Sports only make money at the point of the most elite college programs, usually mainly its the football or basketball program that subsidizes the rest of the athletic program.

I think its more you become aware of where you stand fast. You go to meets or games of a bunch of different schools and see who is literally the best in the area. You go to state competitions and see who is best in the entire state. And then there are nationals where you see who is best in the entire nation. Throughout this your stats are posted online where you and college scouts can see them.

Academics have no comparison. We struggle to even compare grades because of grade inflation.