Athlete Graduation Rate Gaps at Division-I State Flagship Universities: An Exploratory Analysis Emphasizing Black Males

Discrepancies in Black male graduation rates at NCAA Division-I state flagship institutions have raised questions about claims of unilateral academic progress among certain revenue sport athletes. Researchers have identified gaps in NCAA and federal graduation rates between athletes and non-athletes based on race and type of sport participation. This exploratory study examines the degree to which graduation rates vary between football and male basketball athletes and male undergraduates at state flagship institutions. We pay particular attention to gaps in graduation rates for Black male athletes. We then seek theoretical explanations for these gaps by drawing on the athletic role-engulfment and key-player hypothesis, the mismatch education hypothesis, and the institutional isomorphism theory.