thesportsfag | my gay sports blog

The NCAA is considering a rule change that would allow officials to remove players from games if they show signs or symptoms of a concussion. The NFL moved recently to toughen the standards on when players are allowed to return after experiencing concussion-like symptoms.

With all of the science recently regarding the long-term effects of concussions on the human brain, subtracting the coach from medical decision is a step in the right direction. For as long as there has been football there have been coaches who’ve tried to keep all types of injuries, including concussions, from being disclosed to both medical personnel and the media because it might impact the outcome of a game.

Of course, then there’s Mike Leach who, after a players he deems a slacker is concussed, he penalizes by confining them to a small room and, according to sworn affidavits, lies about it to cover his tracks.

Knowing this, Dr. David Klossner, the NCAA’s Director of Health and Safety, should title the new rule, ‘The Leach Rule’. It’s an appropriate name and a lasting legacy for a coach who let his personal feelings and prejudices stand in the way of a player’s safety.

More about the Mike Leach story.

A Sunday report in the Detroit Free Press cited former and current Michigan players’ claims that Wolverine coaches required them to greatly exceed the limit on practice time imposed by the NCAA. Back in 1991 the NCAA presidents implemented a 20-hour per week practice limit. The players cited in the article remained anonymous however former Michigan wide receiver Toney Clemons has gone on record with ESPN adding some validity to the allegations.

To say that Michigan is the only school violating the practice rules is like saying the person who gets a ticket is the only one who ran the red light or was speeding. Michigan just got busted from within and that’s the story behind the story. What’s going on in Ann Arbor? Sounds like someone has an axe to grind with coach Rich Rodriguez and his staff. The story is only going to get bigger as the season goes on.

The real story here is how did this get out and what will the NCAA do? Who got the players to come forward or did they just feel compelled to speak up? There’s a lot going on behind the scenes here. It looks like someone wants Coach Rodriguez out of Ann Arbor which means we can probably expect more details to leak out as needed.

If the NCAA finds violations what penalties will they impose knowing that every big time program breaks these rules. This isn’t just a Michigan problem. The NCAA’s lack of enforcement and coaches constantly pushing the envelope creates an environment where many ‘rules’ are knowingly broken. The opportunity, incentive and pressure to break the rules are behind this problem. The NCAA must eliminate the opportunity because there is tremendous pressure and incentive to cheat.

How about web cams at each school’s practice facility so the NCAA could log the number of practice hours for each team? What a great new job opportunity for gay men. After all no group, except possibly nookie girls, knows how to work a web cam better than gay men. Let’s use some of that stimulus money to get some of those ‘real’ Americans the right wing is always referring to working. Eventually we may have to put the web cams in the locker rooms to ensure full frontal, er I mean full compliance. How about a live stream into dudesnude.com? That way the NCAA can whore out the players even more than they do know.

News flash, Tim Tebow was not a unanimous selection to the All-SEC team. Huh? Winning the Heisman and two national championships isn’t enough to garner All-SEC status in one of the worst quarterbacking leagues in all of college football? As if we needed a reminder of how college football is all screwed up.

Without context, the omission of Tebow by Steve Spurrier seems like a simple case of human error. When you allow self-interested, or worse yet uninterested, coaches to vote on something that directly benefits them or their friends it’s a mistake. Now in the case of Spurrier and the All-SEC team it appears that he falls into the ‘uninterested’ category. According to ESPN’s SEC football blogger Chris Low,

Spurrier explained that his director of football operations had filled out the ballot and brought it in to him. Spurrier said he glanced at it, signed off on it, and then realized his mistake much later.

Coaches frequently allow ADs, Assistant Coaches and even secretaries to vote on various awards and polls. It’s standard operating procedure in college football.

It’s no big deal right? It’s just a pre-season All-Conference team. Yet here’s the real stupidity of college football; the NCAA uses the AP coaches poll to help determine the BCS rankings!

The Harris Interactive College Football Poll, USA Today Coaches Poll and computer rankings each comprise one-third of the BCS Standings.

Hundreds of millions of dollars are at stake and the NCAA turns a blind eye to the fact that the coaches poll is determined by Athletic Directors, Assistant Coaches, Directors of Football Operations and secretaries.

I’m glad that Congress is going after the NCAA. It’s friggin ridiculous! Coaches are too busy to keep up with the landscape of college football and their bias for former colleagues and against current foes can cloud their judgment. In order to commit fraud one must have three things; Opportunity, Pressure and Incentive. Everyone associated with college football is under tremendous pressure which creates the incentive to cheat.

By the way, Jamie Speronis is the bunghole who voted for Snead over Tebow. Jamie Speronis, you got sum splaining to do!