Paul Daugherty: OJ and the silly NCAA

Friday, January 25, 2008

OJ and the silly NCAA

Just getting around to posting this. . . how silly is it that Mayo and USC could be in trouble because Carmelo Anthony gave the kid tickets to an NBA game? What "competitive advantage'' could possibly be gained by allowing Mayo to attend a game in a league where he should be playing already?

Do we see UC and XU deluged with blue-chip recruits hoping and praying that, some day, they can get to a Bengal game for free? I can see it now: "I narrowed my choices to Duke, Florida, Georgetown and Xavier. I chose Xavier because I hope to someday see the Cincinnati Bengals live at Paul Brown Stadium. In conclusion: Who-Dey.''

Mayo's only in college because the silly rule says he has to be. Now, he's being treated like a convict. Great. Doesnt the NCAA have anything better to do? Somewhere, a player is getting a free cheeseburger. Hop on that, sleuths.

16 Comments:

at 1:32 PM

Anonymous said...

The NCAA is in the same catagory as the USGA - run by a bunch of silly old men making arbitrary rules just because they can.

at 1:52 PM

Unknown said...

If we give musicians, artists, and dancers colleged credits for their giftedness that involves the coordination of mind and body, and for their participation in programs sponsored by universities, then why are we not giving the same consideration to those who are gifted and spending endless hours honing their skills to national levels on fields, courts, and pools?

Why can a musician at the UC Conservatory get paid for performances outside of college, get invitations for engagements, and get the perks of their world, but the same behavior ruins an athletes career and a university's program?

We've got kids marching in bands at football halftimes getting credit for their physical/mental skill and coordination, and we've got the major attraction being told they've got to spend their endless hours of practice without one single minute of credit.

Yeah, I know, we don't wanna give an unfair competitive advantage to any school in sports...blah, blah, blah.

The hypocrisy is stunning as we discuss multi-million dollar contracts for coaches, multi-million dollar gates for universities, and multi-million dollar broadcasts for media and schools alike.

Let the kid have his flippin' ticket.

Or let him just go to the NBA right now...today...immediately!

at 5:34 PM

Anonymous said...

A rule is a rule. Why are these big div 1-A schools not educating their athletes on what they can and cannot do? If Mayo was not given instruction, he deserves to be punished and it's the fault of the school. If he was given instruction, he needs to be punished and it's his fault.

at 7:30 PM

Dude said...

If it doesn't fit you must acquit!

at 7:50 PM

Anonymous said...

@1:52

You have a valid point about musicians being able to do outside appearances/private lessons to help make money. But they aren't getting that much credit for marching band, etc, only 1 credit hour a quarter, which is practically nothing considering the time being put in it.

I understand the NCAA trying to keep an even playing field, but these tickets are kind of a non issue. Any student could have a friend or know someway to get free tickets, just because they are an athlete doesn't mean they should be punished.

at 8:16 PM

Anonymous said...

5:34 >> what'd Mayo ever do to you?? That's just silly.

Vague rule (that we make & interpret at our discretion) = NCAA specialty.

Another perfect example of jerks operating behind a curtain, to protect the status-quo..

at 1:21 AM

Anonymous said...

Relax folks. If Mayo received the tickets from an organization (the Clippers) then he broke NCAA rules unless tickets were offered to the student body as a whole. If Mayo received those tickets as a gift from Anthony because they're friends, then it's perfectly legal.

at 8:48 AM

Anonymous said...

You can't prove that he didnt pay for that cheeseburger.

at 9:36 AM

Monclova Steve said...

ucfan79:
GREAT POST! Couldn't agree more.

This reminds me of the old days and the Lasalle Thompson saga. For those of you younger than me, Lasalle Thompson was a GREAT player at Withrow. The Big O (who knew him personally) bought the kid a suit. In their infinite wisdom, the NCAA ruled that he couldn't attend UC because of this. So, against his original wishes, Thompson was forced to go elsewhere (Texas) -- where he became an All-American and fine NBA player.
All because a friend of the family -- who happened to be Oscar -- bought him some CLOTHES!

Thank God we have the NCAA around to punish these kids for their evil acceptance of gifts from their friends!

at 10:40 AM

Anonymous said...

The Big O had nothing to do with the suit that was purchased for Lasalle Thompson. He is way too smart to do anything that stupid. Cant remember the name of the guy who did make the purchase, but it wasnt Oscar.

at 1:33 PM

Unknown said...

The NCAA and the schools should be giving these athletes a cut of the gate.

I wonder if any of the NCAA suits or college officials ever adccepted tickets to a game - are they held to the same rules?

at 3:35 PM

Anonymous said...

UCFan79:

I went to CCM. There's a huge difference. In the music world you are not competing against other schools. Also, all the basketball players get a full scholarship. Music students do not all get full scholarships if any scholarship at all. That's an unfair and incorrect analogy. Based on your argument, all students should be treated thes same, so all students should have full scholarships just like the athletes.

I'm not saying the Mayo thing is a big deal, that was just a silly argument. Mayo's going to be making millions soon enough, while some poor kid from CCM is going to be paying student loans for the rest of his life.

at 7:09 PM

Anonymous said...

I wouldn't doubt Cashmere Wright chose to play b-ball at UC next year because he was promised some Cincinnati Cyclones tickets.

Nick

at 4:11 PM

Anonymous said...

There is no NCAA rule saying that Mayo had to go to college, he could have gone straight to the league. Mayo has abused every system he has ever been a part of, from hopping from state to state in High School under the guise of living with his "guradian/aau coach/hoop pimp" all the way through how he "selected USC" as his college choice. Mayos presence in college is disrespectful to anyone with a degree from USC as I would bet my left one that he is not going to class second semester because he is one and done. He will be done with college ball in less than 3 months once USC is eliminated in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. He can then cash in on the name power that he has built in LA, which is the only reason why he went there. Mayo is nothing but a budget version of Reggie Bush, only that he has never won anything on the college level and he is not even the best player on his team.

If you know the rules before going in you have to follow them, no matter how dumb they are. To argue that he should get a pass because the rule is dumb is totally bassackwards, The rule is in place for a reason, because some places abuse the system. UCLA did it for years, with guys like Lew Alcindor getting paid $20,000 a month by Paramount to serve as a film courier back to his native NYC. Because of that loophole back in the 60s you have this rule now.

And as for student-athletes getting a cut of the gate that is just fine, but then coaches should be able to fire them when they do not preform and they should have to pay to go to school and for all of the other privledges they get. Fair is fair because you cannot be a little pregnant of a little professional., You are or you are not. If you do not like the college rules head to Europe to play pro or check out the D-League.

at 8:33 PM

Anonymous said...

Like I said before, "What'd Mayo ever do to you?"

He's the only one?

Never mind.

at 6:15 PM

Anonymous said...

4:11
There is an NBA rule that does not allow athletes to enter the league until they are 19, therefore there is a rule saying Mayo can't be in the league. He didn't have to go to college, but what else could he have done.

As far as the NCAA, they have some of the most ridiculous rules in the world. Anthony has known Mayo (and vice versa) for a long time, and gave him the tickets as a gift...too bad there are shady guys out there who scare the NCAA to the point where no gifts like this are allowed.

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Friday, January 25, 2008

OJ and the silly NCAA

16 Comments: