Two freshmen currently hold elite rankings in chess: FIDE Master and National Master Vincent Tsay and Candidate Master Alec Beck. Having grown up around chess, they both had their share of structured training and tournament-hopping and have found meaning in the classic, universally loved strategy game. Their newest plan of action: adjusting to college life at Washington University.

It’s hard to ward off the feeling that “white basketball” is the manifestation of the same racial categorizations that kept black players from playing quarterback in the NFL.