[5] SPRT—Sport Performance, SOUTHERN VA. UNIV., https://www.svu.edu/programs/sprt-sport-performance (last visited Oct. 24, 2025) (listing program objectives and course requirements).
[6] Lou Matz, Sports Major: Competitive Performance as a Liberal Art, AAC&U: The Magazine (Spring 2022), https://www.aacu.org/magazine/spring-2022/sports-major.
[7] Marc Tracy, N.C.A.A. Is Reopening Inquiry Into Academic Violations at North Carolina, N.Y. TIMES (June 30, 2014), https://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/30/sports/ncaa-is-reopening-inquiry-into-academic-violations-at-north-carolina.html. (reporting on NCAA investigation). In 2017, the NCAA ruled that although student-athletes “likely benefited” from sham courses, because the classes were available to all UNC students no bylaw violation occurred. Myron Medcalf, FAQ: How and Why North Carolina Escaped Sanctions from the NCAA, ESPN (Oct. 13, 2017), https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/21010957/the-most-important-questions- (reporting on NCAA ruling that UNC committed no violations despite sham courses).
[8] See Ryan Wilson, supra footnote 1, (quoting Cardale Jones).
[9] Keirsten Sires, College Credits for Student-Athletes?, STARTERS (Apr. 29, 2016), https://blog.starters.co/college-credits-for-student-athletes-aa7b4015a6bd.
[10] MIT Office of the First Year, Physical Education Requirement, MASS. INST. TECH., https://firstyear.mit.edu/girs/physical-education-requirement (last visited Oct. 24, 2025).
[11] NCAA, Scholarships for Student-Athletes, NCAA, https://www.ncaa.org/student-athletes/scholarships (last visited Oct. 24, 2025). The NCAA provides that D-III financial aid procedures must treat student-athletes and non-athletes the same, prohibit awarding aid based on athletic participation, and forbid athletics staff from determining, modifying, or arranging institutional aid. NCAA Div. III, Staying Compliant with Financial Aid Requirements, https://ncaaorg.s3.amazonaws.com/compliance/d3/D3Comp_ConsistentFAPackageResource.pdf.
[12] NCAA, Ursinus Improperly Awarded Financial Aid, NCAA (Jan. 28, 2020), https://www.ncaa.org/story.aspx?file_date=1-28-2020&filename=ursinus-improperly-awarded-financial-aid&utm.
[13] NCAA, Division III Bylaw 15: Financial Aid, NCAA (2021), https://ncaaorg.s3.amazonaws.com/compliance/rrs/2021/presentations/d3/Division_III_Bylaw_15_Financial_Aid.pdf(noting that Division III financial aid must be awarded independent of athletic ability or participation, and athletics staff may not influence aid decisions).
[14] NCSA, NCAA Eligibility Requirements, NCSA, https://www.ncsasports.org/ncaa-eligibility-center/eligibility-requirements (last visited Oct. 24, 2025) (distinguishing eligibility statuses).
[15] Ganguli, supra note 3. (noting educators have proposed a major teaching athletes skills for NIL, including marketing and branding, showing universities are designing courses linking athletics with commercial skills).
[16] Id. (noting that academically framing athletics “complicates the potential pressures” on athletes where existing majors like kinesiology already satisfy academic and career goals).
[17] Gluckman, supra note 3. “Nike’s involvement has raised some eyebrows…[but] the company is not involved in curriculum design and is not paying for anything beyond the first event.”
Supports your discussion of corporate influence and the importance of safeguarding academic integrity.
[18] Ganguli, supra note 3. (“Nike wants to lobby universities to offer minors or majors in athletics.”).
[19] Gluckman, supra note 3. (discussing concerns over giving athletic departments and coaches even more control over athletes including potential to “compel athletes into the major, seeing it as a show of dedication to their sport.”); Ganguli, supra note 3. (stating worries “about conflicts of interest if coaches were allowed to weigh in on their players’ grades…”).
[20] Gluckman, supra note 3 (quoting Hollander).
[21] Id. (telling the story of Weight, a former Utah track athlete, received minimal academic credit for sports, while her sister earned full credit for music practice and ensemble participation). Hollander further argues that, like dance, art, music, and drama, athletics is a legitimate academic discipline with intrinsic educational value. Id. (quoting Hollander) (“They’re portals into the human condition.”).
