Despite pro football's sky-high profits, taxpayers subsidize the industry with $1 billion each year. In The King of Sports, Gregg Easterbrook argues for some serious reforms, including incentives for college graduation rates and a new approach to youth football leagues.

Punished after the Jerry Sandusky child sex scandal, the school has since made "progress toward ensuring athletics integrity," the NCAA says. So, a limit on how many scholarships it can give to football players is being eased.

High school athletes devote a lot of hours to practice and games. Parents and coaches say playing sports builds character and teamwork. But do sports take too much time away from the classroom? In a recent article for The Atlantic, writer Amanda Ripley makes the case against after-school sports. She joins host Michel Martin, along with parents Dani Tucker and Glenn Ivey.

A couple of months ago the Dodgers were ranked last in their division — now they're Western Division champs on their way to the playoffs. A 22-year-old Cuban defector has been credited with sparking the team's come-back, No. 66, Yasiel Puig.

President Obama has been criticized for playing too much golf. But former President George W. Bush tells the Golf Channel that the sport is a good outlet for the pressures of the White House.

Last week, it looked bleak for defending champion Oracle Team USA, but flukey wind and better tactics have kept them in the running against Emirates Team New Zealand.

Former NFL receiver Nate Jackson's new memoir, Slow Getting Up, is a raw account of his six years on the field. Jackson spent most of that time with the Denver Broncos, and while he wasn't a star, he got just as banged up as the big-name players — and learned to play through the pain.

Did late-season baseball get more exciting or more absurd with the addition of a second wild card post-season slot? NPR's Mike Pesca talks with host Rachel Martin about the manufactured buzz of the wild card race.

The NBA has agreed to install high-speed cameras in all 30 pro arenas to capture the motions of players and the ball 25 times per second. Host Rachel Martin talks to Grantland sports reporter Zach Lowe about the technology.

The Cubs and the White Socks are both in last place in their divisions. How can one major city have two teams in a race to the bottom? Host Scott Simon asks former Weekend Edition Saturday sports commentator Ron Rapoport, editor of a new anthology, From Black Sox to Three Peats: A Century of Chicago's Best Sportswriting.