#5
Post
by DadofTwins » Sat Dec 01, 2007 12:11 pm
I hate to perpetuate the stereotype of "dumb jocks," but these guys willingly sign up for the most one-sided deals you'll ever see.
Coaches recruit players to play for them, but are free to leave whenever the money is better elsewhere. If a player leaves, he sits a year. That's fine provided he hasn't already buned his redshirt year. Remember, Urban Meyer originally recruited Troy Smith to play QB at Bowling Green. Four years later, Meyer is in Florida via Utah, coaching against Smith in the NC game. So what, exactly, did Meyer promise the Smith family on that recruiting visit?
A coach can pull a scholarship whenever he wants, for whatever reason. The "four-year deals" to which the players are bound are, for the schools, renewable at the school's or coach's option every semester.
The brightest players might get an education, but that's only provided that the sport doesn't interfere. Players routinely miss class for sports trips, but nobody ever missed a practice because they had Chemistry homework. Since educational access is supposed to be the primary benefit these players receive, to systematically deprive them of their primary means of compensation seems unfair at best, fraudulant at worst. (That is, of course, assuming they come to the school with enough educational chops to take full advantage of the education offered, but that's another topic).
The NCAA has rules limiting practice time, mandatory sessions with coaches, etc., but the reality is that much like Al Gore's environmentalism, most coaches think the rules are only for other people. Remember Dan Hawkins' rant ("It's Division 1 football!")? College sports are a year-round, full-time (or more) job for these players, for which the compensation they are promised is rarely if ever delivered. What's more, the schools have colluded to prevent anyone from seeking recourse against those who secure the player's services in bad faith.
Yet somehow, there are still more people willing to play under these conditions than there are slots available.
Dumb jocks? Maybe it's a cliche because it's true.
We have enough youth. How about a fountain of smart?
