NCAA struggles with Schools and Athletes committing Violations

Every year we hear new cases of college athletes accepting money and gifts from boosters. This results in players being suspended, coaches being fired, schools being fined, athletic programs being banned from post-season play, forfeiting previous game and even losing scholarships. The past few years have been really bad for the NCAA.

The USC Trojans were forced to forfeit an entire season, had a National Championship revoked, and had 30 scholarships taken away because of Reggie Bush accepting improper benefits. Bush was forced to give his Heisman Trophy award back.  USC’s basketball program has received punishment for O.J Mayo’s NCAA violations.

This year’s NFL number one draft pick Cam Newton was accused for him and his father taking money from boosters. However, Newton was not found guilty for any of the accusations.

Ohio State University football program was punished for multiple players headlined by Terrelle Pryor for taking cash and selling sports memorabilia in exchange for money and tattoos. Players were suspended and  Coach Jim Tressel was fired by OSU because he knew about all of the scandals, but decided to protect his players instead of notifying the NCAA.

Terrelle Pryor and former OSU Coach Jim Tressel

North Carolina’s football program had high expectations last season until they were hit with player suspensions. Seven of the players were suspended for the entire season and three of them were first round draft picks this year. Just like OSU, UNC fired their head coach Butch Davis.

The most recent allegations and possibly the worst ever in NCAA history are against the Miami Hurricanes football program. Nevin Shapiro was a familiar face around the Hurricanes for the last eight years and claimed to have given improper benefits to 72 former and current Miami athletes. The NCAA has ruled that 12 Miami players will be punished. Some have to miss games and some will have to pay back the benefits that they received.

Boosters are contacting these athletes before they even sign a letter of intent. Before the top high school athletes has a chance to decide what college they want to attend they have money, cars, clothes, jewelry etc. offered to them. These athletes usually don’t have money to afford expensive things, so when they have these people approaching them and offering them gifts it’s hard for them to turn them down. By the time that they finally go to school, they have already become accustomed to accepting gifts from  boosters that once they get to college they are used to it and don’t have a problem accepting more. A few reasons why boosters give things to these athletes is because in return they expect the athletes to go where they want them to go or they expect for the athletes to pay them back and then some once they make it to the league.

Shapiro former Miami tight end star Kellen Winslow

Is it fair to blame the players?

Yes, you can say that the players know the rules and have the choice to make the right decision, but like many things that easier said then done. The NCAA is a multi-billion dollar industry with the best business plan. They make billions off of college athletes hard work and  name, but don’t compensate them for it financially. Many will say that they get compensated with an education, but is that enough? A lot of athletes only go to school because they have to. If they had the choice a lot would go pro straight out of high school.

Being a student-athlete is a very difficult thing to do. They barely have any free time. So if they want to have a job to have money in their pocket, chances are they don’t have the time for it. So when boosters go to athletes to give them these improper benefits, they are more willing  to accept them since they have no source of income.

So how can the NCAA reduce this?

Everyone knows that there is no stop to it. The top athletes will always get offered benefits from boosters and some will accept some won’t. A possible solution the NCAA could come up with to help reduce the problem is by paying athletes. They could pay them based off of the state that they live in. For example, an athlete in California would get paid more than an athlete in Nevada, but it would balance out because the cost of living in California is more expensive.

They don’t have to pay the athletes a ridiculous amount of money, but the NCAA could come up with a fair compensation system for the athletes. It wouldn’t hurt anyone to give the athletes a little spending money each month so that if they need something they can buy it themselves and not have to resort to boosters. This won’t eliminate boosters, but it would reduce athletes accepting gifts from them. Having a steady income will help athletes make smarter decisions and shy away from getting in contact with the boosters.

The NCAA has to figure a solution out. It is not fair to punish players who had nothing to do with scandals that happen with their programs. Things will only get worse, suspending players and placing sanctions on schools athletic programs isn’t enough to resolve the problem.

Contenders

The NFL lifted the lockout last week, free agency began last Tuesday and already we have seen major deals go down. This season is going to be a very exciting and interesting. While each team is trying to make a move to improve their roster some have already added great additions to their rosters and some haven’t made any at all and chose to stick to their system with the draft and players already on the roster.

So far the biggest surprised that shocked everyone was the New England Patriots making a deal with the Redskins for Albert Haynesworth early Thursday morning while everyone was sleeping, then hours later somehow they managed to acquire Chad Ochocinco from the Bengals.  The Patriots and Bill Belichick are one the best teams in the league at bringing in elite talent to continue to  improve their team. Before last Thursday I expected the Jets to win the AFC East but now its a toss-up.

The New York Jets were able to resign their game-changing wide receiver Santonio Holmes. Without Holmes the Jets offense would have been one-dimensional and Mark Sanchez would have had an extremely tough task to overcome. Sanchez knew how important it was to bring Holmes back  which is why he was willing to reconstruct his contract if necessary so the team could resign Holmes. Everyone knows that the Jets have one of the best defenses in the league, but without an offense that can score it would be difficult for the team to reach their goal which is why Holmes is a vital asset to the team’s success. The Jets missed out on signing Nnamdi Asomugha, but they were quickly able to recover from the disappoint and sign receiver Plaxico Burress. Burress is the kind of receiver if it’s a jump ball chances are he is going to come down with the ball. At 6 feet 5 inches Burress is a big receiver that will help Sanchez and the Jets offense, especially in the red zone.

The Philadelphia Eagles have been the most aggressive team this offseason. I don’t remember the last time the Eagles made so many moves all at once to improve their team. The Eagles defense allowed 31 passing touchdowns last season due to a below average secondary with the exception of Asante Samuel. The team has definitely addressed this problem by trading Kevin Kolb  for corner back  Dominque Rodgers-Cromartie, but the Eagles weren’t done after the trade. They were able to stun everyone and sign arguably one of the best corner backs and the top free agent in this year’s class corner back Nnamdi Asomugha. With the addition of these two new guys Philadelphia has one of the best secondaries in the league. However, the Eagles didn’t just stop at their secondary. The also signed defensive end  Jason Babin. Babin recorded career highs last season with 93 tackles and 12.5 sacks and with the secondary that they have, expect the sacks to increase. The Eagles also added a big man in the middle defensive tackle Cullen Jenkins. Jenkins is 6 feet 2 inches and an overwhelming 305 pounds. He is a big body that will take up a lot of space in the trenches that will help the defense in the run and pass rush. The Eagles have made some big moves that shows they are serious and ready to make a run for the Superbowl.

The defending champions Green Bay Packers haven’t made any noticeable additions this offseason, but they do have a few players returning from injury who were not part of the Superbowl run. Running back Ryan Grant will be back this year. Grant rushed for over 1200 yards in 2009 and 2010 with the Packers. Also returning to the team is tight end  Jermichael Finley. Finley was Aaron Rodgers favorite target before he suffered an injury in week five. Finley is a huge a target for Rodgers and creates a lot of mismatches for opposing defenses. The Packers are definitely a team who is capable of repeating. They have all the right pieces at every position and are very motivated to repeat.

The Atlanta Falcons showed everyone that they are team to be acknowledged. They have a lot of talent on both sides of the ball, especially on offense. They have a balanced attack running and passing the ball. Michael Turner rushed for over 1300 yards and 12 touchdowns last season and I expect him to do the same if not better. Matt Ryan is one of the bright young stars in the NFL at the quarterback position. He threw for 3700 yards and 28 touchdowns last season.  Ryan and wide receiver Roddy White have developed a great chemistry that makes the Falcons a threat in the passing game, and with the addition of rookie wide receiver Julio Jones it is only going to make that offense more dynamic.

This season is going to have a lot excitement and there are many teams who are ready to show that they are a Superbowl caliber team. These are the five teams that I believe who have the best chance at winning it all. There are certainly a few other teams who have a good chance at going to the Superbowl, but these are the teams I feel who are legitimate contenders who have the right pieces to make a push for the Lombardi Trophy.

-J. Harrison

Follow @RealJHarrison

Her Airness

Maya Moore has made history once again. She has been signed by Jordan Brand.

Moore is now the first female basketball player to sign with Jordan Brand and she is more than worthy of it.

Moore was this year’s number one draft pick by the Minnesota Lynx, but she is already considered as one of the best women’s basketball players ever. During her collegiate career she lead the Uconn Huskies to back-to-back National Champions, she is a two-time college and two-time high school Naismith Player of the Year (the only person to ever do that), she is a two-time John R. Wooden award winner, and the list goes on and on.

“I am thrilled to welcome Maya Moore into the Jordan Brand,” said Michael Jordan. “Not only has Maya proven to be a prolific winner on the court, but her hunger and determination to make an impact off the court makes her a valuable addition to the Jordan family. We look forward to working with Maya as she carries her success to the next level.”

Moore will be joining a star-studded team headlined by Dwayne Wade, Chris Paul, and Carmelo Anthony.

“As a student of the game, it is a dream come true to align myself with a brand that has a rich history in sports,” Moore said. “Like most kids, I grew up idolizing Michael Jordan and continue to work relentlessly to reach his iconic status on the court. I’m truly motivated to take my career to the next level as a member of Team Jordan.”

-J. Harrison