We’re one week away from National Letter Of Intent Day, and the excitement (and chaos) is building.  We’ll talk a bit this week about the idea of “verbals” and visits, but let’s dig through the news bucket a bit first, shall we? Oh, and Mark Titus’ favorite band brings us our musical inspiration for the morning. Happy Wednesday.

Buckeye 411

• Taking My Talents To… Tuesday night, we got another great shot of Buckeye alum Greg Oden, just as rumors were swirling about his work to rejoin an NBA franchise. In what might seem to be the most ironic choice of programs, speculation is that his return could either be with the Cavaliers or the Miami Heat… although, I’m sure he’ll be a lot more professional about how he makes that announcement. Either way, Ohio State fans will be excited to see him back in action, and we wish him nothing but the best.
• As The Recruiting World Turns- Ohio State picked up a great wide receiver on Tuesday, but the recruiting cycle is far from over. We’re hearing positive things from Trey Johnson’s coach, but haven’t heard anything specific from him.  Ezekiel Elliott seems to be back on board as well, but has stated that he’s not willing to do interviews until a week from today, and announced on Tuesday that he would make his announcement at 3:00 PM at his school. Could this mean that he wants time to see what else happens with the OSU recruiting process before making his decision? Again, those who know feel confident that he will still be in the scarlet and gray, but that’s what makes this whole time of year so interesting, isn’t it?
• RE: Cruiting, Part Deux- The two “big names” that are still out there are Vonn Bell and Dontre Wilson; the former seems to be torn between the hometown Vols, Alabama, and the relationships that he has made with Ohio State’s coaches and possible teammates.  Bell has a visit from Coach Withers on Thursday; he’ll then shut down his recruiting and make a decision some time this weekend.  Wilson, the current Oregon commitment, had a great visit in Columbus last week by all accounts, but it was announced today that he would be visiting his home school with a trip to Austin this weekend. Given that the Longhorns recruited the last two Heisman Trophy winners and tried to make them play defensive back, it’s hard to see an offensive threat like Wilson in Austin, particularly given that the offense Texas runs has little similarity to the Ducks or what Urban Meyer is building.

Commentary- Commitment

I’ll be honest… Even as I was standing in the church waiting for the ceremony to start on my wedding day, I had more than a few “What am I doing here?” thought flow through my head. Those that know me and my then fiance, now wife probably were having similar thoughts… “What is she doing here??”  As I’ve been a part of more than a few weddings (never as the groom, though), I knew that this was not an unusual occurrence… heck, I’ve got friends that automatically want to re-visit the menu as soon as their food arrives.  For some people, decisions come easy- for others, there’s always a sense of doubt; a sense that is magnified with the magnitude of the decision being made.

Promises, promises

It’s with that in mind that I completely understand why Trey Johnson, Ezekiel Elliott, and even Dontre Wilson would want to take additional visits to ensure that they were making the best decision for their future.

When many of us decided to go to college, it probably didn’t have the weight of a student athlete’s decision- we hadn’t been hounded and followed by recruiting experts since we were sophomores, we didn’t have whole networks and televised spectacles around our performance and decisions.

Also, our “out” might have been a bit different as well- if I had wanted to transfer or even take a break, I could have done so without worrying that it would need to be cleared by more than just the admissions departments and my family, and I wouldn’t have had any concerns that my decision would have long lasting implications for my desire to pursue my career of choice. Heck, even through grad schools I didn’t even need to think about what might happen if my department chair would leave during my sophomore year, and what the new staff would want me to learn or what their focus would be. Plus, there was no way that I would have had to endure the pressure of people that I never knew following my every move and wanting to connect with me through social media, or blaming me for programmatic or personal mistakes in ways that would make me a national story.

For college aged adults who are involved in major sports, these are all factors: They’re being tweeted and stalked based on everything they do, no matter how inappropriate that is for the people involved.  If they find themselves a step or two behind their classmates, it could mean the end of their opportunity to attempt to play professionally- an opportunity that’s pretty slim even if they are at the top of their game (see Smith, Troy). And if their coach moves on, all bets are off regarding their investment in and prior commitment to the program… it’s an unfortunate part of the “business” of major college athletics.

Then there’s the “What does it mean to give your word?” aspect of all of this- is this a teachable moment? Should coaches and other administrators talk clearly with their potential athletes about integrity and honesty and what a commitment means? Certainly… but those lessons probably ring pretty hollow in a world where the bigger picture (major finances and university advancement) often trump a students’ well being, no matter how diligently coaches and others try to intervene otherwise. The system itself is geared more for the institution than it is for the individual.

In all of this, though, there’s a part of me that realizes my own hypocrisy in all of this- I want OSU to be able to “poach” the best athletes from other programs, but wish that “our” top recruits had become so invested in the program that they weren’t even the slightest bit interested in looking elsewhere.  Which, to return to an earlier theme, sounds like a lot of dating relationships that friends of mine have experienced… they want to be seen as attractive, but don’t want their significant others gaining the same attention.

As the system currently stands, the only way to know who’s committed to a University is on or after the February 6th. Personally, I’d love to see an early signing period, if only to give students and parents (who will be even more inundated with the responsibility to create boundaries for potential recruits) a break well before February of their senior year.

But until that happens, all universities and student athletes can do is promise that once that paper is signed and the enrollment completed, they will be faithful to the relationship between the institution, it’s staff, the student, and their teammates.

Meanwhile, In Russia

Around The NCAA

• Game? Changed- We’ve been following the Ed OBannon suit- former players suing the NCAA and others for the right to recoup money earned by video game companies and other investors who used the student athletes’ likenesses in video games.  A recent event in the suit has certainly opened the door for this to end up blowing a huge hole in the idea of “amateurism”, and in the NCAA and Universities’ ability to profit off of their players.

“Now the (NCAA and its co-defendants) are facing potential liability that’s based on the billions of dollars in revenue instead of tens or hundreds of millions,” said Michael Hausfeld, interim lead counsel for the plaintiffs. “It’s a more accurate context for what the players deserve.”

Again, this is something to keep an eye on… combined with the concerns about concussions and the move to super-conferences, it could be the start of some foundational changes for what we enjoy so much.

• Speaking Of Rights- A recent decision by the Department of Education has indicated that the ability to participate in sports should be seen as a civil right, and that schools will need to create opportunities for differently-abled  students to be a part of teams or have teams of their own. My take is that this has the potential to have a similar impact that Title IX had on high school and college athletics, as resources currently allocated will need to be adjusted in order to provide for compliance with these new requirements. While providing access and opportunity is always a good thing, the specifics of this impact may be quite significant- something to monitor moving forward.
• Ethically Speaking- The NCAA’s are pretty screwed up, according to the New York Times. “Doy”, says everyone everywhere.
• For Instance- The NCAA’s decision to not investigate North Carolina for their academic issues was based on it not being an athletic issue. Well, similar to Penn State, there’s certainly enough there to warrant some sort of investment if, you know, the NCAA cared about such things.
• Trickling Down- Remember Boise’s helmet design from this season? Ever wonder what it would look like in brown? Well, Western Michigan has answered your every query.
• Roll Benefits- In Tuesday’s big Sports Illustrated story about Ray Lewis and others using a non-approved supplement that may include a banned supplement, there’s an interesting revelation that members of the Alabama and LSU football teams were clients as well. Not only that, but if they were given these due to their status as student athletes, that would also make them an improper benefit, right? I’m sure there’s nothing to see, though.
• Big Picture- Another take on the Manti Te’o situation comes from Miami’s Leonard Pitts, who looks at how our culture makes deep connections based on what might be shallow rationale.  Again, all about commitment, right??

Across The B1G

• Expansion Update- Well, we still don’t have any new BFFs in the B1G, even with all of the rumors about Virginia being all but a done deal. What’s known, though, is that Purdue’s AD the conference members have been encouraged to not coordinate any out of conference games after 2020. We also know that there was some discussion of the conference moving to 9 to 10 games in house… which makes it even more likely that the B1G might be the B20 in the future.
• Those Who Stay Will Be… Oversigned? Well, according to this, Michigan has 19 players graduating or leaving early, but 27 recruits coming in. Again, I’m sure it’s all on the up and up, but it is interesting that Alabama and the Sun and Blue are both on pace to bring in 98 players in four years.
• No, not a football culture. Not at all. I’m sure they’d argue just as vehemently for scholarships for art students and music majors.

And Finally

How’s your Resolution to get in shape working out for you?

Tags: Alabama, Dontre Wilson, Ezekiel Elliott, Greg Oden, Manti Te'o, Michigan, Oversigning, Penn State, SBP, Trey Johnson, Virginia, Vonn Bell, Western Michigan
Categories: College Football, Conference Expansion, Humor, Michigan Football, NCAA Investigations, Ohio State Football