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The impact of college football on academic achievement

Author

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  • Hernández-Julián, Rey
  • Rotthoff, Kurt W.

Abstract

We revisit a recent study by Lindo, Swensen, and Waddell (2012), who found a negative relationship between the success of the University of Oregon football team and the academic performance of students as measured by grades. Using data from Clemson University, we also find that the football team's winning percentage is negatively related to academic performance. Although Lindo et al. (2012) found that the academic performance of male students was more sensitive to changes in the winning percentage than the academic performance of female students, we find evidence of the opposite phenomenon in the Clemson data. Moreover, the negative relationship between wins and academic performance at Clemson appears to persist into the spring semester.

Suggested Citation

  • Hernández-Julián, Rey & Rotthoff, Kurt W., 2014. "The impact of college football on academic achievement," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 141-147.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecoedu:v:43:y:2014:i:c:p:141-147
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econedurev.2014.09.002
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    1. Claudia Goldin & Lawrence F. Katz & Ilyana Kuziemko, 2006. "The Homecoming of American College Women: The Reversal of the College Gender Gap," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 20(4), pages 133-156, Fall.
    2. Jason M. Lindo & Isaac D. Swensen & Glen R. Waddell, 2012. "Are Big-Time Sports a Threat to Student Achievement?," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 4(4), pages 254-274, October.
    3. Devin G. Pope & Jaren C. Pope, 2014. "Understanding College Application Decisions," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 15(2), pages 107-131, April.
    4. McCormick, Robert E & Tensley, Maurice, 1987. "Athletics versus Academics? Evidence from SAT Scores," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 95(5), pages 1103-1116, October.
    5. Clotfelter,Charles T., 2011. "Big-Time Sports in American Universities," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107004344, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Trevor Collier & Nancy Haskell & Kurt W. Rotthoff & Alaina Baker, 2020. "The “Cinderella Effect†: The Value of Unexpected March Madness Runs as Advertising for the Schools," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 21(8), pages 783-807, December.
    2. Jason M. Lindo & Peter Siminski & Isaac D. Swensen, 2018. "College Party Culture and Sexual Assault," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 10(1), pages 236-265, January.
    3. Jerome Segura III & Jonathan Willner, 2019. "Athleticism in NCAA D-III: It Ain’t Only Football That Matters," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 20(7), pages 929-958, October.
    4. Candon Johnson & Bryan C. McCannon, 2022. "Athletics and Admissions: The Impact of the Penn State Football Scandal on Student Quality," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 23(2), pages 200-221, February.
    5. Daniel C. Hickman & Andrew G. Meyer, 2017. "Does Athletic Success Influence Persistence At Higher Education Institutions? New Evidence Using Panel Data," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 35(4), pages 658-676, October.
    6. Benjamin Baumer & Andrew Zimbalist, 2019. "The Impact of College Athletic Success on Donations and Applicant Quality," IJFS, MDPI, vol. 7(2), pages 1-23, April.
    7. Dustin R. White & Benjamin W. Cowan & Jadrian J. Wooten, 2019. "March Madness: Ncaa Tournament Participation And College Alcohol Use," Contemporary Economic Policy, Western Economic Association International, vol. 37(3), pages 449-461, July.
    8. Behera, Sarthak & Sadana, Divya, 2022. "The Impact of Visibility on School Athletic Finances: An Empirical Analysis using Google Trends," MPRA Paper 114818, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    9. Austin F. Eggers & Peter A. Groothuis & Parker Redding & Kurt W. Rotthoff & Michael Solimini, 2020. "Universities Behaving Badly: The Impact of Athletic Malfeasance on Student Quality and Enrollment," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 21(1), pages 87-100, January.
    10. Austin F. Eggers & Peter A. Groothuis, 2021. "The Impact of Winning an NCAA Men's Basketball or Football Championship on Academic Quality," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 41(2), pages 263-275.
    11. Poutvaara, Panu & Ropponen, Olli, 2018. "Shocking news and cognitive performance," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 51(C), pages 93-106.
    12. Bradley R. Curs & Casandra E. Harper & Charles Frey & Brandon Wolak, 2023. "The Effect of College Football Bowl Game Participation on Student-Athlete Academic Outcomes and Team Athletic Success," Research in Higher Education, Springer;Association for Institutional Research, vol. 64(4), pages 497-519, June.
    13. Zachary S. Fone, 2023. "You Booze, You Lose? Spillovers to Crime from Alcohol Sales at College Football Games," Journal of Sports Economics, , vol. 24(2), pages 193-240, February.
    14. Kurt W. Rotthoff & Kaylyn R. Sanbower, 2016. "Professional ‘amateurs’ in the NCAA: the impact of downstream demand," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 23(5), pages 373-376, March.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    College athletics; Academic achievement; Student outcomes;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • L83 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Sports; Gambling; Restaurants; Recreation; Tourism

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