I began to lose interest in college teams and players two years ago and that loss of interest is accelerating. If the whole college sports thing is all about money, I can find better uses with deeper civic purpose for my funds.
Love me some Dennis Erickson but I’m gonna call BS. “About f-ing money”??
No sh##, dude. Just like your agent for years and years negotiated to get you the best deals possible to coach a bunch of kids who the majority came from such poverty they ate better in the school cafeteria than they had their whole lives. Let’s get real about this: a lot of this is race. I’m black I’ve seen it my whole life. Nothing frazzles some people more than seeing young black men making more money than them. Nobody says anything about high school players taking money skipping college and going to the minor leagues when they are white kids playing baseball. Like, EVER. Never an issue. Pay a 18 year old black kid money to skip college and go to the NBA it’s a societal ill. Now NIL is the same issue. All these fans who live in a society where they embrace and applaud free market and capitalism have a different set of rules when they are getting boat raced at the bank by young black athletes. I HATE to even use race because I know that triggers a certain crowd and of course not nearly everything is about race but THIS is absolutely about the optics of young black men squeezing white America for every dollar they can get for their value and the bullsh#t pushback.
John. The NCAA has created their own Noose that will kill their Golden Goose someday soon by eventually alienating University Alumni and Traditional Donors for their favorite Alma Mater ; it is a “House of Cards”
Fraught with poison that will kill college athletics like we have known and loved in the past ....with all the money being thrown at players now , where is their Allegiance to a particular University when the next season they can be “Bought” for more money .... the NCAA has Lost it and their Golden Goose will soon be cooked , and we Alumni will just send our money elsewhere and quit contributing to our Alma Mater . Why bother , anymore !!??
May 10, 2023·edited May 10, 2023Liked by John Canzano
Years ago, and I mean the late 70s and early 80s, at the same time the Olympics allowed competitors to get paid for training, there was talk about a salary for college players. I liked it. A lot of the kids going to college on sports scholarships are from very poor families. If they don't have strong scholastic skills they aren't going to get a high paying job after college. The college years might be their best shot to make a little money. And the schools certainly make a lot selling their athletic product, at least the revenue sports. So I have always been for student-athlete compensation. But back then, young naive me, thought it would be a salary from a pool that would be evenly shared among athletes and across conferences. I did not think it would ever be a free-for-all like the NIL has become. Pro sports learned years ago, after the advent of free agency with the Andy Messersmith decision in 1975, that caps had to be put in place and structure created for draftees so that the economic structure of the sport did not get blown up. The Yankees could always afford the most expensive roster with the size of their market. So how to level the playing field so there is fairness and actual competition? That is the problem the MLB struggled with for years. Same in the NBA, NFL and NASCAR. Limits had to be placed on car modifications so that the driver's skill was the test, not how much money was spent researching and modifying the car. College sports are now at the same fork in the road. Does the NCAA get serious about an economic structure to preserve competition while being fair to young athletes? Or does it just let college sports devolve into a food-fight which benefits no one and wrecks the drama of sport?
Sadly, all the goals, the rules and expectations for a student athlete have been dismantled by the very organizations that were supposed to protect players.
Just a sick sense and use of money
adding to the wear and tear on their bodies.
In the seventies, the NCAA would banish a player for dropping classes, or making money on the sale of tickets, accepting money from alums, not obtaining a “proper” job... ALL BS. All hypocritical pigs.. Erickson of course nails it...
May 10, 2023·edited May 10, 2023Liked by John Canzano
I've been waiting for an article like this. The way Smith and Dennis Erickson described it, is EXACTLY why I gravitated away from Pro sports, (free agency & guaranteed contracts) and towards college athletics. There has been a steady creep towards this, with paying pro's to participate in the Olympics',
to looking the other way when AAU basketball has been paying (so called "amatuer") players travel, food, and all expenses. NOW, College athletics is becoming the NBA, NFL, MLB. The myopia of NCAA administrators, and university and conference administrators is killing the goose that laid the golden eggs. These fools with their inaction and lack of foresight are going to put themselves out of a job sooner than later by killing the sport that pays them. There will come a time when States, elected representatives, taxpayers, citizenry are all collectively going to say "Oh Hell NO!" And the Nation's entire Collegiate athletic system will be done...because fans are already getting extremely tired of the elitist entitlement attitudes of 'COLLEGE ATHLETES'! And because very few colleges and universities have Phil Knights, or T. Boone Pickens (OK state). or John Ruiz (U-MIami) to bankroll their athletic departments. So when the public walks away....they (paid college athletes), will be done...then what (Ed Obannon)? Oh NO! They might be forced to have to go to school and actually study to get a J.O.B. ...THE HORRORS!!!
It looks like the world of NIL resembles the days of the wild wild West. Little regulation and unlimited funding. Every year is free-agency with little continuity from year to year for coaches and players. I wonder if the NIL phenomenon has been a reason for the sharp drop in attendance at Duck MBB due to the number of changing rosters each of the past few years. For the premier players, the NIL program is a bonanza, but what is the glue that makes a team stay together when you don't know who your team mates will be each year? I share the concern of coaches dealing with this disruptive program. John, what regulations would you like to see implemented to improve the NIL program?
Coaches want to get paid. I take no issue with that. Players should be able to take advantage of NIL (since they aren't getting a cut of the TV money). I take no issue with that either.
My blessing in all of this is that, this Saturday morning, I will be heading for Valley Catholic to watch my third grade great granddaughter compete for St Anthony's in the CYO Roadrunners track and field championships. So besides enjoying her and the family in some pure sport, I will be distracted from the cluster that college athletics has hereby arrived. And who knows who I might bump into there? Go Olivia! GrandpaRosie
As a long time Cougar fan and alum, I see College sports becoming a landing place for athletes who will not end up on professional sports. I recall an article in Sports Illustrated back in the mid 70's where the writer argued that all the best players should go directly to the pros, like in baseball, right from High School. They would be paid to play at the various levels according to their market value, and the remaining athletes could then compete for spots on college teams. The various sports in the college ranks would be like "club sports', and competition would be based upon the level of play for Varsity teams, like high school.
NIL has created a bigger rift between the haves and the have nots.
I was not surprised when DJ Rodman moved on to USC. It bothers me as a CAF donor to see our donations go to help matriculating athletes who have little or no allegiance to the university.
I am starting to lose interest as well.
Beginning to wonder if my funds would be used better elsewhere.
And you want to know why attendance is dropping at most college athletic events (I know there are exceptions to that statement). We as fans and supporters of these teams, schools and programs are losing interest as roster changes occur about as often as baby diaper changes. It's becoming a constant revolving door. It's one of the reasons I have lost a lot of my interest in pro sports, and why I'm starting to lose interest in major college sports. The athletes have no connection or loyalty to the schools, and I have no connection or loyalty to the student-athletes. Big Money ruins everything!
You are witnessing the death of college sports. No salary cap? Hows that work for MLB? Agree with Erickson- the Div II schools are going to be more fun to watch. Might have more interest in those games.
I began to lose interest in college teams and players two years ago and that loss of interest is accelerating. If the whole college sports thing is all about money, I can find better uses with deeper civic purpose for my funds.
Keep writing.
Cheers
T carter
Love me some Dennis Erickson but I’m gonna call BS. “About f-ing money”??
No sh##, dude. Just like your agent for years and years negotiated to get you the best deals possible to coach a bunch of kids who the majority came from such poverty they ate better in the school cafeteria than they had their whole lives. Let’s get real about this: a lot of this is race. I’m black I’ve seen it my whole life. Nothing frazzles some people more than seeing young black men making more money than them. Nobody says anything about high school players taking money skipping college and going to the minor leagues when they are white kids playing baseball. Like, EVER. Never an issue. Pay a 18 year old black kid money to skip college and go to the NBA it’s a societal ill. Now NIL is the same issue. All these fans who live in a society where they embrace and applaud free market and capitalism have a different set of rules when they are getting boat raced at the bank by young black athletes. I HATE to even use race because I know that triggers a certain crowd and of course not nearly everything is about race but THIS is absolutely about the optics of young black men squeezing white America for every dollar they can get for their value and the bullsh#t pushback.
John. The NCAA has created their own Noose that will kill their Golden Goose someday soon by eventually alienating University Alumni and Traditional Donors for their favorite Alma Mater ; it is a “House of Cards”
Fraught with poison that will kill college athletics like we have known and loved in the past ....with all the money being thrown at players now , where is their Allegiance to a particular University when the next season they can be “Bought” for more money .... the NCAA has Lost it and their Golden Goose will soon be cooked , and we Alumni will just send our money elsewhere and quit contributing to our Alma Mater . Why bother , anymore !!??
Another insightful, thought-provoking and well-written column. Thank you.
Years ago, and I mean the late 70s and early 80s, at the same time the Olympics allowed competitors to get paid for training, there was talk about a salary for college players. I liked it. A lot of the kids going to college on sports scholarships are from very poor families. If they don't have strong scholastic skills they aren't going to get a high paying job after college. The college years might be their best shot to make a little money. And the schools certainly make a lot selling their athletic product, at least the revenue sports. So I have always been for student-athlete compensation. But back then, young naive me, thought it would be a salary from a pool that would be evenly shared among athletes and across conferences. I did not think it would ever be a free-for-all like the NIL has become. Pro sports learned years ago, after the advent of free agency with the Andy Messersmith decision in 1975, that caps had to be put in place and structure created for draftees so that the economic structure of the sport did not get blown up. The Yankees could always afford the most expensive roster with the size of their market. So how to level the playing field so there is fairness and actual competition? That is the problem the MLB struggled with for years. Same in the NBA, NFL and NASCAR. Limits had to be placed on car modifications so that the driver's skill was the test, not how much money was spent researching and modifying the car. College sports are now at the same fork in the road. Does the NCAA get serious about an economic structure to preserve competition while being fair to young athletes? Or does it just let college sports devolve into a food-fight which benefits no one and wrecks the drama of sport?
Sadly, all the goals, the rules and expectations for a student athlete have been dismantled by the very organizations that were supposed to protect players.
Just a sick sense and use of money
adding to the wear and tear on their bodies.
In the seventies, the NCAA would banish a player for dropping classes, or making money on the sale of tickets, accepting money from alums, not obtaining a “proper” job... ALL BS. All hypocritical pigs.. Erickson of course nails it...
Disgusted in Phoenix... jdc
.
I've been waiting for an article like this. The way Smith and Dennis Erickson described it, is EXACTLY why I gravitated away from Pro sports, (free agency & guaranteed contracts) and towards college athletics. There has been a steady creep towards this, with paying pro's to participate in the Olympics',
to looking the other way when AAU basketball has been paying (so called "amatuer") players travel, food, and all expenses. NOW, College athletics is becoming the NBA, NFL, MLB. The myopia of NCAA administrators, and university and conference administrators is killing the goose that laid the golden eggs. These fools with their inaction and lack of foresight are going to put themselves out of a job sooner than later by killing the sport that pays them. There will come a time when States, elected representatives, taxpayers, citizenry are all collectively going to say "Oh Hell NO!" And the Nation's entire Collegiate athletic system will be done...because fans are already getting extremely tired of the elitist entitlement attitudes of 'COLLEGE ATHLETES'! And because very few colleges and universities have Phil Knights, or T. Boone Pickens (OK state). or John Ruiz (U-MIami) to bankroll their athletic departments. So when the public walks away....they (paid college athletes), will be done...then what (Ed Obannon)? Oh NO! They might be forced to have to go to school and actually study to get a J.O.B. ...THE HORRORS!!!
It looks like the world of NIL resembles the days of the wild wild West. Little regulation and unlimited funding. Every year is free-agency with little continuity from year to year for coaches and players. I wonder if the NIL phenomenon has been a reason for the sharp drop in attendance at Duck MBB due to the number of changing rosters each of the past few years. For the premier players, the NIL program is a bonanza, but what is the glue that makes a team stay together when you don't know who your team mates will be each year? I share the concern of coaches dealing with this disruptive program. John, what regulations would you like to see implemented to improve the NIL program?
Coaches want to get paid. I take no issue with that. Players should be able to take advantage of NIL (since they aren't getting a cut of the TV money). I take no issue with that either.
My blessing in all of this is that, this Saturday morning, I will be heading for Valley Catholic to watch my third grade great granddaughter compete for St Anthony's in the CYO Roadrunners track and field championships. So besides enjoying her and the family in some pure sport, I will be distracted from the cluster that college athletics has hereby arrived. And who knows who I might bump into there? Go Olivia! GrandpaRosie
This is insanity. If the feckless NCAA doesn't reform NIL and transfer portal rules soon, fans will eventually become even more alienated.
As a long time Cougar fan and alum, I see College sports becoming a landing place for athletes who will not end up on professional sports. I recall an article in Sports Illustrated back in the mid 70's where the writer argued that all the best players should go directly to the pros, like in baseball, right from High School. They would be paid to play at the various levels according to their market value, and the remaining athletes could then compete for spots on college teams. The various sports in the college ranks would be like "club sports', and competition would be based upon the level of play for Varsity teams, like high school.
NIL has created a bigger rift between the haves and the have nots.
I was not surprised when DJ Rodman moved on to USC. It bothers me as a CAF donor to see our donations go to help matriculating athletes who have little or no allegiance to the university.
I am starting to lose interest as well.
Beginning to wonder if my funds would be used better elsewhere.
I need a vacation.
Dave Peterson
And you want to know why attendance is dropping at most college athletic events (I know there are exceptions to that statement). We as fans and supporters of these teams, schools and programs are losing interest as roster changes occur about as often as baby diaper changes. It's becoming a constant revolving door. It's one of the reasons I have lost a lot of my interest in pro sports, and why I'm starting to lose interest in major college sports. The athletes have no connection or loyalty to the schools, and I have no connection or loyalty to the student-athletes. Big Money ruins everything!
Little Joe never once gave it away
Everybody had to pay and pay
A hustle here and a hustle there
You are a GREAT journalist John
You are witnessing the death of college sports. No salary cap? Hows that work for MLB? Agree with Erickson- the Div II schools are going to be more fun to watch. Might have more interest in those games.