Lay off them, argues Chad Orzel:
Is it a good thing that only 52% of Maryland's black male athletes graduate? No. But the real tragedy is that only 54% of Maryland's black male students graduate. We should fix that problem first-- by improving public education so that students from poor and minority backgrouds come to college with the tools they need to succeed-- and see if the athletic graduation rates don't take care of themselves.
But it's easy to write self-righteous editorials blasting high-profile sports programs for their academic failings, while fixing the class and race problems of American education will cost real money, and require actual work. And nobody wants that.
(Hat tip: Insidehighered.)