NCAA wrong on Masoli ruling
I had another blog set for this morning but the news changed everything. And that’s good. So here we go:
The NCAA is wrong on the Jeremiah Masoli ruling. Here’s why.
The NCAA has refused to grant former Oregon quarterback Jeremiah Masoli a waiver to be eligible to play at Ole Miss this season. Ole Miss has appealed the ruling but it is unlikely that the appeal will be successful. I reached out to Coach Houston Nutt this morning and I would have to say that he is not optimistic.
Here is what I see: You can make an ethical argument over whether or not Masoli, who was kicked off the Oregon team, should be allowed to play right away at Ole Miss. The fact is he got a second chance from Oregon coach Chip Kelly and he blew it. So if you want to take the position that Ole Miss should not have taken the kid in the first place, I respect that point of view.
But this is not an ethical argument. It is a legal argument. There is a system in place that allows athletes who have graduated with eligibility remaining to transfer and become eligible immediately at another school. You simply have to fulfill the requirements, which Masoli did.
Ole Miss will make the argument that the rules do not require the athlete to be in good standing with a team, but with the university where he last attended. Masoli graduated from Oregon so therefore he was in good standing with the school.
The NCAA rule says something about the transfer being for academic reasons. But the requirement states that the transferring student must enroll in a graduate program not available at his former institution. Masoli did that.
Again, you can make the argument that Ole Miss should not have a taken the kid. I’ve got no problem with that.
But I’m not comfortable with the NCAA being able to arbitrarily say that this kid has a legitimate reason to transfer and that kid does not. They should not have that kind of discretionary power.
There has to be a system and a set of rules. You either follow the rules or you don’t. If you follow the rules then the result should be predictable. If not, then you should get rid of the rule.
Your thoughts?
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503 comments Add your comment
ryan
September 1st, 2010
1:59 pm
Brandon Spikes involved in a sex tape another Gator with a scandal .
Cruiser
September 1st, 2010
1:59 pm
Hey Tide Rising/Delbert/UGA is Just Fine…(same guy using fake names?)
Why do you blog to yourself every day, using fake names, faking a conversation daily? 3 pages on Masoli? Give it a rest fella.
Zulu Maiden
September 1st, 2010
2:00 pm
Who are these Bozo’s that are making the rules as they go along, I say give us their names and show us their faces, I want to see the jerks face to face.
Cruiser
September 1st, 2010
2:00 pm
I’m out of here, when the fake guy, comes in here, and starts talking to himself, that’s my cue to split.
MoMo
September 1st, 2010
2:01 pm
Also want to add, Reggie Nelson was NOT in trouble, I only meant that he and Masoli wanted to transfer to continue their collegiate careers.
(A) There is no bylaw with regard to “trouble”. That is not the NCAA’s framework. YOU are basing your OWN judgement on that. The NCAA attempted to interpret Masoli’s intent…which has been done by many players before (transferring to a GRAD prog after graduating). Paulus was OPENLY shopping himself. He was profiled on ESPN, but the NCAA wants to play the “morality” game now?
Who cares if Paulus got the grad degree….he transferred, he played. Same situation, and the rukle governs Masoli’s standing as a student. The NCAA cannot levy a penalty based upon what one school did (Oregon) as it was not an NCAA issue. Even if Oregon overlooked the two infractions and allowed Masoli to play..it still would not matter…it’s an institutional issue, not one the NCAA can arbitrarily apply to wherever he goes.
The rule is there, the loop hole was taken advantage of before…now suddenly (of course you wouldnt expect someone in Masolis situ to graduate in 3 years) we have a uniqe issue and we want to interpret “intent” and play moral compass.
MoMo
September 1st, 2010
2:02 pm
Tide Rising, how does getting kicked off the football team equate with leaving the university in good standing? He was in good standing academically but was kicked off the football team and I suspect out of the university as well. Kids get kicked out of universities for criminal behavior on a regular basis.
(A) – Who was kicked out of the University? Get the facts right. He GRADUATED. You cannot graduate if you arent in good standing with a university.
Gatorzone
September 1st, 2010
2:03 pm
After graduating from Palm Bay High School in 2003, Nelson and Pirates teammate Joe Cohen chose to attend the University of Florida over rival Florida State University. He ended up attending Coffeyville Community College in Coffeyville, Kansas first, red-shirting his freshman year, and then earned his associate’s degree and transferred to Florida as a sophomore.
Gatorzone
September 1st, 2010
2:05 pm
How does Nelson figure into your discussion?
MoMo
September 1st, 2010
2:06 pm
MoMo,
Good point on Reggie Nelson as well as a number of other examples on here- Paulus, the USC linebacker, the guy that got booted from La. Tech and transferred to UAB. Lots of examples of other players who used this rule to transfer.
Seems to me that a lot of people are letting their feelings about Masoli getting in the way, ignoring the NCAA’s well documented record of letting players in the same situation transfer, and coming up with all sorts of technical reasons to say why the NCAA got it right with Masoli
(A) Yes. It’s consistency. If there were a precendent with the rule in which many players were simply locked down with this similar type of application of the rule, then ok…argument done. But so many others have without regard. I think its because it was Ole Miss. If this were an LSU, or UF….I dont think there is an issue at all.
The big boys often get the benefit of the doubt. But because it;s Ole Miss…the NCAA has more room to smash it in their faces if they want…but yet it takes them 6 years to levy a penalty on USC for rules infractions.
They need regulation.
Bob
September 1st, 2010
2:08 pm
Tony, When does the NCAA ever get it right. They suspended Renardo Sidney for a whole season +9 games, and they waited all season to do it, and they gave John Wall, who comitted the exact same infraction only a two game suspension. The NCAA has never been fair or equal in any of their punishments, it’s time for a whole new system.
Football Fan
September 1st, 2010
2:08 pm
ok let’s see….Pawlus transfers from Duke because he isn’t allowed to play quarterback with his final year of eligibility after playing basketball for four years…gets to play at Syracuse without sitting.
Polynice transfers from OM to Seton Hall because he keeps getting in trouble with the coaches and does not sit a year.
basketball player at Louisiana Tech gets kicked off the team, transfers to UAB and gets to play without sitting….
Masoli gets kicked off Oregon’s team, transfers to Ole Miss on his own dime, practices for a month and four days before the first game is denied the transfer waiver.
what do all these have in common?? They all graduated with degrees and transferred to a school that had a graduate program not offered at their former school. Which one was really just transferring for academics?? Not one of them…they all transferred to play athletics.
The NCAA totally singled out Masoli and Ole Miss.
Gatorzone
September 1st, 2010
2:09 pm
Reggie Nelson went to a community college and earned an associates degree before transferring to UF. Just like JUCO players do every year. His situation is not relevant to this PUNK Masoli.
DP
September 1st, 2010
2:09 pm
MoMo, my understanding is that he was enrolled in graduate school at Oregon. He had some type of current academic status at Oregon to be eligible to participate in spring practice there. If you earn an undergraduate degree, enroll in graduate school and then are kicked out of the university I don’t call that leaving in good standing any more than a soldier who goes from an enlisted man to an officer then gets a dishonorable discharge leaves the military in good standing.
Tide Rising
September 1st, 2010
2:10 pm
DP,
He was kicked off the team but he left the university in good academic standing. My only point is that according to the posts of several other bloggers on here the same exact thing has happened with several other players and they were granted eligibility. Where is the consistency? Seems to me the NCAA is just singling out Masoli in an arbitrary and capricious manner. I don’t like Masoli any more than anyone else on here. But rules are rules and the NCAA should follow its own rules and bylaws.
Zulu Maiden
September 1st, 2010
2:11 pm
E S South, you don’t know what you are talking about. You have your head about as far up your wazoo as does the NCAA.
MoMo
September 1st, 2010
2:11 pm
How does Nelson figure into your discussion?
(A) Ryan Nelson, (not Reggie Smith) graduated from Utah. Transferred to UF as a grad the NEXT year when Urban was hired. Coincedence. Nelson used the same ruke Maoli was rejected for to move.
When he first heard about the new NCAA rule that allows a player that has graduated with football eligibility remaining to transfer without having to sit out, Urban Meyer was vocal in his opposition. Now that Ryan Smith has taken advantage of the rule and transferred in from Utah, Meyer still doesn’t like it but he’s happy it works in his favor this year.
Smith, who was a starter at Utah for Coach Urban Meyer’s 12-0 Fiesta Bowl championship team in 2004, got in his first practice at the University of Florida Tuesday evening and his presence adds a cornerback with starting experience at a position that is thin in both numbers and experience. The 5-10, 165-pound Smith graduated from Utah a few days ago with a bachelor’s degree in sociology. He’s now enrolled in graduate school at Florida where he will pursue a master’s degree in educational leadership. He has two years of playing eligibility remaining.
Smith was planning to leave the Utah football team after a sophomore season where things just didn’t work out well. Meyer, the coach that recruited him to Utah, was at Florida where he took secondary coach Chuck Heater with him. The new defensive coordinator/secondary coach at Utah wanted bigger, more physical corners and that more or less squeezed Smith out. He decided to get his bachelor’s degree and then transfer to another school to play out the final two years of eligibility.
“I’m just glad to be here,” said Smith after Tuesday’s practice. “I don’t want to do too much talking about the past. Things happened and the cards fell that way. I graduated early. I took a lot of classes in summer school and I was done with my credits and I was ready to play football somewhere else.”
MoMo
September 1st, 2010
2:13 pm
MoMo, my understanding is that he was enrolled in graduate school at Oregon. He had some type of current academic status at Oregon to be eligible to participate in spring practice there. If you earn an undergraduate degree, enroll in graduate school and then are kicked out of the university I don’t call that leaving in good standing any more than a soldier who goes from an enlisted man to an officer then gets a dishonorable discharge leaves the military in good standing.
(A) AGAIN….when was he KICKED out of the Unioversity? He was NOT. He was still on scholarship. He was booted from the football team. That’s it. He graduated THIS SUMMER. So, no he was not enrolled and attending graduate classes.
He was not KICKED out of school (for the final time). Get the facts.
Football Fan
September 1st, 2010
2:14 pm
@WreckBuzz…read all the examples given of players who did the exact same thing…got their degree, kicked off team or trouble with coaches etc. and were allowed to play. No where in the rule does it say anything about spirit of the rule or that they had to be in good standing with their team. They had to be in good standing with the school “Academically”
MoMo
September 1st, 2010
2:16 pm
Football Fan
September 1st, 2010
2:14 pm
@WreckBuzz…read all the examples given of players who did the exact same thing…got their degree, kicked off team or trouble with coaches etc. and were allowed to play. No where in the rule does it say anything about spirit of the rule or that they had to be in good standing with their team. They had to be in good standing with the school “Academically”
(A) And you are right. masoli was in good university academic standing…he graduated this summer for goodness sakes! When was the last time a person in bad academic standing graduated from a University? Lets think.
RabunDog
September 1st, 2010
2:27 pm
If he’s met the requirements – then he should be able to play
MightyQuinn
September 1st, 2010
2:27 pm
Sorry if I’m not shedding tears for Ol Ms and Masoli. You think they got screwed by the ncaa, have I got news for ya. UNC is going to possibly have to leave half of its 2 deep on O and D at home. LSU will get to feast on the 3rd string because the ncaa has hung us out to dry for 2 months because Marvin Austin twittered about his Miami trip…that he paid for himself. They have the powers of the Gestapo. Hitler’s SS goons could learn lessons from them. They seize phones, lap tops, credit card statements..and if you refuse to give them up, they say fine…if you don’t you won’t play. But then, you still don’t play because they take their own sweet time to sift thru the stuff. Guilty until proven innocent…but you still can’t play.
A beast of a team that was coming to the Dome to show LSU and the espn audience Carolina CAN play big time football, has now been decimated by ncaa nerds.
You’d be better off watching Heidi re-runs on Sat. It might get ugly.
msudawg21
September 1st, 2010
2:28 pm
NCAA finally got one right. He was suspended from oregon and should not be able to transfer and compete this year. The kid has had chance after chance how is he going to ever learn unless he has some punishment!
DP
September 1st, 2010
2:28 pm
Tide Rising, the exact same thing didn’t happen with the other players cited because none of them were kicked off their teams for repeated criminal behavior.
MoMo, OK. He was still an undergraduate when he was kicked off the football team. Had he been admitted to a graduate school at Oregon for fall semester, or was he planning to take more undergraduate courses, perhaps toward a second major? I still don’t see how somebody who is on a full athletic scholarship getting kicked off their team and losing the scholarship translates to leaving a university in good standing, but that’s semantics. The point is that allowing Masoli to play immediately at Ole Miss would have allowed him to duck the consequences for his criminal behavior at Oregon. I’m glad the NCAA ruled against him and think it will be better for Masoli in the long run. He doesn’t seem to have learned from his past mistakes, maybe this will get his attention.
But enough of this, it’s clear a number of us are never going to agree on this issue.
Otter
September 1st, 2010
2:28 pm
First of all, he isn’t on scholarship he is a walk-on. Secondly, the NCAA did not “arbitrarily say that this kid has a legitimate reason to transfer and that kid does not” There are specific notations in the rule that state that a player can not take advantage of this rule who are leaving to avoid punishment. This is the correct ruling on the issue and should not be overturned because TSUN needs a break at QB.
gcs
September 1st, 2010
2:29 pm
The NCAA is an autonomous do-whatever-they-want organization with no due process of law. So, you can forget about this being a “legal argument”. NCAA says what is legal and what is not.
Whether you agree or disagree with the ruling, why did it take two months for them to come up with an answer. Ole Miss has already started classes and Masoli has no choice but to sit around. I am not a Masoli or Ole Miss fan but that is wrong for them to wait this long.
.
PK
September 1st, 2010
2:30 pm
The NCAA is right on the LEGAL side of this. The moral side is a non factor. Read NCAA bylaw 14.5.1.3 regarding disciplinary issues for transfers. Many predicted Masoli would not be eligible. There is precedence for this, check out Louis Irizarry from 2004. Per NCAA official regarding Irizarry: “A student athlete can’t just transfer away from their problems… If they say he’s ineligible at Ohio State, they are going to say he’s not eligible at your school either.”
Masoli was not in good disciplinary standing at Oregon, and was ineligible to play this year. Therefore, he must abide by the NCAA rules on bylaw 14.5.1.3 and be resident at Ole Miss one year in order to play. I’m a bit surprised that Ole MIss didn’t see this coming.
I can’t 100% confirm this, but I have also heard that the Ole Miss parks and recreation graduate program is a one year program, and that Masoli did not even sign up for enough hours to complete the program. Another NCAA bylaw on waiving the one year residency requirement is that the transfer be for academic and not athletic reasons. That is pretty difficult to prove, except in a case where the athlete does not register for the appropriate number of hours to make academic progress.
Its really simple to understand
September 1st, 2010
2:31 pm
Tony B. = SEC PR “Slut”
bluegrass dog
September 1st, 2010
2:32 pm
Tony, I agree the NCAA got it wrong. I think it’s time the major conferences research pulling out of the NCAA. Brett McMurphy wrote a great article, http://tinyurl.com/2bpvut6, on this for fanhouse.com. While some of his suggestions were extreme, I do think it’s time to make the move.
Thanks to 468 US 85, conferences are free to negotiate their own TV contracts. Why do they need the NCAA? Individual conference, or a combination of conferences, are responsible enough and care about the student athlete enough to regulate themselves.
There have already been numerous references made here to the NCAA overstepping their bounds and being inconsistent. The instance that began this opinion for me was the Jeremy Bloom case at Colorado. Maybe Brian Bosworth had it right in that 1987 Orange Bowl after all, they are the National Communists Against Athletes.
I would love to hear your thoughts on this. Thanks for your great articles about the game we both love.
Tide Rising
September 1st, 2010
2:33 pm
DP,
I’m not sure about that but according to several of these posters several of these players like the USC linebacker and the LA. Tech to UAB transfer those players were kicked off their team for disciplinary problems. not sure but that’s the impression I’m getting and again I’m not sure but I don’t think the NCAA used that as their reasoning for denying Masoli so the point would be irrelevant to begin with.
gdawginkalamazoo
September 1st, 2010
2:33 pm
juvenal
“is the ncaa part of the federal guvmint?”
Dammit juvenal don’t give Obama any ideas!
DP
September 1st, 2010
2:35 pm
MightyQuinn, if Marvin Austin was able to pay for his trips and shopping sprees out of his own pocket, why did he Twitter about being broke? And you didn’t say anything about the latest UNC issue, which is the allegation that a tutor who also happened to be a nanny for Butch Davis’ kids had written school papers for some football players. Isn’t that why so many of the UNC players might not be traveling to the game, because their academic standing is in question? I thought there were only 2 or 3 linked to the agent issue.
Tim
September 1st, 2010
2:41 pm
This kid should be allowed to play. The NCAA is trying too hard to change the rules as they go along. Last year Greg Paulus left Duke to play at Syracuse. He was not wanted on the Duke football team and left with no issues playing last season. Although the circumstances leading to the transfer are different they should lie in the same principles.
gdawginkalamazoo
September 1st, 2010
2:41 pm
I still cannot stop laughing at Houston Nutt. This guy is probably have a fit right now. Here he dissed his QB’s who were looking forward to playing for Ole Miss (probably a life long dream) for a trouble maker who got kicked off his old team because he couldn’t stay away from the weed. Oh, yeah, this was the first time that Masoli had tried smoking dope. LMAO!
Guest
September 1st, 2010
2:46 pm
He’s not on athletic scholarship, he still gets to pursue his degree in parks and rec mgt, just no football this season. Is it about playing football, or pursuing his degree? It should be about the degree…that’s what the rule is for. I don’t always agree with the decisions of the NCAA, but they got it right this time
east cobb reb
September 1st, 2010
2:47 pm
how can anyone definitively say the transfer is not for academic purposes? if the guy had a future in the NFL, he would have gone by now.
and by the way he is not scholarship.
Tide Rising
September 1st, 2010
2:48 pm
DP,
I have other issues with the NCAA as well. I know you probably hate rehashing the Bama probation but in that case the NCAA clearly did some unethical things- using another coach as a “secret” witness- does it get anymore disgusting than that? Also, one of the major violations in the Bama case Bama had self reported. According to the NCAA’s own rules they must respond to the self reported violation wihin 1 year or they cannot penalize the institution. The NCAA responded 16 months later, 4 months outside the window or statute of limitations. Bama pointed this out in its appeal. The NCAA acknowledged this but didn’t care. They simply chose to ignore their own rule.
I could write a termpaper about the fabrications proven in court documents of NCAA investigators in the Bama case, the case against Jackie Sherrill, and in the Jerry Tark case at UNLV. Tark successfully sued the NCAA and won big time- a lot of people don’t know that.
In the case against Tarkainian and UNLV the NCAA forced a player from Sudan to make up allegations against Tark. They told him that if he didn’t go along with the allegations they would have him and his family deported back to Sudan The guy was terrified because that was basically a death sentence. Ultimately he got a lawyer and all this crap that the NCAA was doing was exposed. That alone tells you how disgusting and filthy this organization really is. This organization answers to no one and its tactics are gestapo like in nature. So yes I do hate the NCAA and its not just because of the Bama probation. Its because of all the other arbitrary punishments and crap they do and the Masoli case is just another in a long line of examples.
jeremiah masoli
September 1st, 2010
2:48 pm
what the f*** ??? no ball?
you back-water hillibillis dont we at yo school now.
yo homie, i’m outta here
Guest
September 1st, 2010
2:51 pm
Also, how can Nutt (after b2b 9 win seasons) with oversigned recruiting classes, not have more than 1 QB on campus. I know about Cottons transfer, but cmon.
MoMo
September 1st, 2010
2:51 pm
MoMo, OK. He was still an undergraduate when he was kicked off the football team. Had he been admitted to a graduate school at Oregon for fall semester, or was he planning to take more undergraduate courses, perhaps toward a second major? I still don’t see how somebody who is on a full athletic scholarship getting kicked off their team and losing the scholarship translates to leaving a university in good standing, but that’s semantics. The point is that allowing Masoli to play immediately at Ole Miss would have allowed him to duck the consequences for his criminal behavior at Oregon. I’m glad the NCAA ruled against him and think it will be better for Masoli in the long run. He doesn’t seem to have learned from his past mistakes, maybe this will get his attention.
(A) What dont you understand?
You said he “lost” his scholarship. He DID NOT. You said he was kicked out of Oregon. HE DID NOT. There was only ONE penalty he suffered. Not being able to play. Period. He woudl have had to sit out this year and come back next year, but the “graduating” loophole (whihc others have successfully used even recently) was there for his taking. He did it, and suddenly the NCAA wants to play moral compass. Yeah, right.
"mutts"
September 1st, 2010
2:52 pm
Masolli has no shot at the NFL.
Guess he’ll just have to fina a place that offers a Masters program in Criminal Justice.
Does UGA’s Criminal Justice major, that so many current UGA football players are enrolled in, offer Bachelors and Masters degrees?
G8R GRAD
September 1st, 2010
2:53 pm
Can you say, “Capricious and Arbitrary?”
Houston Nutt
September 1st, 2010
2:54 pm
Well damn.
Guess we’ll be running a lot of “Wild Rebel” formations.
anonymous
September 1st, 2010
2:54 pm
like how all the uga fans act like their players don’t smoke pot and steal
Tony B.
September 1st, 2010
2:56 pm
OK OK
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-KKKKKKKKKKKKKK !!!!!!!!!!
Who called me “Capricious and Arbitrary?”
G8R GRAD
September 1st, 2010
2:56 pm
Wait, isn’t NCAA for Notoriously Capricious And Arbitrary?
G8R GRAD
September 1st, 2010
2:57 pm
Sorry.
Wait, isn’t NCAA an acronym for Notoriously Capricious And Arbitrary?
Bama Bob
September 1st, 2010
3:00 pm
The NCAA can intepret and decide on their rules any way they choose. Good for them standing up for integrity and at least the appearance of academic integrity. Masoli had never had a connection to the South yet suddenly wanted to study Parks and Recreation at Ole Miss? Nutt is an embarrassment to Ole Miss and the SEC. Ole Miss’ administration should be ashamed for allowing this to proceed for the sake of having a mediocre season vs a bad one.
How scary is it for Ole Miss fans that the two players the fans are holding their hopes on may not be playing and neither were Nutt recruits? What a future they have to look forward to with Nutt’s program apparently heading downhill especially once all of Orgeron’s defensive linemen are gone and the schedule gets tougher next season.
Nutt is not a victim. He put Ole Miss in this position through his management of the qb position and his recruiting. Masoli certainly isn’t a victim.
The NCAA ruled correctly on this waiver application. The waiver is not automatic. You are wrong Tony.
ryan
September 1st, 2010
3:01 pm
Every school has criminals Irish 11 players arrested FSU had players kicked off Tenn bar fights O Ducks with L. Blount and Masoli .
Bama Bob
September 1st, 2010
3:05 pm
The Paulus situation is nowhere close to comparable. Paulus returned home to Syracuse to attend grad school and enrolled in their prestigious communications program. Masoli was from the West Coast and Hawaii, went to college on the West Coast and then when Nutt mismanaged his qb’s into no depth Nutt finds him a Parks and Recreation program in Mississippi that Oregon doesn’t have. Masoli = criminal past. Paulus = Duke grad with no criminal record and willing to enroll in one of the country’s best academic programs in that field.
MoMo
September 1st, 2010
3:10 pm
The Paulus situation is nowhere close to comparable. Paulus returned home to Syracuse to attend grad school and enrolled in their prestigious communications program. Masoli was from the West Coast and Hawaii, went to college on the West Coast and then when Nutt mismanaged his qb’s into no depth Nutt finds him a Parks and Recreation program in Mississippi that Oregon doesn’t have. Masoli = criminal past. Paulus = Duke grad with no criminal record and willing to enroll in one of the country’s best academic programs in that field.
(A) So you are comparing “logistics” (Masoli is from the SF Bay Area BTW) to the pertinent reasons that Masoli being denied is relevant and nothing to do with Paulus?
Interesting two step you do there. I am gald you dont practice law. The NCAA has ONE duty. Follow their own guidelines.
-They both graduated
-They both relocated to places that had grad programs not offered at their previous schools (Paulus looked at Michigan, and the Carolinas as well…so there goes your “home” argument, who cares where he is from…he went where he would immediately play)
-The only difference was that Masoli had public troubles.
Masoli was in good academic standing at Oregon and could have stayed should he elected to. Masoli’s guilty plea has NOTHING to do with NCAA eligibility. Zero. The NCAA only hinges upon eligibility issues and academic standing which affects their OWN MEMBER institutions. Period. Stop with the lame generalizations.
Paulus sucked anyway. Badly.