Because Chris W forwarded me a real winner. Dan Wetzel, the floor is yours.
I can't decide who I hate more: the NFL and its owners, or the NCAA and its administrators. I guess I don't necessarily have to choose. I can just hope they all contract lupus. And I do.
Eh, that's a pretty overwrought article. Aside from his point about examining the other BCS Bowls' finances there isn't much there except an incoherent rant. For instance, this is just an unsubstantiated opinion of someone who really wants a playoff:
ReplyDelete"Its traditional defenses of “student-athlete welfare,” “academic concerns” and the “protection of the regular season” don’t stand up to facts and are just water-muddying tactics invented by well-paid public relations people."
This is patently false:
"So Ohio State’s Terrelle Pryor gets a five-game NCAA suspension in part for selling his Fiesta Bowl “sportsmanship” award for hundreds of dollars. Yet the Fiesta can drop nearly 100K so some associate commissioner can play 18 holes with the Golden Bear?"
Obviously, that is not okay since it's part of the reason the IRS will file charges and the NCAA may revoke the bowl's license.
And his section about the schools and conference losing money on the Orange Bowl is a gross oversimplification. The bowl pays out more than enough to cover expenses. It's the way the ACC distributes it that makes it look like a loss. In the end it doesn't mattter as the money is recouped from other bowl revenue sharing.
The part you say is an "unsubstantiated opinion" is definitely at least somewhat substantiated. I don't think the idea that the NCAA really cares about making money first and protecting students/academics last is very much in dispute. And his angle on the "so it's OK for...?" section isn't that it's legally OK. Obviously the tax authorities are going to have something to say about the bowl's records. But from the NCAA disciplinary perspective, the bowl "might" have its status as a member of the BCS revoked. OOOOHH! WATCH OUT! THEY'RE ON THE WARPATH NOW! It might happen or it might not, but the NCAA certainly isn't approaching the issue from the same angle it approaches serious transgressions like a player selling an award for a few hundred bucks.
ReplyDeleteI also think the most poignant point (one you don't address in your comment) was the one he opened and closed the article with- the Fiesta Bowl has been giving out lavish gifts to administrators and this is a bad thing. So the NCAA is putting together a committee to look into the matter... a committee comprised of many individuals who take lavish gifts from other bowls on a regular basis. Really says a lot about how the whole business works and about where the enforcement priorities lie. If the Fiesta gets kicked out of the BCS, it'll be a publicity move more than anything else. What that bowl has been doing isn't a whole lot different than what other bowls do, but the words "strip club" made it into the headlines so it's time to crack down. Yawn.
I actually agree that the committee is a joke and do think they should investigate every major bowl's books. As for the NCAA being more interested in money than the student-athletes, how much does the NCAA make off of college football? It's my understanding that most revenue goes to the conferences and individual schools.
ReplyDeleteThe NCAA, if I'm not mistaken, is a coalition on behalf of the schools. So it's like pointing to Roger Goodell and saying he has no interest in the owners making lots of money because he won't see any of it.
ReplyDeleteForget the NCAA investigating this, I think a congressional probe is needed. The NCAA is probably just as corrupt as the big 4 sports leagues, but it's the schools' money that is at stake.
ReplyDeleteThe Terrelle Pryor thing is one of the best examples of NCAA player exploitation. He sold his personal property and was punished for it. How is that even constitutional?
ReplyDeleteI don't know if it is practical to pay athletes, but they should be able to at least make something off of their name and likeness. Right now Ohio State could sell 1 million Pryor jerseys and he would not receive a cent.
@Adam
ReplyDeleteI believe that official re-sellers of NCAA merchandise are not allowed to sell any jerseys with player names on the back. However, they can sell you a #2 Ohio State jersey and the letters P-R-Y-O-R. In what manner you affix them to your new jersey is at your discretion.
I do think the NCAA rule about selling your own memorabilia is stupid, but if you saw how people overreacted to Georgia players selling their rings and what not from the 2002 SEC Championship you can see why they made the rule. Stupid fans and journalists are as responsible as the NCAA.
ReplyDeleteI agree, and that is why I don't really care about college sports except for to laugh at the messed up system.
ReplyDeleteObsessive college sports fans are some of the dumbest people in this country. Seriously. Check out that dude that poisoned the trees at Auburn.