I started this column to write about my biggest distraction from school: sports. I’ll admit, to say that sports are a distraction is an understatement. In fact, my obsession is slightly detrimental, but I digress. Every morning, I usually browse news sites, such as Time, CNN, ESPN, and Sports Illustrated. Coming to UC Riverside, a school with a top-tier, athletic program, is definitely exciting; the level of competition here is virtually unparalleled anywhere else. And yet, I don’t intend to write about current, individual sporting events that take place on campus; for such information, one could pick up a copy of the school newspaper and catch up on a week’s worth of sporting events at a time.

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Perhaps one of the biggest sporting events of each year is the nearly three-week long National Collegiate Athletic Association’s men’s basketball Division-I tournament that determines the sport’s annual champion. Each year, fans spend billions of dollars on tickets, merchandise, and food while watching the 64 single-elimination matches. Schools that compete in the competition look forward to dramatic increases in school spirit, media coverage, and most importantly, revenue. As a Division-I school, UC Riverside represents the highest level of competition in the sport and has the opportunity every year to participate in this national money-minting event.

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Each quarter at UC Riverside, as part of their tuition, students pay a Division-I fee. This payment supports the athletic program here, which, as a Division-I school, represents the highest level of competition in college sports. As such, UC Riverside athletic facilities are state of the art, and offer its athletes the best opportunities to pursue professional careers in their sports. While the school’s athletic events are not often discussed on [Read more...]