----------------------------------------------------------
UPDATE 2: Now it might be at Georgia. Rumors have arisen that UGA's highest rated pro-prospect was at the now notorious party in Miami. Green denies it and Michael Moore does his best to assuage concerns with this tweet: “Hahaha. This talk about A.J. is hilarious. That country boy ain’t never been to Miami!!! You can put those rumors to rest.” There's not any witness corroboration on the green rumors - yet - and it's likely that this is indicative of the name-calling to come, unsubstantiated or not.
---------------------------------------------------------
There's a new casualty in the inappropriate agent-contact web spinning out of UNC: Alabama's Marcell Dareus. His name goes on the list with Marvin Austin, Weslye Saunders, Maurkice Pouncey, the infamous resolution to the Reggie Bush case, and back to Dez Bryant's suspension last season. And, supposedly, there's a few more ready for the pyre and the net keeps spreading.
Over the last few years, as the rumors were swirling around USC, I heard a lot of loud-mouthed SEC fans making fun of the situation in Troy. A smart fan would have kept his lip bit, though, because anyone with a functioning brain and the slightest touch on reality would have known that this had to be here in the SEC, too - and probably on a more massive scale. But, that depends on SEC fans being somewhat smart, or objective, and we just aren't those things. So, now the glass house is shattered and here we are among the shards praying our team's not next.
Well, guess what - it's happened on your team. It's happened on everybody's team, if I had to bet. Maybe it hasn't happened at Georgia, but that's only because everybody's too busy drinking and going to jail. Kidding - it's totally happened here, too. But, if you're lucky, it might not get leaked and you can continue with business as usual. Of course, it's business as usual that's the problem. A coach, staff, AD, school, etc. cannot do it alone - the monitoring of other professional agencies has to fall somewhere else, or at least a share of the responsibility does.
This article had a good quote from Nick Saban:
What the NFL Players Association and the NFL need to do is if any agent breaks a rule and causes ineligibility for a player, they should suspend his license for a year or two...I’m about ready for college football to say, ‘Let’s just throw the NFL out. Don’t let them evaluate players. Don’t let them talk to players. Let them do it at the combine.’ If they are not going to help us, why should we help them?
I couldn't agree more. Like Blutarsky pointed out:
The painful reality here is that the NFL is having its cake and eating it too right now. It’s got a terrific player development system in place for which it doesn’t pay a dime. And agents contacting high level college players doesn’t affect that one bit.
While it might be a while before we reach any real resolution on this issue, or get the NFL to hold up their end of the deal, maybe now we can at least get everyone to shut the fuck up with all the mud-slinging against other schools/conferences when it comes to inappropriateness. Especially here in SEC country where we are - in good and bad - the kings of the sport.
Here, here.
ReplyDelete