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Why can’t college sports be fixed? Look at Michigan’s response to Dusty May leaving

Former Michigan basketball coach Dusty May crosses his arms and wears a backward hat while looking up with people standing behind him.

Michigan lost men’s basketball coach Dusty May to the NBA’s Dallas Mavericks after winning the national title. Michael Reaves / Getty Images

By Austin MeekJune 30, 2026 6:05 am EDT Updated

A two-minute clip from a recent meeting of Michigan’s board of regents was a Rosetta Stone for understanding why college sports leaders can’t seem to fix the problems that everyone sees so clearly.

Domenico Grasso, Michigan’s president, addressed the departure of men’s basketball coach Dusty May, whose decision to coach the Dallas Mavericks blindsided a lot of people in Ann Arbor. At Michigan and elsewhere, losing one of college basketball’s brightest minds was viewed as another canary in the increasingly toxic coal mine of college sports.

“Coach May told me that among his reasons for leaving were uncertainties and pressures involving the transfer portal and NIL support for student-athletes,” Grasso said. “He and I agreed that the future of college sports is headed in the wrong direction.”

In the next breath, Grasso voiced Michigan’s objections to the Protect College Sports Act, a bill that is intended to address those very problems. While acknowledging that college sports are in “dire need of clarity and equitable reform,” Grasso echoed the stance of the Big Ten and the SEC, which do not support the legislation.

“We want what’s best for the Big Ten and for Michigan,” Grasso said. “We are not going to sacrifice the competitive advantage that we have built for more than a century.”

Dusty May leaving for pros is familiar for Michigan fansAustin Meek

By now, it should be obvious that “equitable reform” and “competitive advantage” don’t fit neatly in the same box. In trying to have it both ways, leaders in college sports sound a lot like St. Augustine: God, grant me chastity, but just not yet.

In college sports, the optimal amount of money to spend on a roster is whatever your school and its donors can afford. Any school that pays less lacks the want-to and resources to fully support student-athletes; any school that pays more is contributing to out-of-control spending. Schools with competitive advantages want to preserve those advantages, while the schools at a disadvantage want to rein in the big spenders.

None of this is meant as an endorsement of the Protect College Sports Act, a bipartisan bill that recently advanced out of the Senate Commerce Committee. The Big Ten and SEC aren’t wrong to feel targeted by provisions that could curb future conference realignment and open the door for the pooling of media rights. And any attempt to cap what college athletes can be paid, absent a collective bargaining agreement, is fair game for criticism.

The point is that everyone’s definition of “equitable reform” is a solution that enshrines all of the privileges schools believe they are entitled to. If Michigan is doing what’s best for Michigan, Texas Tech is doing what’s best for Texas Tech and LSU is doing what’s best for LSU, no one is actually fixing anything.

Under May, Michigan’s men’s basketball program was a paradigm for success in the modern era. May built one of the most dominant teams in Big Ten history by outmaneuvering his peers in the transfer portal. Three of Michigan’s transfers — Morez Johnson Jr., Yaxel Lendeborg and Aday Mara — were selected in the first 12 picks of last week’s NBA Draft. A fourth, point guard Elliot Cadeau, was the Final Four’s most outstanding player.

May did what all good coaches do: He maximized Michigan’s competitive advantages within the system that’s in place. It’s a gross oversimplification to say the Wolverines won because they spent money in the transfer portal. Lots of other programs spent money, too. It was the combination of everything — the coaching, the chemistry, the players’ buy-in and the financial resources — that carried Michigan to the top.

May said repeatedly that he wouldn’t stop to savor Michigan’s accomplishments until the season ended. It never seemed like he got the chance. He was already scanning his phone for messages from recruits on the walk back to the team hotel after the national championship game. Three weeks later, he was so deep in roster-building mode that he said the accomplishment of winning a national championship hadn’t sunk in.

“Your roster is the priority,” May said. “If we don’t do the work necessary now, then you don’t have a chance to compete again. It’s been difficult … for me, no, it doesn’t feel any different at all.”

In one sense, May is a bellwether. If the most successful portal-builder in the sport thinks college basketball is headed to a bad place, what hope does anyone else have? In another sense, he’s an outlier. It’s not as if he left Michigan to coach in the G League. He won a national championship and left for the NBA, which is not a new development in college sports. If Michigan had been pretty good instead of historically good, we might not be having this conversation.

What You Should Read Next

Michigan’s Mike Boynton pushing to replace Dusty May: ‘Operating as if I’m going to be the coach’ Boynton, an assistant for May for two seasons, is in the process of trying to convince Michigan to remove the interim tag from his title.

The Mavericks can offer more money and a better quality of life, but they can’t offer the same competitive advantages May had at Michigan. There’s a good chance he’ll succeed anyway because he’s an excellent basketball coach, though his success will depend in large part on the people around him. For better or worse, he’ll be operating in a much more structured environment than the one he had at Michigan.

College sports could replicate parts of that structure, but it would require people in charge to do what’s best for college sports as a whole, not just their own conference or institution. Most people don’t want to do that. Unless that changes, coaches will keep leaving, fans will keep grumbling, and college sports will remain stuck in the status quo.

It’s no wonder nothing gets fixed.

Jun 30, 2026

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Border Patrol makes huge bust of illegals hiding in plain sight

Southern California Border Patrol busts 2 human smuggling ops

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Border Patrol makes huge bust of illegals hiding in plain sight

By Nina Joudeh Published June 30, 2026, 5:45 p.m. ET

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Border Patrol agents intercepted two separate human smuggling operations in Southern California after uncovering dozens of undocumented immigrants being transported in vehicles, including nearly 30 people hidden inside a dump trailer.

The two incidents unfolded in Westmorland within the El Centro Sector, where agents first stopped a Chevy Tahoe carrying seven undocumented immigrants.

An aerial view of people sitting in a line along a dirt canal with law enforcement officers and vehicles nearby. — California Border Control gents discovered 27 undocumented migrants concealed inside a mini bottom dump trailer.

In a separate bust, agents discovered 27 undocumented migrants concealed inside a mini bottom dump trailer in what officials described as a dangerous smuggling attempt.

In total, Border Patrol agents apprehended 34 illegal immigrants across the two operations and halted both smuggling attempts.

Border Patrol agents stop a dump truck concealing people and a Chevrolet Tahoe during a smuggling event. — Agents first stopped a Chevy Tahoe carrying seven undocumented migrants in Westmorland. Facebook/@USBPChiefELC

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Officials said the back-to-back busts marked “another bad day for smugglers” in the El Centro Sector. Getty Images

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U.S. Customs and Border Protection building entrance. — In total, Border Patrol agents apprehended 34 undocumented migrants across the two operations. Getty Images

Officials said the back-to-back busts marked “another bad day for smugglers” in the El Centro Sector, adding that the operations highlight ongoing efforts to combat human smuggling along the southern border.

No injuries were reported.

At the same time, Border Patrol took to Instagram, sending out a public warning for all to see:

“If you are here illegally, we will find you, we will arrest you, and we will remove you from the United States. It is not a matter of if, but when.”

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California Border Control gents discovered 27 undocumented migrants concealed inside a mini bottom dump trailer.

Agents first stopped a Chevy Tahoe carrying seven undocumented migrants in Westmorland. Facebook/@USBPChiefELC

Officials said the back-to-back busts marked “another bad day for smugglers” in the El Centro Sector. Getty Images

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Massive NYC pool shuttered for repairs – for second year in a row – amid extreme heat wave

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Massive NYC pool shuttered for repairs – for second year in a row – amid extreme heat wave

By Georgett Roberts and Nicole Rosenthal Published June 30, 2026, 5:33 p.m. ET

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One of the city’s largest pools will be closed during this week’s scorching heat wave and for most of next month because of “unforeseen” mechanical issues – the second straight year the aging community “lifeline” has suffered a shutdown.

The popular Red Hook Pool, among five Olympic-sized tubs in Brooklyn, did not open to the public during the citywide outdoor pool opening day Saturday “due to the sudden, unforeseen failure of mechanical equipment,” city Parks Department reps said.

The front entrance of the Sol Goldman Recreation Center &amp;amp; Pool at Red Hook Park. — Red Hook Pool remains closed “due to the sudden, unforeseen failure of mechanical equipment,” NYC Parks said. Gregory P. Mango for NY Post

The nearly century-old summer oasis won’t be open for most of July, either, joining several pools citywide that remain closed at the onset of the season, the department said.

Among the other shut city pools is the supposed back-up that Red Hook families are being directed to on the NYC Parks’ website as an alternative to their own closed site.

“It’s very disappointing,” said Red Hook mom Karin-Jolie Rosado. “We waited all year for this.

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“It was closed last summer, and then this summer there are still issues,” she said of the local pool. “They should have resolved the issues by now.”

Her 8-year-old daughter Loretta said, “It’s really sad because we don’t have anywhere else to swim.”

The opening of Red Hook’s 90-year-old pool complex was delayed until August last year because of a broken decades-old pipe, according to The City Reporter.

This year’s delay was blamed on a flooded filter plant beneath the pool, which damaged motors and other equipment, a Parks rep said — adding that the discovery was only made four days before opening day.

A woman and three children, including a baby in a stroller, pose outdoors. — “It’s very disappointing,” said Red Hook mom Karin-Jolie Rosado, here with children Loretta, 8, Eleanor, 6, and Amir, 4. Gregory P. Mango for NY Post

“This could’ve been avoided,” said Adam Ganser, executive director of the advocacy group New Yorkers For Parks, who called the matter “at its purest form, a staffing issue.”

The policy group noted that an estimated 50 plumbers on Parks’ payroll is far below the number needed to maintain the city’s 1,700 parks and playgrounds.

The group is now renewing calls for the agency to fund an additional 150 tradespeople to keep up with its aging infrastructure.

Ganser called the pool a “lifeline” for city dwellers, especially ahead of the summer’s first “heat dome” situation and triple-digit temperatures expected later this week.

“The water is something that gives the kids a safe activity to do during a heat wave,” Rosado said. “Otherwise, they are stuck at home.”

A security guard stands outside the closed Red Hook Pool, where signs explain the temporary closure due to mechanical failure. — “The water is something that gives the kids a safe activity to do during a heat wave,” Rosado said. Gregory P. Mango for NY Post

The pool is one of several sites closed for unplanned maintenance as of Tuesday afternoon, Parks said, while two other pools are under construction for long-term capital improvements.

Claremont Pool in The Bronx is shuttered because of mechanical issues, and the Doulgass and DeGraw Pool in Gowanus – the city-touted Red Hook Pool alternative – is also closed because of a “category 2 water quality issue.”

“Pools generally experience temporary closures for a variety of reasons: mechanical, sanitary, weather, etc.,” a Parks rep told The Post.

“Many of our pools are celebrating their 90th year in use this season, including Red Hook Pool,” the rep said, noting that, “to ensure that Red Hook Pool can continue to serve New Yorkers for generations,” the site has been earmarked for a $122 million renovation project set to begin in 2028.

A partially filled empty swimming pool with yellow bottom and blue walls with stairs and railings. — The opening of the 90-year-old Red Hook Pool complex was also delayed last year because of a broken decades-old pipe. Gregory P. Mango for NY Post

Aside from 53 free outdoor pools, the Parks system also touts an array of splash pads to beat the summer heat.

But the cooling features are facing “outages” in record numbers, a Post investigation recently found, with Parks reps blaming last winter’s severe weather combined with “very few staff resources for repairs.”

The news comes as the city’s new budget paves the way for a new Parks “Renew Crew” pilot program — which is funded through 2027 — set to make “quick targeted improvements” for playgrounds, courts, fields and other green spaces.

Still, Ganser argues the city must still invest in full-time tradespeople to keep the city’s green spaces up and running.

“A lot of this is highly sophisticated mechanical equipment or plumbing, and you need professionals on staff to ensure that everything is is is in good, operable condition,” Ganser said.

“This begs a larger question, which is why doesn’t the agency have the staffing it needs to take care of these issues, which are occurring every single year.”

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