Several years ago, we wrote about an "NFL ready" football player, Ed Oliver. He's achieved success with the Buffalo Bills. But readiness questions in the sports pipeline persist for millions of young people around the country. Beyond physical readiness, we must consider academic, social, and other types of readiness. Participation is one aspect of life readiness that is overlooked. The more we can keep kids engaged in high quality sporting environments, the better. Trends in participation at youth and college levels are troubling -- and must be addressed. In this SGG episode, we identify some of these trends. And we launch a series examining participation and readiness in the sports pipeline.