When colleges and universities tie scholarship money to an athlete playing a sport, the result is a halfhearted performance from those athletes who don't want to be playing. If an athlete doesn't want to compete, that is their decision and they decide what they believe is best for them.
The decrease in the number of Dartmouth athletes who complete all four years of their respective sport demonstrates the beauty of our system that doesn't force students to participate in sports if they don't want to. Although the quality of the teams may suffer due to the loss of some quality players, this system leads to more dedicated teams and happier students.
No coach wants a player who's not going to give 110 percent during practice and games. This player not only detracts from the team's performance, but the player's attitude can drag down the attitudes of others on the team as well. When every player gives his or her all, not only does the team perform better, but the players can count on their teammates to fight out every game till the end.
The athletic department does need to look at why students aren't enjoying participating in Dartmouth athletics as much. Be it the coaching, or the intense demands of a varsity sport, the fact remains that many students have lost their passion for their sport in favor of another activity. Some factors are out of the control of coaches. Factors such as grades are the sole responsibility of the player, and if the player can't balance athletics with academics, then the students shouldn't be competing.
It is difficult to isolate a single reason why players quit, but the end result is a happier student. No one wants play a sport when they know other activities exist that they would enjoy more. In 1988, Liz Walter '89, a two-time Ivy League Player of the Year in Women's Basketball and Kodak district all-American decided to take the season off to participate in an off-campus academic program. Undoubtedly the coach asked Walter to stay on for her final year, but the end was Walter's and she did what she believed was best for her.
The most important result is that unlike athletes at many other schools, Dartmouth athletes compete because they enjoy their sport. Dartmouth's athletic programs, and Dartmouth as a whole is better off because of this.
