Friday, March 4, 2011

View From Bennett Avenue

The NCAA announced this week that Oregon's program is being investigated for dealings with an individual who seems to have assisted them with the recruitment of certain players (aka a scouting service). Auburn is already being investigated for doing the same thing, with the players in question reportedly being flush with cash. With SI's current cover story dealing with the large number of football players who had been arrested during or prior to their recruitment by the preseason top 25, and spring practice cannot begin soon enough.
The rules have to be tightened and the NCAA has to act quickly and with consistency. More on this to follow.

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

ESPN is a Silly, Sometimes Dangerous Place

There is so much to complain about with ESPN that I thought I would make a discussion of their problems a regular rant.
Today, while discussing BYU's code of honor Colin Cowherd admitted that he had no idea what the word "chaste" meant. Seriously. While his ignorance is bad enough, the reality is that hosts like Cowherd regularly comment on issues that go beyond the field. BYU hoopster Brandon Davies was suspended for breaking the very stringent code the school holds every student, athlete or non-athlete, to in keeping with the tenets of the religion of the founders and operators of that school. To be so ignorant of a common word such as chaste when discussing the situation--and I do not know what rule Davies broke--is the equivalent of not knowing what the word "margin" means when discussing business. We would not tolerate that with the thousands of people discussing business issues on television, why in the sports world?