In the Arena

JOSEPH N. CROWLEY Digital Edition 26, 2015 on October archived 14-16601 No. v. NCAA, in O'Bannon cited It is not the critic who counts; nor the man who points out how the strong man stumbles,“ or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcomings; but who does26, 2015 on October archived actually strive to do 14-16601the deeds; who knows No. v. NCAA, great enthusiasms,in O'Bannon the great devotions; who spendscited himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” — THEODORE ROOSEVELT April 23, 1910 IN THE ARENA DIGITAL EDITION PREFACE BEFORE THE JANUARY 2006 publication of “In The Arena: The NCAA’s First Century,” the NCAA chose to publish a digital edition at a later date and to use that edition to house the book’s scholarly particulars — citations, bibliography and appendices. In this version, the citations, in the form of endnotes, follow each of the seven chapters; the bibliography and appendices are in their usual place, bringing up the rear of the book. This digital edition also provides the author an opportunity (which he has gratefully seized) to make both editorial and substantive corrections to the text. During the writing process, each chapter typically went through several versions. On a few occasions, material from an early version mistak- enly found its way into print, despite the best efforts of several proofreader/fact checkers. In a cou- ple of cases, the author simply got the facts wrong. Appropriate changes have been made in text lan- guage and explained in the endnotes. The author takes responsibility for errors of any type in the print edition of the book and, of course, for any that remain in the digital edition. I note also that readers interested President Theodore Roosevelt’s role in the founding of the NCAA may find a fair- ly extensive recounting of the literature on the subject set forth in endnote 29 of Chapter One. In the preface to the January edition, I offered thanks to a large number of people who helped me get the book into print. That preface is carried forward into the digital edition.26, 2015 Additional assistance was required in completing this edition. I thank especially Ellenon OctoberSummers, NCAA librarian and archivist, and David Pickle, the Association’s managingarchived director of publishing, who made the deci- 14-16601 sions on appendices and tended to numerousNo. publication details. I am indebted as well to David’s assistant, Nancy Adams, and to Angelav. NCAA, Grant and Justin Leinwand of the NCAA’s legal staff for their in O'Bannon work on legal andcited governmental citations. My daughter, Margaret Magera, also helped on that subject. Mandy Keller of Sport Graphics publishing company assisted with formatting and design. I express appreciation to Steven Zink, vice president of information technology and dean of libraries at the University of Nevada, for his support on the sometimes bewildering scholarly jour- ney through the Internet obstacle course. James Rogers, chancellor of the Nevada System of Higher Education, gave me wide latitude to work on notes, bibliography and corrections during my return to duty as an interim university president. Finally, special thanks are owing to my wife Joy, whose eternal tolerance of her husband’s meanders in higher education administration and the depositing — over nearly five decades — of a million or so words on assorted pages of paper has carried her well beyond the requirements of the marriage vows. While I am pleased that the digital edition of the book ends my involvement in the NCAA’s Centennial project, I need to note here how grateful I am to have had the chance to participate. My labors on both editions of the Centennial history have been demanding and sometimes painful, but the experience has nevertheless been richly rewarding. I thank the Association for the invita- tion to do the work and the freedom to do it the way I believe it needed to be done. —JOE CROWLEY, September 2006 THE NCAA’S FIRST CENTURY IN THE ARENA PREFACE SOME YEARS AGO, when I was serving a term as an NCAA officer, I suggested to the Association’s executive director, Cedric Dempsey, that he consider commissioning an updated history of the organization. Jack Falla had written a book covering the Association’s first 75 years, but much had happened since its publication in 1981. Reform had been an almost constant prior- ity in the years that followed. Despite valiant and well-conceived efforts by the NCAA communi- cations staff, the Association’s leading role in reform was not well understood by the general pub- lic, which was conditioned to think of the organization as a regulatory monolith that functioned also as a defender of the status quo. The media often reported on the organization as though it were a distant, stony-hearted entity serving its own narrow bureaucratic interests instead of those of the members, somehow achieving this status even though the members had controlled it from the day it was born. From time to time, a member institution would offer a similar description, particular- ly if it had just been punished for violating rules it had participated in making. A better understand- ing was clearly needed. That is why I made the suggestion to Dempsey. He liked the idea and asked me if I would be interested in writing the book. I declined. I was an Association volunteer, but I also had a full-time job as president of the University of Nevada, Reno.26, 2015 There simply would not be enough time to do the work such a book would require.on October The idea then took up residence on the proverbialarchived back burner. Other matters demanded 14-16601 Dempsey’s attention. He asked me again, No.five or six years later, after I left the campus presiden- NCAA, cy. Conversations ensued, but otherv. priorities stood in the way. I still thought the book needed in O'Bannon writing. If it was citedgoing to be done, however, someone else would have to be the author. In spring 2003, David Pickle, the NCAA’s managing director of publishing, called to tell me that the time for a new history was at hand. The Association Centennial would be celebrated in 2006. Would I be willing to consider the authorship of a Centennial history, Pickle asked. The third time proved to be the charm. We talked. I said I would need to have editorial freedom. It was readily granted. Thereupon, I swallowed hard and accepted the job. Volunteers from the membership play important roles in the varied and complex operations of the NCAA. Over the years, thousands have served in a wide range of capacities — as officers, for example, and as members and chairs of the councils, boards, commissions, committees, cabinets and assorted ad hoc entities that make up the Association’s governance structure. They are key decision-makers. The NCAA could not function without these volunteers. Indeed, for the organization’s first 45 years, the Association was composed of nothing but volunteers because there was no staff. The volunteers — hundreds of them in any given year — still play a critical role. I have had the privilege of being one among the many since 1987, serving as member, chair or vice chair of this or that committee or council and spending a two-year term (1993-95) as Association president. This experience may help explain why I was asked to write the book. I thought I knew more than enough to do so. I was wrong. I still have much to learn. One thing I did understand was the dedication of the NCAA staff. The Association is indis- putably a creature of its membership. For 55 years, since the first staff member was appointed, THE NCAA’S FIRST CENTURY • i service to the members has been the organization’s primary responsibility. Walter Byers was the first staffer. He hired people who understood that responsibility. A number of them, Byers includ- ed, stayed with the NCAA for many years. Some still work there. Others went on to important positions on campuses, in conference offices and in other entities involved in intercollegiate ath- letics. I cannot name everyone, but I can propose that those listed here stand for all the others whose service has contributed so much to the NCAA’s advancement. Marjorie Fieber was Byers’ first hire, and she remained with the Association for decades. Arthur Bergstrom, who came on board in 1956, was the NCAA’s first full-time enforcement officer and later served as controller. Tom Jernstedt was part of an outstanding group of employees hired in the early to mid-1970s. He is now the Association’s executive vice president and has been for years the individual primarily responsible for administering the Division I men’s postseason bas- ketball tournament. Wally Renfro belonged to the 1970s group and is now senior advisor to the NCAA president. David Berst, long-time head of enforcement, is currently vice president for Division I. Others who joined the staff during that decade and went on to serve in major positions include Dennis Cryder, a senior vice president; Tricia Bork; David Cawood; Steve Morgan; Louis Spry; Ron Stratten; and Ted Tow.

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