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Brendan Mulroy

Professor Flaherty

English 3010

31 October 2022

Problem Statement

Sports dominate popular culture unlike any other equally related activity. Sport is one of

the most inclusive activities a person can partake in. You share a team or field of battle with

people of all backgrounds. However, leadership positions at most institutions are dominated by

white males. When you look at the teams on the field or court, you can see individuals from all

races. Just looking at football programs in the NCAA, there are concerns with the lack of

minority head coaches. An unintended consequence of the lack of diversity of head coaches is

that it “could burden the racial and gender minority student-athletes that eventually choose

whether or not to attend an institution” (Bopp et al., 2014). This may not be something that

administrators think about during the hiring process. We know that representation matters, and as

sports continue to diversify so to do the leadership positions.

The issue of discrimination for individuals applying for leadership positions at collegiate

athletic programs may start at a more basic level. We see how discrimination affects the athletes

themselves. Black athletes are labeled as “selfish” and “emotional” when they show outbursts on

the competitive field, whereas white athletes are labeled “passionate”. “According to this study,

it was concluded that being a former student-athlete was an unwritten qualification for a minority

to be hired at senior level positions; however, the same did not hold true for non-minority

applicants” (Glenn, 2016). Glenn’s findings that minority candidates are expected to have played
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a collegiate sport in order to get hired shows that there may be a potential hurdle minority

candidates face while applying. With minority athletes being branded “selfish” and “emotional”

while competing, there could be biases against them when it is their turn to apply for positions in

the industry. In a study conducted relating to college basketball games completed in 2020,

“Lighter-skinned players were more likely to be described for their performance (e.g., shooting,

rebounding, steals) and mental abilities (craftiness, cleverness, control)” (Foy & Ray, 2020). In

the same study, “Darker-skinned players were more likely to be described for their physical

characteristics (e.g., athleticism, speed, strength)” (Foy & Ray, 2020). This study shows the

biases shown towards athletes during competition. It’s fair to say that these biases carry over into

the sports management field. The stereotype that Caucasians are more natural to lead, where

minorities are more naturally inclined to take a position that requires less decision making is

prevalent amongst the sports world (Francis, 2020). The issue of misrepresentation may stem

from the belief that minorities shouldn’t apply for a leadership role because they see how

difficult and rare it is for them to be hired.

Over the last several years diversity and inclusion has been highlighted by many

organizations as a mission to grow. Sports are no different. Over time many organizations have

implemented inclusion programs like the NCAA’s Office of Inclusion. However, in college

football alone, only 14 of the head coaches in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) are black. On

a broader scale, 67.5% of all college coaches are white. This obviously isn’t representative of

sports, as we know sport is diverse. The grasp that white males have on this profession isn’t just

disconcerting for individuals trying to break into the field, but also potentially for the athletes

themselves. The number of leadership positions held by white men “suggest the NCAA is an

organization that has systems in place that are resistant to change” (Glenn, 2016).
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Discrimination is felt in all aspects of life, and sports aren’t any different. Many minority

coaching and administrative applicants understand they will face tougher career paths than their

white counterparts. The issues people of color face are disheartening. Most players in the two

major collegiate sports (football and basketball) are not white, yet most coaches and

administrators are. With the world continuing to become more diverse, sports management has

lagged.

Research Questions

This paper will focus on answering the following questions: To what extent is discrimination

against leaders of minority status in college athletics being addressed? What measures have been

taken to improve existing biases against people of color? How have these measures worked? Are

there regional biases when it comes to athletic departments in the NCAA?

Literature Review

Sports are inherently diverse. Individuals from all races, religion, genders, and creeds

compete amongst each other. On the court or on the field, we see that. Yet, when you look at the

administrative side of college sports, there’s a jarring lack of diversity. According to a study at

the University of Central Florida, 72.3 percent of all Division 1 athletic directors were white men

(Hruby, 2021). There are no hesitations when imagining people of color in terms of athletes, yet

people don’t always envision people of color holding leadership positions. Why are minorities

not given the same privilege as their white counterparts? Biases obviously play a part, but in a

time where diversity and inclusion are being championed in all aspects of life, the representation

doesn’t match the message.

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For the purpose of my research, I’ve focused on Division 1 football and basketball

programs. The reason behind this is due to the monetary value these programs bring into a

university. In Richard Lapchick’s The 2017 College Sport Racial and Gender Report Card:

College Sport, African American athletes made up 55.9 percent of athletes at the Football Bowl

Subdivision (FBS) level. Whereas in Division 1 basketball, African Americans made up 53

percent of athletes. Yet, in football only 7.7 percent of coaches were African American. In men’s

basketball, 22.3 percent of coaches were African American (Lapchick, 2018). These numbers are

even lower when discussing the position of athletic director. While those that have succeeded to

these positions of power at universities, many are perceived as only reaching these levels

because of Affirmative Action. This results in these individuals having to “work twice as hard to

prove their position was earned and not given” (Lebron, 2019). While African Americans must

continuously prove their worth regarding leadership positions at NCAA programs, their white

counterparts are given the benefit of the doubt. Lebron (2019) discusses that not only do ethnic

minorities need to seek mentors who not only support diversity, but also exercises it.

Many of these universities have declarations of diversity and inclusion on their websites,

yet “There is a 4% chance of minorities becoming an athletic director, 7.9% associate athletic

director, and 6.7% assistant athletic director as it pertains to intercollegiate athletics (Patterson &

Washington, 2011)” (Francis, 2020). Most of the athletes at these universities biggest athletic

programs are underrepresented when you look at the administrative side of the departments. This

realization for the underrepresented athletes can be the first barrier they see when considering

employment opportunities post-graduation. These barriers have been in place not only in sports,

but throughout the history of this country. Another issue that minorities find themselves in, is

the actual hiring process.

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Minorities being underrepresented as athletic directors has led to inquest about

universities hiring process (Francis, 2020). The current structure of sports management does not

equal the picture of racial harmony portrayed in the world of sport (Chavez, 2017). When the

hiring is being done by a group of people, they will tend to relate to people alike to them. Based

on the numbers, white men are the ones doing most of the hiring based on the percentage of

positions they currently hold. Although someone may be committed to diversity and inclusion in

theory, they will hold biases to the interviewees. Whether intentional or not, the fact is that a

majority of administrators continue to restrict access to minorities (Chavez, 2017). In a study

conducted in 2016 by Amanda Glenn, it was revealed that African Americans agreed that there

were stereotypes perceived about them within college athletics.

In recent years, hiring firms have been called upon to make the hiring decisions for

universities. “217 different universities have used a search firm in the hiring of either an athletic

director or football head coach since 2008” (Boettger, 2022). With its growing popularity, search

firms have helped numerous universities make key decisions on who will run their programs.

While these search firms have had success, questions are raised about whether their

commitments to diversity are being followed. With the lack of diversity in terms of

representation at the Athletic Director position, search firms are almost “nearly twice as likely to

help a school select an athletic director who was previously employed by another FBS

university” (Boettger, 2022). Being twice as likely to hire a candidate that has previously been an

athletic director will limit the opportunities to minorities, as they are underrepresented. Search

firms also hiring externally also diminishes the work of internal candidates whose work to grow

within is hurt by a new, external hire.

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Search firms do have benefits to coincide with their flaws. “When a search firm is

involved in an AD hire, there is also a slightly increased chance in a female candidate being

selected” (Boettger, 2022). Not only are people of color underrepresented in administrative roles,

but women are also unequally represented. 12.3% of the athletic director hires carried out by

search firms have been female, in comparison to 9.3% of the hires carried out without the use of

search firms (Boettger, 2022). With search firms growing in popularity in recent years, it is

important to figure out whether these firms help or hurt diversity in the industry.

The facts are that racial prejudices still ruminate throughout this country. Sports are at

risk of continuing down this line of exclusion, while simultaneously preaching it. As it currently

stands, there needs to be more transparency when it comes to the hiring process (Chavez, 2017).

There’s currently no governing body that has the ability implement rules to ensure diversity. This

is solely up to the universities themselves. And often, the universities hire third party consulting

groups to handle the hiring process for open positions. Unlike the NFL which implemented the

Rooney Rule, the NCAA has no rule in place that guarantees minorities need to be considered

for vacant positions. Another line of thought is whether the NCAA focuses the same amount of

time and energy on the topic of inclusiveness. The NCAA spends a lot of time when

investigating whether one of its athletes received improper benefits but doesn’t spend an equal

amount of time on trying to be more inclusive.

Addressing Diversity Issues Amongst Institutions

Certain universities have addressed the issue of racial discrimination. The University of

Michigan recognized that in order to be excellent, they had to become more diverse. That’s why

in 2016, the university hired Warde Manuel as their athletic director. At the time of his hiring, he

was one of three African American athletic directors in the Big Ten conference. He was only the
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second black athletic director in school history, and he inherited a program that employed two

coaches of color. Under Ward’s leadership, the program came up with a strategic plan to become

more diverse and inclusive. Michigan is one of the universities that recognized the issue among

them and acted on it. “For example, universities like Michigan who strive to increase diversity

often implement a reward system acknowledging departments who recruit, interview, and hire

diverse faculty” (Chavez, 2017). The University of Michigan is a prime example of a university

realizing that they needed to become more diverse and putting actions in place to follow through.

Proposal/ Plan of Action

Intention

Based on the research that’s been conducted so far, there is a clear understanding that

minorities are not given the same opportunity to hold the position of Athletic Director at

Division 1 FBS universities as their white counterparts. Most of the research ends there, without

seeking to answer the question why. I believe that further research into the thought process

behind these Athletic Directors is needed. With focused research, there may be a better

understanding as to why minorities are underrepresented at the administration level in college

athletics. Are there regional differences as it pertains to the diversity of a university’s athletic

department? What more can they do to help diversify their field? Is there anything specific they

can do to or are there more structural issues in place prohibiting the needed change? This study

will provide unique answers to the question of discrimination in sports management.

Methodology

The research questions of this specific study will be: “Why are minorities misrepresented

at the Athletic Director position? Are there regional biases when it comes to the athletic director
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position and the athletic departments as a whole?” Based on the research from the literature

review, my hypothesis is that minorities are underrepresented due to structural issues in place

preventing them from obtaining these positions. Firstly, I will compare to sets of athletic

departments from two different regional conferences. My southern conference will be the

Southeastern Conference (SEC). My northern conference will be the Big Ten Conference. Both

of these conferences have 14 universities in their respective conferences. The SEC’s

northernmost university is located in Columbia, Missouri. The Big Ten’s southernmost

university is in College Park, Maryland. To find out whether there are regional biases in relation

to athletic departments in these two conferences, I will visit each of the universities athletic

websites where they have a list of faculty members in the athletic department. By analyzing the

faculty list, I’ll be able to determine if the northern schools are more diverse than the southern

schools. My hypothesis is that the SEC will be less diverse than the Big Ten.

The second part of my study will be a online survey to understand the cause for lack of

diversity at the athletic director position. Participants of my study will be current Athletic

Directors at the Division 1 level. In order to obtain the list of Athletic Directors and their contact

information, I will purchase The National Directory of Collegiate Athletics. This directory is

widely considered the Yellow Pages of collegiate athletics. Once the list is obtained, I would

send out a survey to the individuals accompanied by a description of my study.

The questionnaire will include questions that dive into the respondents’ backgrounds.

Questions like “Were you a collegiate athlete yourself”, “How many years of experience did you

have in the field before being hired”, “Was a search firm included by the university that hired

you” will be asked to gauge the background of the participants. This will be important in

comparing the backgrounds of minority Athletic Directors and white Athletic Directors. The next
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set of questions will be around the basis of what is being done to combat the discrimination in

the industry. Questions like “What does your institution currently have in place to allow for an

inclusive workplace” and “Is your institution a leader in the industry when it comes to diversity”.

These questions will allow me to understand which institutions are committed to inclusiveness.

My final set of questions will revolve around what these men and women could do to help their

respective institutions do more in terms of diversity. Questions like, “What will you do to ensure

that all individuals are given the same opportunity within your program”, “Is there anything

specific you believe the NCAA should do to help with this problem”, “Would a rule like the

Rooney Rule in the NFL be helpful to ensure minority candidates are given equal treatment”.

Once these responses have been submitted, analyzing the difference, if any, in answers

between minority and Caucasian participants will be done. With my hypothesis being that I

believe there are structural barriers in place, I am assuming the answers from minority

participants will yield a more positive response regarding my last block of questions. This study

will be carried out over a short period of time and will be carried out completely online.

Discussion

With a majority of research on this topic focusing on the problem of discrimination in

sports management, my study will be beneficial to see what’s being done to change the industry.

It also may help in understanding which specific barriers minorities face in comparison to their

white counterparts. Figuring out if there are structural issues or regional biases for minorities is

important because without knowing if there are issues, you cannot correct them. The issue with

the first part of my study will be determining if an individual is a minority just on a picture alone.

It’s very difficult to determine someone’s ethnicity without having their background. The main

issue I foresee facing with the online survey is honesty from my participants. No participant will
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willingly admit to discrimination, but I am hopeful that by analyzing the differences in responses

I’ll be able to find adequate answers. This study will answer the question of what is currently

being done to be more inclusive but won’t necessarily answer my question of whether these

actions are working.

This study is important because everyone should be able to recognize that there’s no

place for discrimination in the world. No industry should realize that better than sports. Sports

are more diverse than just about any other activity on the planet, yet that same belief isn’t

reflected in the sports management industry. The potential knowledge and insight that could stem

from this research could be massive in terms of understanding why minorities are looked over

for these positions. Are the issues a structural one or are they based in case-to-case scenarios?

The results could help potential individuals understand what needs to be done in order to gain

inclusivity.

Throughout my research, I have come to understand that diversity is a prominent issue in

the industry I intend to seek a career in. This research and study are important to me. I should not

be given an unfair advantage just because of my skin color, nor should my career path be any

easier. Diversifying the sports management industry is an issue that the NCAA appears to be

trying to tackle, but the results aren’t being seen just yet. Words and actions are very different.

Sports are great at bringing people from all different walks of life together and it’s time for the

administrative level of sports to match that.

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Works Cited

Boettger, E. (2022, February 10). The influence of search firms in college athletics. Athletic

Director U. Retrieved October 30, 2022, from https://athleticdirectoru.com/articles/the-

influence-of-search-firms-in-college-athletics/

Chavez, D. F. (2017). A Case Study of College Sport Leadership, Hispanic Athletic Directors,

and Racial Inequality (Order No. 10742852). Available from ProQuest Dissertations &

Theses A&I; ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. (2016705767).

https://proxy.lib.wayne.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/case-

study-college-sport-leadership-hispanic/docview/2016705767/se-2

Francis, C. L. C., Sr. (2020). NCAA Athletic Directors: The Underrepresentation of Minority

Leaders at Division I Institutions (Order No. 27736308). Available from ProQuest

Dissertations & Theses A&I; ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. (2382042383).

https://proxy.lib.wayne.edu/login?url=https://www-proquest-com.proxy.lib.wayne.edu/

dissertations-theses/ncaa-athletic-directors-underrepresentation/docview/2382042383/se-2

Foy, S., & Ray, R. (2022, March 9). March madness and college basketball's racial bias

problem. Brookings. Retrieved November 11, 2022, from

https://www.brookings.edu/blog/how-we-rise/2020/03/06/march-madness-and-college-

basketballs-racial-bias-problem/

Glenn, A. (2016). An examination of the diversity of the NCAA Division I pipeline to athletic

director (Order No. 10131666). Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses A&I;

ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. (1800533912). https://proxy.lib.wayne.edu/login?

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url=https://www-proquest-com.proxy.lib.wayne.edu/dissertations-theses/examination-

diversity-ncaa-division-i-pipeline/docview/1800533912/se-2

Hruby, P. (2021, May 10). Few college athletic directors are minorities. Global Sport Matters.

Retrieved November 12, 2022, from

https://globalsportmatters.com/business/2021/05/07/few-college-athletic-directors-

minorities-ncaa/

Lapchick, Richard. 2018. The 2017 College Sport Racial and Gender Report Card: College

Sport. Orlando: The University of Central Florida, College of Business Administration

Lebron, M. M. (2019). Ethnic Minority and/or Female Athletics Directors at the Division I

Level: The Art of Reaching the Chair (Order No. 13878208). Available from Ethnic

NewsWatch; ProQuest Central; ProQuest Dissertations & Theses A&I; ProQuest

Dissertations & Theses Global. (2299173748). https://proxy.lib.wayne.edu/login?

url=https://www-proquest-com.proxy.lib.wayne.edu/dissertations-theses/ethnic-minority-

female-athletics-directors-at/docview/2299173748/se-2

Lapchick, Richard. 2018. The 2017 College Sport Racial and Gender Report Card: College

Sport. Orlando: The University of Central Florida, College of Business Administration.