Racial Position Segregation in Intercollegiate Football: Do Players become more Racially Segregated as they Transition from High School to College?

Abstract

This study revisits the issue of racial position segregation or racial “stacking” in intercollegiate football. Estimating a probit model, we examine the impact that a player's race has on the probability of him changing positions when he moves from high school to the collegiate ranks. Descriptive statistics of our data reveal significant evidence that racial position segregation is widespread in high school football. The data also offers much information about which players are likely to change positions and the positions that they are likely to switch to when transitioning from high school to college. Most notably, our probit results reveal that African American high school quarterbacks and white high school running backs are significantly more likely to change positions in college than their white and African American counterparts, respectively. Thus, while other positions do not appear to become more racially segregated as players transition from high school to college, the quarterback and running back positions do appear to become significantly more racially segregated.

It is not Black and White: A comparison of skin tone by playing position in the Premier League and English football

“…Melnick 23 and Norris and Jones 24 ), the results suggest that mean skin tone in wide positions is still slightly darker than in central positions. Although in line with previous research, 9,25 the difference we report is minute and the effect small. The present study also advances the literature by being the first to assess positional differences by skin tone across the population of English professional football.…”

“…Given the financial resources available in the Premier League, it was thought that clubs would purchase the most suitable candidate for the position. However, this fails to consider that, according to Pitts and Yost, 25 the most suitable candidate may also mean the one who best fits the stereotype. As Melnick 23 (p. 126) states:‘In the absence of any compelling evidence to support the belief that white and black soccer players possess certain physical and/or psychological characteristics which make them better suited for playing particular positions, one must look elsewhere for an explanation of these findings.’…”

The effect of race on lateral moves to coach central positions

“…Sack, Singh, and Thiel (2005) described stacking, or occupational segregation, as the assigning of individuals to certain positions based on assumptions regarding one's race. Pitts and Yost (2012) argued that stacking Black athletes into peripheral positions could be dangerous for them if they intend to pursue future leadership positions due to the lack of decision-making skills in peripheral positions. In the context of centrality, stacking makes it harder for non-central position holders to be promoted, or only affords them with poor management options if they are promoted.…”

Exit Discrimination in the NFL: A Duration Analysis of Career Length

“…Lavoie (1989) found evidence of positional stacking involving minority (French-Canadian) hockey players. More recently, Pitts and Yost (2013) found position segregation in college football where black high school quarterbacks and white high school running backs were more likely to change positions in college than their white and black counterparts, respectively. Exit Discrmination Johnson and Marple (1973) pioneered a new branch of discrimination research when they found evidence from 1970-71 NBA data that marginal white players had longer careers than marginal black players.…”