Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 22h

Yep. Cam Newton is nearly that big. Hall of Famer Art "Fatso" Donovan said in his book that the linemen he played against in the 1950s would run away from today's modern, larger linemen. Donovan was a giant at 6-3 275.

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Steve Berkowitz @byberkowitz.bsky.social · 1d

U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan, D-Mass., is raising questions about — and demanding answers and documents from — College Sports Commission concerning its procedures for approving athletes’ NIL deals with entities other than their schools: www.usatoday.com/story/sports...

College Sports Commission 'sowing new chaos in college athletics', U.S. Rep demands answers

A member of the U.S. House of Representatives is raising questions about — and demanding answers from — the recently created College Sports Commission

www.usatoday.com

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USA TODAY Sports @usatodaysports.usatoday.com · 1d

A member of the U.S. House of Representatives is raising questions about — and demanding answers from — the recently created College Sports Commission

College Sports Commission 'sowing new chaos in college athletics', U.S. Rep demands answers

A member of the U.S. House of Representatives is raising questions about — and demanding answers from — the recently created College Sports Commission

bit.ly

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Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 2d

Are BiG, SEC, ACC, Big12 commissioners included? Thanks in advance

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 2d

Pretty soon they might make as much as strength-conditioning coaches.

Steve Berkowitz @byberkowitz.bsky.social · 2d

University of California football GM, and former NFL coach, Ron Rivera is making $800,000 annually and can earn $800,000 in additional performance-based bonuses, according to information released today to @usatodaysports.usatoday.com: www.usatoday.com/story/sports...

Cal makes Ron Rivera one of college football's highest-paid GMs

California Golden Bears football revealed more salary information about the significant investment it made in former NFL coach and new GM Ron Rivera.

www.usatoday.com

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Steve Berkowitz @byberkowitz.bsky.social · 2d

Collegiate Commissioners Association has sent letter to members of U.S. House of Representatives saying commissioners of 31 Division I conferences back passage of SCORE Act, bill from Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.) that has passed two committees and can be brought to floor

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Rachel Bachman, WSJ sports reporter @realbachscore.bsky.social · 2d

In the player-pay era, no school is embracing the NFL model more than Oklahoma.

“What better place than a higher-education institution to say, ‘Let’s be honest. Let’s look at the facts and then let’s meet what’s in front of us.'"
www.wsj.com/sports/footb...

How Oklahoma Football Became the SEC’s NFL Team

The Sooners’ overhaul includes a GM on equal footing with the head coach, an athletic-director search led by the former CEO of AT&T and a front office modeled after the Philadelphia Eagles.

www.wsj.com

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Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 2d

TY

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 2d

Nice one. It’s almost genius to have invented a set of whines that works for them regardless of changing circumstances.

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Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 4d

Whistleblowers make the best police in situations difficult to patrol. (Fort, Economics of Governance 2022.)
www.espn.com/college-spor...

New tip line for NIL violations to commence

The College Sports Commission launched an anonymous tip line Wednesday to allow for reporting of possible NIL infractions.

www.espn.com

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 4d

www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/o...

Opinion | You Beat Trumpism by Banding Together. It’s as Hard and as Simple as That.

www.nytimes.com

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 4d

I think he is just doing what commissioners do—owners’ bidding. They like the WNBA. But always want to squash players. Novelty is that it appears that Silver is commissioner of two leagues.

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Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 4d

The WNBA already has a commissioner…Oh that’s right, just another reminder about who actually runs the WNBA. Silver serves at the will of NBA owners.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/669...

NBA’s Adam Silver says WNBA conflict has ‘become too personal’

Silver said he will step in if need be to CBA negotiations but has not yet.

www.nytimes.com

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Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 4d

No place at this table for the players. Not collectively bargained, antitrust possible. Pretty sure there will be lawyers.
www.espn.com/college-foot...

NCAA officially adopts Jan. 2-16 portal window

The NCAA has officially adopted Jan. 2-16 as its new, singular transfer portal window for all FBS, FCS players beginning in 2026.

www.espn.com

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 5d

This is a great place for difference-in-difference analysis.

JJ Cooper @jjcoop36.bsky.social · 5d

Conventional wisdom says if you throw extremely hard as an MLB SP you at significant risk to blow out and fade away.

In reality, the hardest throwing MLB SPs are the most long-lasting/durable. I studied 236 MLB SPs that debuted from 2008-2015.

www.baseballamerica.com/stories/to-h...

To Have A Lengthy MLB Career, Pitchers Need To Throw Hard

J.J. Cooper digs into years' worth of MLB pitching data to investigate the connection between throwing harder and career length.

www.baseballamerica.com

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JJ Cooper @jjcoop36.bsky.social · 5d

Conventional wisdom says if you throw extremely hard as an MLB SP you at significant risk to blow out and fade away.

In reality, the hardest throwing MLB SPs are the most long-lasting/durable. I studied 236 MLB SPs that debuted from 2008-2015.

www.baseballamerica.com/stories/to-h...

To Have A Lengthy MLB Career, Pitchers Need To Throw Hard

J.J. Cooper digs into years' worth of MLB pitching data to investigate the connection between throwing harder and career length.

www.baseballamerica.com

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Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 6d

Very informative.
www.sportico.com/leagues/hock...

How the NHL Looks Out for Small Markets as Salary Caps Rise

The NHL's new collective bargaining agreement will increase the league's revenue-sharing pool, benefiting low-revenue teams like the Blue Jackets.

www.sportico.com

Brad "Pencil Necked Geek" Humphreys @bradhumphreys.bsky.social · 6d

Here's a link to an ungated copy

rdcu.be/eJoJu

Horizontal Product Differentiation in Higher Education Markets and Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Changes

rdcu.be

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Rachel Bachman, WSJ sports reporter @realbachscore.bsky.social · 8d

Sources: www.loc.gov/resource/sn9...

www.loc.gov/resource/sn8...

www.loc.gov

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Rachel Bachman, WSJ sports reporter @realbachscore.bsky.social · 8d

The early years of the Michigan-Wisconsin series were marked by catastrophic collapses of the stadiums they played in. In the Ann Arbor game, players actually helped rescue people from the wreckage.

Chicago (1902) and Ann Arbor (1905)

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Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 8d

Read and learn.
www.cbssports.com/wnba/news/ge...

WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert is under fire, but the NBA is the real power worth challenging

Engelbert faces blazing criticism from WNBA players, but the NBA's ownership and influence remain the central challenge to the league's future

www.cbssports.com

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Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 9d

It’s not a new “cost” problem. No school is required to pay the $20.5mil. And without NCAA constraints, new rev opportunities make it possible *for the obvious group*. Everything has always been driven by *revenue* differences.

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 9d

Indeed. Otherwise sounds like we all turned into dead weight. Good on you.

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Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 9d

Not that hard: A particular level of sports at given U is best for Univ admins. The more sports generate, the less UAs have to invest. Result: Revenue imperative dictated to ADs. Always was that way. New twist? New forms of revenue are now OK. So ADs go get it. Still the same rev imperative.

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Lindsay Gibbs @lindsaygibbs.bsky.social · 9d

Engelbert deserves the criticism she is getting. But Adam Silver and the NBA are the biggest obstacle in WNBA labor fights. My latest for @cbssports.bsky.social:

www.cbssports.com/wnba/news/ge...

WNBA's Engelbert under fire — but the NBA's power looms larger

Engelbert faces blazing criticism from WNBA players, but the NBA's ownership and influence remain the central challenge to the league's future.

www.cbssports.com

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Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 9d

Ah. Thanks.

Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 9d

Link?

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John Thorn @johnthorn.bsky.social · 9d

The Massachusetts Game had four bases PLUS a striker's point. The fourth base was home, which a runner had to touch to score. Below is the New York Game (same story), with a distance between first and third base of "42 paces OR yds." [Emphasis mine; see: ourgame.mlblogs.com/the-making-o... ]

The Making of Baseball’s Magna Carta

The Making of Baseball’s Magna Carta Something odd, unusual, unexpected, even — to one not inclined to superlatives — utterly amazing has just now turned up, some 160 years since it vanished …

ourgame.mlblogs.com

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Rodney Fort 🐀 @rodneyfort.bsky.social · 10d

Interesting. Watching Clev Det. At Progressive Field. All of the ads behind home plate are Geico.😆

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