The worst contract in American sports

UGA coach Mark Richt

[Hat tip to Kevin Weakley for sending me the link to the article that inspired this blog.]

The worst contract in American sports — that’s what Sports Illustrated magazine’s Andy Staples called the National Letter of Intent, a document that commits a high school athlete to a scholarship from a particular university. Upon signing the Letter of Intent, that athlete forfeits one year of college eligibility in the event he or she fails to enroll in that school.

In contrast, the school doesn’t really have to honor the scholarship offer to the athlete. As Staples points out,

Sure, the NLI claims to guarantee a scholarship, but that simply isn’t true. That is contingent on the player being admitted to the school and on the football program staying below the 85-scholarship limit. A school can dump the player at any point between Signing Day and preseason camp, and he would have no recourse. This guarantee is no different than the one on a conference-approved financial aid form, but it costs the player something the financial aid agreement does not.

This situation drew national attention when highly sought linebacker Roquan Smith verbally committed to UCLA in a ceremony televised on ESPN, but news broke revealing the primary recruiter who gave Smith his very first scholarship offer and cultivated a relationship with the player over three years would be leaving to take a coaching job in the NFL, working for the Atlanta Falcons.

Had Smith signed the letter of intent and faxed it, he would have forfeited a year of eligibility unless UCLA granted him an unconditional release. Given the fact the coaches at UCLA were pressing to get the signed document faxed before the story broke, that scenario seems highly unlikely.

The NCAA has said the “Roquan Smith situations” put college teams in a bad position.

Oh yeah? What about the athletes?

Smith was lucky. Ask Ohio State signee Mike Weber if he’s happy his position coach left the Buckeyes for an NFL job immediately following signing day.

Georgia coach Mark Richt has a reputation granting his players their unconditional release if a player no longer wants to be a Bulldog. Most recently, running back J. J. Green announced his transfer to arch-rival Georgia Tech after Richt granted his unconditional release.

Not every player is so lucky. Contrast that considerate treatment of his player to how Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy reacted when quarterback Wes Lunt announced he wanted to leave the Cowboys.

Perhaps before the NCAA decides to rely on the integrity of its member institutions, they should take a closer look at the train wreck down at Florida State.

Apparently the school can pull a scholarship offer to a committed player the night before signing day, with impunity, and the player is left with few or no options.

In fact, the NCAA’s reaction to the problem has been completely tone deaf, which isn’t exactly a surprise. The official response to the clear evidence of chicanery on the part of coaches at UCLA, Florida, Ohio State, and several other schools offers the athlete little hope for legitimate recourse:

As for deceiving a kid into signing, this is something that institution needs to deal with and if the NLI signee asks for a release due to this reason, the institution should consider the circumstances.

So, if I’m reading that right, the athlete who has just been manipulated and fooled must appeal for mercy and a release to the very same institution whose representatives deceived him?

Good luck with that.

I’ve got a better idea…why not designate one or two members of the coaching staff as the primary recruiters of the athlete, and if they leave school without coaching the athlete for at least one year, the NCAA would void the Letter of Intent and allow that athlete to reopen his or her recruitment?

At least that would level the playing field between the players and the coaches a little bit, so the student-athletes won’t  be completely powerless.

It’s a real shame teenagers can’t count on grown men in positions of responsibility to be completely honest with them.