NCAA writes rules to its benefit

NCAA writes rules to its benefit

Lately the NCAA has been throwing around the phrase “ethics violations,” with Jim Tressel being the lightning rod with his recent departure from The Ohio State University. While sportscasters and commentators are quick to attack Tressel on his actions, I believe their criticism is misguided. What kind of athletic environment would provoke these actions by coaches like Pete Carroll of USC, Jim Tressel, and most likely a large amount of major collegiate institutions that have not (and will not) be investigated? An environment set by the NCAA, and one that has been fostered for over 30 years.

The NCAA stands for the National Collegiate Athletic Association, or at least it did. College athletics today resemble the NFL and the NBA more than a collegiate league, with the primary difference being student athletes do not get paid. When the NCAA and the university systems are making billions of dollars a year off TV contacts, radio contracts, merchandising, commercial endorsements, video game deals, and selling out tickets and box seating to the highest bidders, it is very easy to say that the players are not getting their fair due.

The players are giving their heart, soul, and physical abilities to get that one shot at the pros in many of these Football Bowl Subdivision (Division 1) institutions, and at best it is a long shot. And for all of their hard work, the NCAA will not even let the players sell their own property to make a buck because in their eyes “it is unethical.”

What is truly unethical is that the NCAA makes billions off the backs of student athletes, and twists the rules so these athletes do not see a cent. They are nothing more than an association of racketeers making huge profits while hiding behind rules that they themselves wrote.

As far as Jim Tressel, while it was clearly wrong to break the rules of the NCAA, I have thought for a long time those rules needed changed. I will say that Tressel did everything that was asked of him by OSU, YSU, the community, and the alumni: win national championships, win bowl games and beat Michigan. He accomplished each of those tasks multiple times, and that counts for something.

Alex Mangie, Canfield