Sports and sporting events are never just about athletic competition. They also concern issues of race, class, gender, nationalism, science, ethics and the law. Sports generate a constant stream of reportage, and like the writing on most subjects, much sports coverage is simplistic and mediocre, while some is genuinely great. In this course we will explore numerous examples of sports writing, particularly long form texts often marked by depth, sophistication and stylistic polish. Since ENGL 3940 is an English course and not a sociology course, our primary emphasis will be on an exploration of the sportswriter’s craft, but we will also certainly engage in an investigation of how sports and sports writing address some of the key issues in cultural studies today.