NCAA Shouldn’t Change Rules

OK. So the latest bandwagon to jump on is, “OJ Mayo is a bad guy for accepting gifts from a ‘potential’ agent”. Oh my. Isn’t that just awful?

Get serious.

There’s nothing cynical about the belief many student/athletes are getting money and gifts on the side to keep them happily enrolled in a particular university where they participate in sports. It’s being done every day. It’s being done at high profile colleges, low profile colleges and those colleges that fall in between.

The discussion and debate over the status of college and amateur athletes has been rendered moot by miscasting their relevance.

If winning a national championship in college basketball rewards a university with boatloads of money, is the sport really about competition between educational institutions?

For example, it was recently pointed out in an article by Greg Witter on Cougfan.com that one of the greatest coaches in the history of Washington State University basketball, Marv Harshman, made an annual salary of less than $20,000 as recently as 1971. Coach Harshman earned the honor of being inducted into the Hall of Fame.

The current head man at WSU is Coach Tony Bennett. Coach Bennett may just follow in the footsteps of Coach Harshman into the Hall of Fame. Bennett’s not there yet. But next year, Coach Bennett will make $1 million, a 25% increase over his salary this season. His current salary was an increase of 100% over his first year as head coach. Why? WSU was not so much rewarding the back-to-back 25+ win seasons as fearing another school with deeper pockets would wrest him away with the temptation of even more money.

It’s not all about players accepting gifts. Coaches are making astronomical salaries.

The reason?

Simple. People have become fanatical about college sports these days. The university they support is measured in part by how successful their athletic teams perform. When school teams win, the donations come rolling in. When school athletic teams lose, folks threaten to cut off their donations.

In the midst of this fantasy world, how can anyone seriously expect a young person to reject money and gifts? For many of these young people, their identity is tied to the acquisition of money and gifts. That’s how they roll.

An integral part of this fantasy world is the manner in which people/fans tie their identity to the success of the sports teams at the university they support. If their school’s team loses, their personal pride is injured. They may even act out as a result.

Here’s an illustration of the path college sports is heading down. Coach Steve Lavin took over the UCLA basketball program after his predecessor was fired for recruiting violations. During his tenure, the Bruins won roughly 70% of their games. His teams made it to the Sweet 16 five out of six seasons. He was named Pac-10 Coach of the Year in 2001.

But in 2003, UCLA finished with a losing record. Coach Lavin’s teams never won a national championship. They just won about three out of four games played. Not good enough for Bruin fans. Despite representing UCLA with a combination of class, integrity and success on the court, Coach Lavin was summarily fired after the first losing season of his coaching career.

Coach Lavin didn’t violate the rules of the NCAA. He didn’t participate in a scandalous affair. He didn’t endanger his community by driving drunk. No, Coach Lavin’s team of student/athletes didn’t have a winning season. That was why he was fired.

Perhaps we would be well served to look in the mirror before casting aspersions on others. OJ Mayo is a kid who has acted like a kid. At the same time, where were his “mentors”? Didn’t they notice his lifestyle? Did his mentors really have his educational needs at heart? Or was a year of Mayo in the Trojan backcourt going to deliver wins that supporters demand, so who cares?

There are people who always look for a way to gain an edge. The system set in place to create a level playing field is simply a minor annoyance to these folks. Changing the rules of the system simply causes those focused on winning at any cost to change they way they do things. It won’t change their motivations.

As long as fans hitch their personal identity to the success of the schools and teams they support, there’s little chance of changing the direction of the path college sports are heading down.

Let’s face it. There’s too much money at stake, along with too much temptation.

There was a time when colleges and universities earned respect through the quality of education students received. As a general statement, that’s still true today. But that focus is in danger of shifting too far toward successful athletic programs.

Before crying out for penalties, sanctions and firings, pause to reconsider the part you play in collegiate athletics.

Are your motivations really all that pure?