Reflections on College Athletics

This weekend, I did something I have never done before at Wake Forest. 

I took the mound and then took a step forward toward the catcher. 

And here is what I can tell you: Pitching a baseball is not for the faint of heart! 

I was honored to throw out the first pitch at Wake Forest’s game three — and the faculty/staff appreciation game – against our long-time Big Four rival NC State on Sunday, April 19. The experience was exhilarating, terrifying (!) and empowering. 

And as the adrenaline worked its way out of my system over the course of the afternoon, I realized something: I have spent a lot of years in leadership positions where the college athletic enterprise and student-athletes themselves were my ‘job.’ I was a Faculty Athletic Representative for five years at Vanderbilt and also served for a year on the Southeastern Conference Board during my time as interim Chancellor – all before coming to Wake Forest. 

Shortly after I arrived here, I was asked to serve on the Atlantic Coast Conference Board of Directors Executive Committee, then to be the Vice Chair, and I now chair that group. In all these years, I have tried to embody the perspectives of our student-athletes and their experiences in my work on policy, systems and practices that make athletics and universities work better. On Sunday, I came full circle and stood in their shoes, if only in an honorific capacity. 

I have been around long enough to know that the experience of today’s student-athlete varies widely. I have often reflected on how I have gravitated in my career to schools where athletes remain students first and are fully part of their university communities. In my opinion, we do this better than any school in the country. 

My friend Dr. Herman Eure, Wake Forest Life Trustee and former faculty member and administrator, spent many years of his career at Wake Forest (and afterward) personally mentoring our student-athletes. He told me, when I arrived at Wake Forest in 2021, that here, we should really think about “athlete students.” Adjective modifies noun. His point was that our students are athletes, but they are students first. I have tried to hold that close throughout my presidency; and it has been affirmed again and again in my interactions with our “athlete students.” 

This academic year, 97% of our athlete students eligible to graduate from Wake Forest (both undergraduate and graduate students) will do so. And given that fewer than 2% of today’s college athletes nationally will ever “go pro” in their sport, earning a college degree is an absolutely critical outcome for them. It is the education, the degree(s), that truly will serve them for the rest of their lives. 

Across my presidency, my goal was to try to attend at least one game or match in as many sports as possible each season, or to connect with the team and coach in a special way. Given the realities of this role in this era, doing so has not been easy, or even possible every year, but it has taught me so much and introduced me to people and parts of our campus and broader communities that I may not have encountered otherwise.  

As Vice President and Athletic Director John Currie says often, Wake Forest sports are the “living room” of Winston-Salem and northwest North Carolina, bringing people together from across generations, neighborhoods, counties and states – to watch our athlete students compete. 

Sports create affinity through shared experience. College sports in particular create a fundamental sense of identity that binds Wake Foresters across the years and forms memories that connect people far beyond their time on campus. 

Now, it would be fair of you to ask, “But even today? Do they really? With all that is happening in college athletics?” Undeniably, we are living through a hurricane in college athletics, and university presidents in the Power Four conferences are out in the wind and rain, so to say, experiencing the effects every day. My position during my time at Wake Forest and this time of turbulence for athletics has been to enable us to “stay in the game and stay at the table,” while the hurricane rages. 

I have been asked many times why I feel so strongly about this. On its face, it might seem easier for universities to give up, change divisions, or walk away from college athletics altogether while chaos reigns. 

But here are a few truths that ground my position. 

Wake Forest athletics connects us across generations. They create a tether between alumni around the world and their alma mater. They offer opportunities for students to connect, share experiences and feel a sense of belonging. And while they are not the only source of such affinity, I can tell you from talking with thousands of Wake Forest alumni over my five years here that this connection matters. 

And our college athletics position contributes to how we attract the next generation of Deacs, too. I commissioned a study in 2022 on enrollment trends among prospective and admitted applicants at Wake Forest, and both groups identified “competitive Division I athletics” as a factor in their decision to apply to WFU and to attend once admitted. This finding runs alongside another important trend: Wake Forest’s applications for undergraduate admission have nearly doubled in the past six years, from just under 12,000 to more than 21,000 for the fall of 2026. We are admitting the most academically talented students in our history, and among the factors students consider when choosing us is our athletics program. 

Finally, I have always believed that universities have the power and the responsibility to be economic engines for their towns and cities: creating jobs, educational pathways and opportunities for engagement that would not exist without them. Our responsibility as an anchor employer and educational institution in this region is real. We are one of Winston-Salem’s and the Triad’s largest employers, and the visitors, patients, and spectators we attract to the area – who eat in restaurants, stay in hotels, visit local shops, and attend athletics competitions – are a significant economic contributor to our city. Winston-Salem is emerging as a hub for healthcare, scientific research, and education – and Wake Forest is a tremendously important driver of this transformation. College athletics meaningfully contribute to city, regional, and state tourism in ways that are deeply embedded in our local economy. 

Despite these truths, I cannot predict the future for college athletics. It is a tenuous time, and it is incredibly hard to find solutions across such a complex landscape. I believe federal intervention through legislation, the continued work and advocacy of the conferences, the NCAA and the College Sports Commission, and the full engagement of Power Four university leaders will be critical to the future of college sports. A single entity cannot solve the complexity we find ourselves in. Together, we have an obligation to find a solution more long lasting than just navigating through the eye of this hurricane. 

As I reflect on my time both as Wake Forest president and as Chair of the ACC Board of Directors, I find myself returning to that moment on the mound. For just a brief instant, I imagined experiencing a small piece of what our athlete students feel — the anticipation, the pressure, the joy of stepping into something bigger than oneself. College athletics, at their best, offer exactly that kind of experience — not only for those on the field, but for all of us who are part of this community. Whatever changes may come, I am confident that Wake Forest will remain grounded in what matters most: supporting our athlete students, strengthening our community, and preserving the spirit that makes these experiences so meaningful.