Clarett deserves his shot

Before we get to today's column, we're going to take a little trip through time. Don't worry, it's not far. Just six months.
Ready? Here we go.
We're walking into an apartment building, heading up the stairs to the second floor and into one of the apartments. There's a young guy sitting at his kitchen table about to write a check.
It's for a college loan. His last college loan, in fact.
For all of you who went to college on a big scholarship or on your parent's money, writing that check may not seem like a big deal. But to him, it's going to be one of the most important, amazing, wonderful, fabulous things he'll ever do.
Trust me, I know. Because that young guy is me.
Or, at least, he will be.
Luxuries
I've been dreaming of that moment since I graduated from Malone College almost three years ago. To get there, I've gone without things like cable TV or Internet access. I've eaten cereal for dinner. I've driven a Honda Civic with 173,000 miles on it just so I could make an extra college loan payment every month.
I don't mention this to brag. I mention it because for the past few days, I've heard a lot about Maurice Clarett and how allowing him to enter the NFL draft will somehow cheapen college football. And I've heard that this whole mess has somehow cheapened the value of a college education.
Baloney.
Fact is, allowing Clarett to enter the draft is the right thing to do.
Clarett doesn't care about a college education. Never has. The only thing Clarett has ever wanted to do was go to the NFL and make a lot of money. Nothing wrong with that. Heck, I still dream about playing in the NFL.
Ticked
And you know what? If I were a student at Ohio State right now, I think I'd be a little ticked knowing that someone like Clarett was going to school for free while I busted my butt to get good grades.
That's unfair.
And if I were Clarett, I think I'd be a little ticked hearing that I needed to stay in school because I wasn't ready for the NFL because my body wasn't developed.
That's patronizing.
Just imagine that you're a parent of a star science student and you've dreamed of the day that all her hard work would be rewarded with a big scholarship. But when that day comes, the college tells you that they don't have any scholarship money left because they used it up on some rockheaded linebacker who got an 11 on his ACT and whose only reason for going to class was to catch up on his sleep.
I think you'd be pretty mad, right? I know I would be.
No thanks
Clarett doesn't want to go to college. Mike Williams doesn't want to go to college. Maybe they're ready to play in the NFL, maybe they're not. But it's ridiculous to say that an 18-year-old is "developed" enough to die for his country, but not to play a game.
Will allowing players to leave early hurt college football? No doubt. But it won't devastate the sport. What's more, it will guarantee that the students who play football are there for the right reasons.
Because they want to be there.
Because they want an education.
Because they want to experience some of the most wonderful years of their lives in one of the most wonderful environments ever created.
The Supreme Court should grant a stay in the Clarett case. Clarett should be allowed to enter the draft. He shouldn't be forced to stay in college just because it makes for more exciting college football games.
(And let's be honest, that's why we want them to stay in school, right?)
What's more, it's not fair to all the students who are in school for the right reasons. I know how much work it takes to get a college degree. And I know how much work it takes to pay for it.
Clarett will never understand either of those things.
And you know what? He doesn't deserve to.
XJoe Scalzo is a sportswriter for The Vindicator. Write him at scalzo@vindy.com.