Class Colloquium 7: Brian Dowling and Calvin Hill – the Student-Athlete, 1965-2020

Two of our most iconic classmates, Brian Dowling and Calvin Hill, thrilled us as students and graduated into the ranks of professional sports and successful careers.

Join them and your Yale classmates for a discussion of the evolving role of the student-athlete at places like Yale — and at the Division I colleges where nationally competitive sports are more dominant features of campus life.  A LOT has changed over the years, both in college and after college.

Brian and Calvin will explore these and other issues … followed by Q&A from attendees:

• What did college sports mean to these two men in the ‘60s?
• What was the “student” part of the role like, and how is it different today?  What about “gut” courses or majors, graduation rates, and other measures of actual academic development during their college years
• How has the scale of money involved in sports – both college and pro – changed and how has it changed the nature of collegiate sports
• In response to these changes, how has coaching changed across the years?
• What about the general maturation and character development of those important years from 18-22?  How has that changed over time?
• Should NCAA student-athletes be paid?

Don’t forget to register in advance.  Go to https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMvduugrD0pGdPT3L8o5Gs2sOVCN32TVoYJ and sign up now.  You will be emailed instructions for joining the meeting.

If you’d like Brian and Calvin to address a particular question you have, use this handy form to pose the question in advance.

ABBREVIATED BIOS

Brian Dowling

• Coming to Yale from perennial powerhouse St. Ignatius in Cleveland, Brian is best known at Yale from football; Yalies don’t know that he was equally gifted and successful in basketball, tennis and baseball.  He’s in the Cleveland Sports Hall of Fame for a reason. 
• Astonishingly, he ended his HS and college careers with a record of of 52-0-1 in games where he finished uninjured. 
• After laboring in the NFL, WFL and CFL for 9 seasons, Brian has worked in broadcasting, sports marketing, insurance consulting and venture capital.  He and his family live in the New Haven area.

Calvin Hill

• Calvin came to Yale from Baltimore via Riverdale Country School in New York, where he, like Brian, was an honors student as well as a standout athlete sought-after by Division I schools. 
• What you probably didn’t know is that Calvin arrived at Yale as a quarterback.  Moving him, eventually, to running back seems to have worked out!
• After Yale, Calvin joined the Dallas Cowboys where he was recognized as Offensive Rookie Of The Year and was a major contributor to Dallas’s 2 NFC and one Super Bowl title.  Calvin also played briefly in the WFL and for the Redskins.  He also retired after 9 years, only to unretire for three more years with the Cleveland Browns. 
• Calvin’s post-football career includes board, executive and consulting roles with the Baltimore Orioles, the Cowboys and many other organizations.  He’s credited with creating programs to address thorny and sensitive personnel issues facing professional teams, leagues, player unions and players.  See the 2016 Yale1969.org story about Calvin’s being awarded an honorary doctorate from Yale for more detail.