Some 21,000 current athletes at 627 Division I, II and III schools — including more than 1,600 football and 417 men's basketball players — participated in the survey. In the top-tier Division I, almost two of every three said they consider themselves more as athletes than students.
That's reflected in their time commitments, both required and voluntary.
— Football players in the NCAA's Division I Bowl Subdivision (formerly known as Division I-A) said they spent an average of 44.8 hours a week on their sport — playing games, practicing, training and in the training room — compared with a little less than 40 hours on academics.
— Division I baseball players said they spent 40 hours on their sport, 32 on academics. In men's basketball, it was 36.8 hours on their sport vs. 33.9 hours on academics.
— Women's basketball was little less time-intensive, players saying they spent a little more than 36 hours on their game vs. a little more than 37 on classwork.
— Other sports exceeding or approaching a 37 1/2-hour work week were men's golf (40.8) and hockey (37.6) and women's softball (37.1).
The survey, Brand says, doesn't address the degree to which coaches' implied demands drive up after-practice hours. Nearly one in four baseball and men's basketball players and one in five football players said they'd put in more time if they could, the findings show.