When I picked up the Nov. 19 edition of the Athens Banner-Herald and read that members of the University of Georgia faculty have met once again to nitpick what's going on in athletics regarding student-athletes, their majors and their course selections, I shuddered at what we may do next to shoot ourselves in the foot.

The headline, "On lookout for Mickey and cupcakes," is enough to make a grown man weep at its repercussions. The first question is how "Mickey Mouse majors" and "cupcake classes" are determined. Who decides - the czar of "Mickey Mouse Majors" and "cupcake classes?" Who is that "czar" to be? As a former major in physical education, I can think of a lot of people I wouldn't want to hold that position.

If they chose PE as a "Mickey Mouse major," does that mean my degree would be worth nothing? Frankly, it served me well in doing what I had dreamed of doing all my life - being a coach and physical education teacher. And although I made A's in the anatomy, physiology and kinesiology courses, I thought those were the most useless courses I took. I would much rather have had another psychology course, a course in management, or something in sociology in order to have a chance to better learn of the differences in the various socioeconomic groups I would be working with in coaching. That would have enhanced my work as a mentor and counselor for hundreds of young men over the years.

But back to home base. It looks like we still have our knickers in a knot about the low graduation rates for student-athletes, particularly the 9 percent rate of the men's basketball team for student-athletes who were freshmen in 1999 and who graduated within six years. It's strange I haven't seen an explanation for at least part of that poor rate, which would probably be because we had three coaching changes during that period.

Anyone even vaguely familiar with college athletics, at any level, would expect graduation rates to plummet in such a circumstance. Many players choose a college because of its coaches, and when there are changes in the coaching staff, you can count on players transferring. They may graduate later, but once they left under the old NCAA rules, they counted against your graduation rates. With such small numbers involved, there is little wonder the graduation rates would be low in that environment.

In addition, I'm familiar with several of the players in that group who were within easy reach of graduating, but who opted to play pro ball around the world, gaining an education they could never have gotten in college. Hopefully, they'll take advantage of a program instituted at UGA in the 1990s to give former players a chance to come back and get their degrees. Basketball player Robb Dryden, an engineering major at UGA, did just that when he found time during his tenure as a foreign pro player to complete his work. Unfortunately, his graduation put him one year away from counting in the graduation rate. However, I doubt that was on his mind as he traveled the world, chasing one of his two dreams.

If I were UGA head football coach Mark Richt or head basketball coach Dennis Felton - coaches of the only two revenue-producing sports at the university - I'd get very nervous reading stories about a faculty committee discussing "Mickey Mouse majors" and "cupcake classes."

As one of the finest athletic programs in the country, UGA had a profit of $23.9 million this past year. That made it possible to support all the Title IX and men's non-revenue sports to the tune of $13.9 million, as well as making a gift of $2 million to the university. One would think that at some point in time, the powers-that-be at UGA might ask themselves: "What can we do to make certain we are able to assist this program?" That's a particularly apt question when you realize there are very few student-athletes who present problems in admissions and academics as they pursue their degrees. Surely we have the resources to provide the support and assistance these few young people need to earn a degree in an appropriate major, and a legitimate education in something that will bring them success after college.

One way to do that would be to provide some major or majors relevant to what many student-athletes will be doing after earning their degrees. There is a multibillion-dollar sports industry in this country, and Atlanta is one of its hubs. But UGA doesn't really have many majors that address that area. For instance, UGA doesn't have a coaching major set up to provide the type of training coaches should have today. A coach today has to be a father figure, pastor, counselor, strength coach, trainer, primary disciplinarian and much more. The university certainly could develop an appropriate curriculum for that major, and if they need help, I know a volunteer ready to give it.

The one reality that any faculty committee looking into athletics needs to keep in mind is that, whether they like it or not, this is a state university. As such, we will continue to try to have athletic programs similar to those in surrounding states. We are similar to those other state institutions academically, and, hopefully, we can continue to compete with them athletically. I see no reason we can't, as long as we don't destroy ourselves by having too many committees and task forces designed to make life tougher for a very small group of young people, the vast majority of whom will make us proud they are Bulldogs - for both their play on fields and courts, and as graduates.