Two days into the scandal and so far there doesn't seem to be any connection between BC and the FBI's corruption investigation into College Basketball. I personally don't know of any wrongdoing by BC. And there are plenty of people out there saying neither BC nor Jim Christian buy players. So assuming BC is in the clear, what ripple effect will this have on BC sports?
1. The football schedule will probably get a bit easier. This remains a basketball scandal, but all of Louisville is going to take a beating. They lost their AD. Bobby Petrino would seem to be the best thing going about Louisville sports. But without his guardian angle Jurich around, what are the odds that he stays? His buyout contractually becomes much smaller without Jurich around. Petrino will be a target for SEC schools looking to make a move. Replacing him will be tough, especially with the black cloud hanging over the program.
2. The ACC Basketball schedule will remain a gauntlet unless other schools get dragged down too. I doubt Louisville hoops will get the Death Penalty but they are likely to get hit hard. It also appears that Miami is facing charges. Having both schools struggle helps BC, but still leaves plenty of heavyweights around. Unless the FBI takes down Duke, UNC, and Syracuse, the ACC hierarchy won't change.
I am cynical and believe that if the going rate for 5-stars was 100K, all the big boys are paying. As much as kids want to play for Duke and UNC, I don't see dozens of them bypassing payments to play for Roy Williams and Coach K. This is just speculation on my part, but would it surprise anyone? UNC already corrupted their academics for basketball. Is paying players a line they won't cross?
3. This won't change BC's recruiting or status. I am sure there are some people on campus feeling self-righteous about BC doing things the right way. If BC truly did follow the rules, I am glad. But following the rules doesn't explain away all the bad basketball we've seen. For basketball, you only need 12 guys and really only about 6 who need to be ACC level players. Even if we are hurt by our shoe deal and not bribing, a BC staff should still be able to find enough players worldwide who could help BC win. We haven't. That's on both the recent BC coaches.
4. BC won't take a leadership stand in fixing college sports. BC made a pretty big statement about not paying players last year. Even with new leadership, I don't expect BC to lead the charge to add salaries to revenue sports. I wish they would. As I have mentioned before, we are in a unique spot in that we are part of the Big 5, but do things a little differently. BC should have a perspective that could hopefully help the athletes, yet not disrupt college sports to the point where it is unrecognizable.
Assuming BC is in the clear, I hope they don't walk away thinking everything is fine. Leadership needs to ask themselves hard questions. Do we know exactly what assistants are doing? Do we bend the rules as we need to yet still take a holier than thou stance? If all our competitors are cheating and we are not, what is the point of all of this? If we paid athletes, would all the black market stuff go away?
I know what I would do. I don't know what Martin Jarmond and Father Leahy plan to do.
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21 comments:
"If all our competitors are cheating and we are not, what is the point of all of this?"
I don't mean to be rude. But I will ask you a question.
Do you wish you hadn't typed that?
If you think college athletes who are already getting a free education, housing, food, and travel should also on top of all that be paid a salary you are part of the problem.
2. Why hasn't UNC been taken down for its academic scandal. It is worse to have the kids cheat at school than it is to pay or incentive-ize them to play at your school.
Everyone knows that Duke gets family members of players, needs them, jobs.
Where do you begin with Syracuse?
4. Paying player is ridiculous. They are getting free education, room, board, BMOC and a paved way academically. All they need to do is graduate in 6 years and take one of the handful of $100k+ jobs handed to them. They don't need 3k a semester to get whatever else they need . . . which is nothing but trouble. They are already getting 50-70k in goods and services. If it isn't enough then work out for two years and go to the NFL. You know they don't . . . because they are getting a sweet deal. All but the crybabies know it. They just want more free stuff.
It isn't correct to argue that all the other students have X, Y and Z and the players don't. All the other students aren't getting the list stated above. Most them and their families are sacrificing 100's of thousands of dollars to attend the school. The players aren't.
Any argument for paying college players is irrational and non-sensical. If you are going to pay them then just pay them but don't try and rationalize it with everyone.
If you think college athletes who are already getting a free education, housing, food, and travel should also on top of all that be paid a salary you are part of the problem.
I am torn on this and have been for some time. However, I am now leaning more towards paying these kids. The video game lawsuits put me over the top. EVERYONE, and I mean absolutely EVERYONE, is making money of these kids. Everyone that is but the kids themselves. It feels gross and is at the point of being intolerable. Scumbags like Pitino get millions in salary and millions more in shoe company endorsements. The AAU circuit is literally a collection of predators. Schools are making millions. ESPN is making billions. The only people not getting anything, beyond $50k of subsidized housing, meals and schooling (when schooling is actually even emphasized that is), are the kids who are generating all the revenue.
It has the feel of modern day slavery ... and I dont say that lightly ....
It isn't correct to argue that all the other students have X, Y and Z and the players don't. All the other students aren't getting the list stated above. Most them and their families are sacrificing 100's of thousands of dollars to attend the school. The players aren't.
I again respectfully disagree. Most kids are not paying hundreds of thousands of dollars. Many kids at elite universities get significant financial aid. And the notion that $100k jobs are waiting for these kids is a fallacy. There are very few if any kids leaving undergrad getting $100K+ jobs. And you assume that these athletes are achieving at the same level academically to get those top of the top jobs, all while spending 20-40 hours a week focusing on their sport.
Again, everyone is making money off these kids but the kids themselves. This is especially disgusting considering many times these kids come from extremely poor backgrounds. They are playing in front of tens of thousands live and millions on tv, under coaches who make millions, but then they return home on break to abject poverty. Its disgraceful.
Agree BCA2000.
Point #4 on BC leading the way in college sports: This will be controversial (in 2017) but what if BC be the first to drop college football? We know NCAA and college football won't be the same in 10-20 years. Lets invest money/time somewhere else other than a dying sport. No way it stays in the same form and I can't picture a scenario where a liberal arts, top 40 university in the northeast is a player in whatever form college football morphs into.
Half the students get aid of some sort and half don't. The half that get aid are not getting a 100% write off like football and bb players are(more like 50% which leaves them 100K in the hole). The 50% of kids not getting aid from the govt or the school are getting aid from their parents. Think about it. Say it out loud . . . Two hundred and fourty thousand after tax dollars for 4 years of BC education. Two hundred and fourty thousand after tax dollars for 4 years of BC education. You are talking about 10 years of saving $25k
You don't need any more money. You are getting $240k plus . . . .
If a football players graduates and is competent they are getting the nod over someone else. They have more connections and more opportunities. Be it getting a job as head of the DPW or Sales Executive or running the local YMCA or getting a TV job a BC athlete/graduate is getting an opportunity to interview for it before a BC student(and 90% of other students).
What will be interesting is how far-reaching this scandal ends up being. Faced with jail time, the accused individuals have every incentive to name additional names and expand this thing even more (in fact, that's how the FBI probe got started). If as you believe, ATL, all the big boys pay for players, this could get pretty interesting.
Idiotic to compare college athletes getting a free ride to slavery. No one is forced to go. There is no penalty for not attending. Try reading a little history about slavery. It has nothing to do with the level of compensation one gets for being a jock. There is nothing special about athletes. Scholarships should go first to veterans, the orphaned children of police and other first responders. Don't further indulge the over pampered.
The thing that gets lost in all this is students are allowed to get jobs. You're spending 9-10 months at campus and have all sorts of expenses. However, athletes aren't allowed to get jobs, even in the off season. Where do we expect these players to get money to handle these expenses? We know it'll come from somewhere, would we rather it be from a legit source or somewhere more shady.
We've already seen where the shady sources lead to. Shouldn't we be proactive in heading those pitfalls off at the pass?
Take out a loan, get a credit card or ask your family. Some of them don't have money or family to ask. That is the real world. Eat out of cafeteria for free for 6 years and get your degree and then eat based on your earnings there after. Most people over 40 now were poor in college and made it through.
I am not sure that they cannot have jobs. I remember Montel Harris being on the cover of the Globe working in the late night cafeteria when he was at BC. Oklahoma has players working at a car dealership who were being paid eventhough they didn't show.
They can work in the summer and save their money. Again, they have a leg up on some sophomore shmuck student when it comes to good summer jobs.
All crybaby BS. They have more than 99% of the people their age. They don't need anymore.
Paying players will only result in more expensive bribes and more corruption as the majors will still try to gain an edge under the table. Then the the conversation will ultimately lead to increasing the payments. It's a slippery slope that will never end. The only curative fix is to keep professional athletes out of college sports, stop subsidizing the NBA and NFL and force the NBA and NFL to follow the lead of MLB by establishing professional feeder leagues for talented players who have no interest in a bachelor's degree or lack the aptitude to obtain one. Money corrupts as it always does and you'll never fix it with more money. College basketball and football at the Division 1 level needs a complete overhaul - the nonsense has to end but will only happen if the university Presidents make it happen.
Frankly, I think the more academically elite Division 1 private schools need to get out of the nuclear arms race with these gigantic state schools and go their own way in a new conference operating under a new set of standards similar to the Ivy League but athletically superior. I would love to see a conference made up of BC, ND, Georgetown, Duke, Wake, Northwestern, Rice, Vanderbilt and Tulane. Its nice to dream. Maybe not a dream if things continue on the present course.
Idiotic to compare college athletes getting a free ride to slavery. No one is forced to go. There is no penalty for not attending. Try reading a little history about slavery. It has nothing to do with the level of compensation one gets for being a jock. There is nothing special about athletes. Scholarships should go first to veterans, the orphaned children of police and other first responders. Don't further indulge the over pampered.
I am sorry that your limited intellect cannot grasp the comparison.
Pathetic. You are not and were not a slave. Crybaby.
Holier than thou. Stopped reading after the first sentence. You don't know who I know or what I have been involved with here.
It always makes feel weird when people think they have a higher level of perception than everyone. I will finish with that.
Napoleon and Knuck,
Excellent comments. I have always advocated one of two options. One, reinforce the concept and principles of the true student athletes. Two, eliminate the current travesty and start paying these jocks. They are minor league professionals for the NFL/NBA.
Napoleon great idea add Stanford for #10
AMG - if Stanford was east of the Mississippi I would have done so. California is too distant to be routinely flying field hockey teams, etc.
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