Get Ready For The Sports Major

"It’s not sports management, sports communication, or exercise science. It’s simply sports."

Author

Steve Ulrich
October 23, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 10 minutes

OCTOBER 23, 2025 | composed by STEVE ULRICH
We cover DIII lacrosse like no other publication. #d3lax #whyD3

🥍 Thursday. October’s almost over.

🗞️ In Today’s Edition. Get Ready For The Sports Major. DIII Management Council Approves Proposal to Allow Student-Athletes, Staff to Bet on Pro Sports. Landmark Extends Exclusive Media Partnership with FloSports. Number of the Day.

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TOP STORY

1. Get Ready For The Sports Major

“About halfway through a September class at Southern Virginia University, the conversation turned to trash talk.

A student who plays football for the college had gotten some from an opposing player at his last game. The student was tempted to return fire, but his teammates stopped him.

“Do you think it’s a good idea to be talking trash?” John Armstrong, the professor, asked incredulously. “We’re trying to learn to be virtuous here.”

Several students in the class pushed back. Trash talk is part of the game, they said. It’s a way to manipulate your opponent to gain an advantage. Armstrong countered: It can just as easily be a way for your opponent to manipulate you.”

» Situational Awareness. “In most college classrooms, exchanges like this would be considered off topic. In “Excellence in Sport and Life,” they are very much the topic. The course is a requirement in Southern Virginia’s sport-performance major, new to the college and the first of its kind nationwide.”

» Driving The News. “Students must participate in a competitive sport to pursue the major. The point is to deepen their understanding of their athletic pursuit and to improve their performance on the field, court, or track.”

» What They’re Saying. “The leap that we’re trying to get people to understand is not that sports is a conduit to learning math or science or that sports is a conduit to learning sociology or leadership,” David Hollander, a clinical professor at New York University’s Preston Robert Tisch Institute for Global Sport said. “Sports is a discipline unto itself, unique and rich, no different than music, art, dance, and dare I say math, literature.”

» Be Smart. “Like many small liberal-arts colleges, SVU has used athletics to recruit students, said Bryce Pendleton, vice president for brand and technology. Josh Monsen, the athletic director, said he and his coaches now talk about the major on the recruiting trail. As of Wednesday, 29 students had declared the major, Armstrong said. Monsen predicted it could soon be one of the university’s most popular.” (Chronicle of Higher Education)

2. DIII Management Council Approves Proposal to Allow Student-Athletes, Staff to Bet on Pro Sports

“The Division III Management Council approved a noncontroversial proposal that will permit student-athletes and athletics department staff members to bet on professional sports. The rule change required approval by all three divisions and will be effective Nov. 1.

The NCAA prohibition against betting on college sports — and sharing information about college competitions with other bettors — remains in place. The change also would not impact rules prohibiting advertising and sponsorships associated with sports betting for NCAA Championships.”

» The Big Picture. “The council emphasized in approving the rule change that the action is not an endorsement of sports betting, particularly for student-athletes. It further emphasized the importance of schools using harm reduction strategies and resources provided by the Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports and the Sport Science Institute and the Sport Science Institute.” (NCAA)

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3. Landmark Extends Exclusive Media Partnership with FloSports Through 2032

“The Landmark Conference was the first NCAA Division-III conference to join FloSports and is now the first to extend its exclusive media partnership with the sports media company in a deal that will showcase the conference on the FloCollege platform through 2032. The extension follows steady audience growth for the conference this year with more than 2.5 million live plays of events on the FloCollege platform and 3 million impressions on social media to date. It also secures investment into the conference's member institutions productions through the term of the contract. The announcement was made today by Landmark commissioner Katie Boldvich and FloSports, SVP of Rights and Acquisitions, Mike Levy.

The Landmark Conference is one of the flagship partners to use the FloSports Production Suite that was developed to elevate stream quality and graphic packages for Division-II and Division-III partners. The investment in production and deployment at the member institution level includes a hardware and software package that has greatly advanced streaming quality leading to 100% delivery of 60 FPS video feeds (an increase of 45% ) and a dramatic rise in uptime delivery. The production package is currently used at Catholic University and Moravian and will roll out to all 10 member institutions in the conference for the 2026-2027 season.”

» What They’re Saying. “FloSports has been an incredible partner in helping us raise the bar for production quality and storytelling across the Landmark," said Boldvich. "This ongoing commitment allows our institutions to continue expanding their communications and broadcasting efforts while also supporting broader championship and special event investments for the conference as a whole. We’re proud to continue building on what we started together and to serve as a model for what’s possible at the Division III level.”

» State of Play. “FLO has committed over $50 million to develop the FloCollege platform through rights fees, broadcast infrastructure, original content, and cutting-edge product development. These investments ensure institutions and fans receive a consistent, high-quality experience across all devices.” (Landmark Conference)

4. Lightning Round

» Rules. The NCAA DIII Championships Committee approved Jake DeCola, head coach at Albion, as a member of the Men’s Lacrosse Rules Committee.

» Championship Tickets. “All-session tickets and parking passes for the 2026 NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Championships, hosted by the University of Virginia at Scott Stadium over Memorial Day weekend, are now on sale. An exclusive presale opened Tuesday, followed by the public on-sale Friday (Oct. 24), also at 10 a.m.

5. Comings and Goings 

6. Number of the Day: 41

“That’s the average age of video game players, per the Entertainment Software Association’s global survey of 24.2k+ gamers ages 16 and up.

That may be a higher age than you were expecting, but games aren’t just for teens anymore. There are a host of potential cognitive and even social benefits for gamers of all ages. ESA’s respondents cited benefits including stress release and mental stimulation, plus improved creativity, problem-solving, and teamwork skills.

There are, of course, a host of benefits also for the people making the games as well — the industry combined for an estimated $187B in revenue last year.”

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