Jay M Smith - Cheated: The UNC Scandal, the Education of Athletes, and the Future of Big-Time College Sports

In the course of researching and writing this book, we accumulated many debts to generous individuals. Jonathan Weiler, David Rice, Fitz Brundage, William Ferris, Jim Woodrow, and Alyssa Smith provided invaluable feedback on early draft chapters. Richard Southall, the director of the College Sport Research Institute at the University of South Carolina, allowed us to draw on his expertise on college sport and its history on many occasions both before and after his migration from Chapel Hill to Columbia. Active members of the Athletic Reform Group at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill ( UNC )including especially Willis Brooks, Lewis Margolis, Silvia Tomskov, Rudi Colloredo-Mansfeld, Hassan Melehy, George Baroff, Richard Cramer, and Miles Fletcherfurnished encouragement, occasional reality checks, and an important sounding board (as did ARG member Jonathan Weiler on occasions too numerous to recall). Harry Watson, Michael Hunt, Madeline Levine, Elliot Cramer, Bob Orr, Sarah Shields, Frank Baumgartner, Joseph Lowman, Peggy Bush, Mark Witcher, Melinda Manning, Richard Kwok, Norman Allard, David Kiel, Bob Reinheimer, Patti Reinheimer, Virginia Taylor, and John Shelton Reed offered vital moral support at critical junctures in the books evolution. Hodding Carter bucked us up whenever the going got tough, which was more often than we would have liked. Taylor Branch provided kind words and his own inspiring model of righteous indignation. Philip Jackson and the Black Star Project invited Mary Willingham to join their crusade to erase the educational achievement gap in Americas schools. Allen Sack, Gerald Gurney, David Ridpath, and Kadie Otto shared the great benefits of their wisdom and long experience with athletic reform, and the Drake Group as a whole helped to keep us afloat during difficult times.

By keeping the story of the UNC scandal alive through his persistent reporting, Dan Kane of the Raleigh News & Observer ( N&O ) provided a platform for all who demanded accountability from the university. Sarah Lyall, Frank Deford, Sara Ganim, Pat Forde, Joe Nocera, and Paul Barrett saw the importance of the UNC story, and by directing their attention to itand to usthey helped to convince us of the potential value of this book. The many people who agreed to sit down for interviewssome of them identified in these pages and some notgive the book much of its context and color, and we thank each one of them for coming forward. UNC alumni who shall remain anonymousbut you know who you arelifted our spirits, gave living proof of the power of a UNC education, and reminded us often of the institutional imperative to tell the truth. The helpful staff at the University Archives at UNC Chapel Hill helped us to navigate the records of the College of Arts and Sciences, and they responded to every request with smiles and efficiency.

The late William Friday went out of his way to encourage us both. And as a defender of academic integrity who enjoyed sports and supported athletes, he set an example of balanced and careful analysis that continues to inspire.

The most helpful individuals of all were our spouses, Deb Smith and Chuck Willingham, who first shared our sense of outrage and then traveled with us through the peaks and valleys of a long writing process, showing amazing patience and fortitude along the way. This book would never have seen the light of day without their support and forbearance, and we are happy to have the chance at last to send them a permanent expression of our love and gratitude.