Scholarship guarantees, early signing would curb oversigning
An early signing period would've prevented Justin Taylor's disappearing scholarship. (AP photo)
One week after leading Alabama to its second BCS title in three seasons, Nick Saban reaffirmed that his commitment to winning isn’t necessarily rooted in a commitment to doing things the right way.
Saban informed Justin Taylor, a North Atlanta High School running back, that he was yanking his scholarship offer from 11 months ago. Eleven months ago. Never mind that Taylor was the seventh oral commitment for Alabama’s 2012 class. Nor that he was a good kid, a terrific player and hadn’t once screamed, “War Eagle!” This is the ugly side of college football that coaches hide between the disingenuous, “Don’t worry, momma, I’ll take care of your boy,” speeches.
The substance of a coach’s word morphs from oak to oatmeal when he finds a faster, stronger player.
This is a form of “oversigning” (or in this case overcommitting) in recruiting, a reprehensible practice we’ve banged on several times before. A coach will accept more commitments than he actually has scholarships to give out. His objective: To fix the scholarship numbers by coercing perceived underachieving athletes to transfer or accept medical hardships, thereby creating space to bring in better players. It’s the quickest route for a coach to lessen his own mistakes or shortcomings.
Forget that whole concept of commitment, four-year scholarships and the mission of college athletics. That went out with 8-millimeter film.
Saban and LSU’s Les Miles are two of the biggest abusers of oversigning. Saban and Les Miles also just faced each other for the BCS title. That’s not a coincidence, coaching talents notwithstanding.
With increasing attention being paid to this topic in the past two years, the NCAA and SEC (where some of the biggest abusers thrive) have attempted to curb the problem by lowering scholarship limits. But that isn’t nearly enough. Lowering the cap doesn’t prevent coaches from bending ethical borders to reach that cap. Case in point: Justin Taylor.
Georgia Tech athletic director Dan Radakovich believes, “For the vast majority of coaches, this is not an issue. Ninety percent of coaches abide by the rules and do things the right way.”
I agree. The problem is that the other 10 percent generally are the ones competing for championships.
The NCAA last week announced tougher sanctions against repeated rules-breakers (good), but it did little to close the loopholes on the oversigning issue. Here are a few things that would help:
• 1.) A coach can’t sign more players than he has slots available. If a committed player then fails to qualify academically, gets arrested or the like, that’s on the coach. Go sign somebody else. Every coach would be on equal ground.
• 2.) Scholarships are guaranteed for four or five years. Currently, it’s a series of one-year renewables.
• 3.) Football should have an early signing period, like basketball. If Taylor had signed his national letter of intent in February, it would be a binding agreement. Neither he nor Saban could pull a U-turn.
• 4.) The NCAA should form an impartial panel to oversee any athlete-coach disputes where there’s even the remote possibility of a player being coerced into leaving or becoming a medical hardship. Currently, disputes are settled by committees on the individual campuses.
Seriously, is there a panel in Tuscaloosa that’s going to side against Saban or in Baton Rouge that would go against Miles?
Georgia athletic director Greg McGarity, among those who has spoken out against oversigning, said: “I think if there were a body that was not a part of the institution, certainly there would be a more consistent ruling or outcome there.”
He said “there are pros and cons” to an early signing period, but that it also might help, noting it works in basketball, volleyball and soccer.
Of course, football coaches are against early signing. They like having the flexibility to renege on commitments and playing with numbers. They’re going to be against any rule that adds clarity to an issue and eliminates the gray, eliminates their ability to manipulate a situation and get an edge.
As McGarity said, “If a coach makes a mistake in recruiting, that’s not the student-athlete’s fault.”
If college coaches want that freedom, let’s call this what it is: pro sports. Sign players, cut them, trade them — and pay them. But if we’re trying to maintain some illusion that this is still amateur athletics, some safeguards are needed because coaches aren’t going to police themselves.
Previous columns on oversigning
• SEC didn’t go nearly far enough with oversigning
• NCAA has lost sight of its mission by allowing oversigning
• A word about oversigning (and revisiting Saban’s dance)
By Jeff Schultz
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491 comments Add your comment
TampaGator
January 20th, 2012
6:47 pm
P.S……Saban and Miles are still great recruiters and great head coaches……but they need to play by the rules everyone else plays by….and they should be severely penalized (the coaches, not the school or the players) if they don’t.
George Stein
January 20th, 2012
6:48 pm
Agree completely, Tampa.
DP
January 20th, 2012
6:50 pm
“It is one of the reasons he stated for wanting out of the SEC”
If you’re not pulling that out of your rear end Tampa Gator, let’s see the link that supports that comment.
Jefferson Davis Hogg
January 20th, 2012
6:51 pm
@George Stein & TampaGator…….There ya have it!…..Great points!
BiggDawgK
January 20th, 2012
6:52 pm
It’s really sad that bama boys are so lacking in morals and integrity that none of them see anything wrong with lieing to kids and leaving them with few if any options when a scholly is yanked. All the bama trash really thinks anyone that has a problem with their classless sewer level mentality is just mad because bama won a championship.
Life in alabama has to be truly horrible when the only thing at all in bama boy’s lifes is football and sexual assault on passed out men.
Eaassyy
January 20th, 2012
6:54 pm
Got to love Bama folks thinking this is a “pro UGA” article. Schultz is as negative as anyone about the Dawgs. There are Florida Tech and Uga fans alike commenting on both Miles and Saban’s questionable tactics.
He is simply drawing a line in the sand between right and wrong. The example in this article is flat wrong and I don’t hear any Bama fans denying it. All you can do is call Dawg fans whiners and losers. True, nobody can deny Bama and LSU are on a whole other level. Not only from UGA but also the rest of the country.
Is it coaching? Playing the system? Combo?
George Stein
January 20th, 2012
6:55 pm
The funny thing – to me, at least – is that UGA is getting support from their two biggest rivals. Funny how this recruiting stuff works.
NCDawg
January 20th, 2012
6:56 pm
I think that there is a perception problem here. Over- signing is wrong, period… no further discussion needed. The perception that the NCAA and CFA won’t do anything about it because of money is just cynical. The sport will generate just as much revenue without this practice as it does with it. The coaches that leverage this disgusting practice to winnow the recruiting talent pool so they get what they want are not going to lose any revenue for the system. Their schools will ALWAYS pull in big bucks. No this is a practice that protects their jobs.
If you get a mulligan or two on the golf course and the other guy doesn’t, and all things being equal otherwise, you will win a huge majority of the time. The coaches that do this add a few extra quality players to their rosters every year and you end up with stockpiled talent that overwhelms the opposition. That equals wins and wins equal big contracts and job security.
Can you say exploitation?
Sweet Home Alabama
January 20th, 2012
6:56 pm
Jealousy is a pretty sad thing.We do things the right way .THE problem is when you are dealing with 4 and 5 stars they all want to ROLL with the TIDE.
i know you MUTTS are jealous.We will sign whoever we want and will allways stay with in limits..\\\
ROLL TIDE ROLL………………
Eaassyy
January 20th, 2012
6:56 pm
you said it George, you said it.
kbb
January 20th, 2012
6:58 pm
College football is the most morally bankrupt entity in sports right now.
JoeFan
January 20th, 2012
7:00 pm
One of your best articles. Great points. Regretfully money talks louder than a man’s word and hanshake.
George Stein
January 20th, 2012
7:01 pm
It isn’t jealousy, Sweet Home Alabama. It’s pity. It’s pity that you think so little of kids and that you can’t spell always.
daddo
January 20th, 2012
7:04 pm
I’m sorry, our national championships can’t hear you.
DP
January 20th, 2012
7:05 pm
I’m an Alabama fan and grad who doesn’t like what Saban has done with Justin Taylor and basically agrees with the major points in Schultz’s column. But I propose a different solution to avoid outside arbitration panels. My proposed solution would be even tougher on coaches who want to replace recruiting mistakes because when a player transfers or flunks out the coach doesn’t get an extra scholarship to replace him. Under Schultz’s recommendation a coach can still make it so tough on a player that he transfers rather than fighting the system and going to arbitration and the coach wins because he signs a replacement.
George Stein
January 20th, 2012
7:08 pm
Congrats, daddo. We are all sooooo impressed.
jebstuart
January 20th, 2012
7:20 pm
Boy, them GA grapes smell sour!
If they play within the rules and yet still WIN, why does everyone keep carping–BECAUSE they not you win!
If Saban or Miles were either one outside the letter of the NCAA law, you can bet the NZAA Secret Police would cremate them.
As they just use the system better, shaaaddup!
bamaguy
January 20th, 2012
7:20 pm
Did Boise and Michigan State oversign?
RTR22
January 20th, 2012
7:21 pm
Bama NUMBER ONE NATIONALLY in National Championships, Bowl Wins, 32 Ten Win seasons.
SEC LEADER in alltime wins, conference wins, longest win streak, 48 wins in 4 yrs, and a winning record against all SEC Schools, 4 Rose Bowl wins.
Put ur dawg resume out there for viewing…….lol. I would not bother its embarassing
Astropig
January 20th, 2012
7:24 pm
Great points as usual Schultzie, BUT…
What to do about kids like Gunner Kiel (or Da’Rick Rogers for that matter) ? These guys are not exactly a field of buttercups in the ethics department. Kiel had LSU convinced that he was going to be a Tiger and he shows up at Notre Dame on Monday, ready to go to class. Rogers strung UGA along for months before landing in K’ville with the Vols.And wasn’t there a kid that actually showed up at North Carolina last week and left the next day for Vanderbilt ? (IIRC,he had a few free meals but never attended class).
Saban did this kid from Atlanta wrong. Dirty dog wrong. But it’s a dirty business and the only way to clean it up is to take enforcement away from the people being enforced.
duronimo
January 20th, 2012
7:24 pm
Over-signing is a problem but in the end you still have to coach them. Saban and Miles
just seem to get more out of their good players than anyone else. For example, oversigning
wouldn’t help Georgia or Tennessee.
RTR22
January 20th, 2012
7:24 pm
When Bama fields a team exceeding 85 schollys turn us in………. LOSERS whine thats what they do
Old Gold Britches
January 20th, 2012
7:32 pm
A kid would have to be a fool to sign with Alabama! Biggest cheater since the Bear!!
Insider
January 20th, 2012
7:33 pm
This will be Saban’s last year at Bama! NFL calling is too strong!!
AndyDandy
January 20th, 2012
7:37 pm
I gtraduated from and played a non-revenue sport at an Ohio Valley Conference school, probably before most of you were born. My point is I have no allegiance to any SEC school (our son went to Vandy but that doesn’t count). My point, or question, is: aren’t most academic scholarships one-year deals with the requirement to maintain a certain GPA? In other words, if you don’t produce, you lose the free ride. Why should athletic scholarships be different?
I'm with Stupid
January 20th, 2012
7:37 pm
Spoken like the left wing moonbat you are , Jeff. You forgot to mention the kid had a major injury and was has and has accepted to come in with next years class. But then the facts get in the way of your silly agenda. “Do things the right way” According to who?
I don’t see Saban getting any wrist slaps like other coaches….say Mark Richt. Making scolarships for four years just invites the deadbeats to stay deadbeats. One year scolarships have been they way it is forever. But now the whiny snot nose losers are call for big brother to step in and save the day…”THEY’RE EVIL and because they are successfull I’m a failure” Where have i heard that before?
These players are getting a privilage, its not a right. And every year they have to earn their place on the team. I don’t see you writing about the academic scholarships that are taken away daily? Or the scholarships Saint Richt gave to guys who earned it on the field last year, but he needs them back for this year. You can’t change stupid
SoGa Bama fan
January 20th, 2012
7:38 pm
Am I wrong? Did I not see where they asked Justin Taylor to gray shirt ? they did not completely pull his offer. He would not be playing this year anyway . The extra rehab will make him better. I hope he still attends Bama. Best of luck to him.
Jock strap
January 20th, 2012
7:41 pm
Guys like Tgator and George Stein have to jump on the bandwagon to make up for failings by their teams and the realization they are no longer relevant and need help to catch up
bamaguy
January 20th, 2012
7:44 pm
Stupid: Jeff is just preaching to the choir to sell newspapers. UGA fans need a reason to believe that the the reason they are not equal to Alabama and LSU is outside Athens. It’s the big, bad Saban, or the big, bad Miles because the reason can’t be that RIcht is an inferior coach. He’s just selling newspapers with this nonsense.
As long as Miles, Saban and Petrino are coaching and UGA sticks with RIcht there will be no championship trophies in Athens.
I'm with Stupid
January 20th, 2012
7:45 pm
Hey Tampa Gator. They are playing by the same rules. They’re just better at it. The bottom line is Saban, Miles and Spurrier out work the others.
gtfanfrom1951
January 20th, 2012
7:51 pm
Saban is one letter away from Satan maybe he should careful. no oversigning period!
heartofdarkness
January 20th, 2012
7:55 pm
In the capital markets, this little process you describe would be called price discovery. It is the coach’s responsibility to insure his investors get fair market value for their outlays.
George Stein
January 20th, 2012
8:02 pm
Kids on academic scholarship can earn money in the field in which they have earned a scholarship, AndyDandy. Athletes can’t. If we want to pay the kids, then I’d be more ok with this stuff.
Mr. Thomas Anthony Jones, SR
January 20th, 2012
8:03 pm
Just play the players. If the players are paid they then know they are in a business and they look out for themselves. What we have here are corrupt universities: Alabama and LSU the prime examples wha are corrupt universities. If the players atre paid then they can take their talents to where they appreciated. If some bully like Sabin treats a player shabbily the players can take his talents directly to Auburn and beat the corrupt University of Alabama like a old drum. Pay the players and let them tranfer at will to any school they want to play for. It is time the players ran this system for their own benefit. Coach are liars!!!!!
George Stein
January 20th, 2012
8:03 pm
Troll Tide Troll, Jock Strap.
Newt Gingrich is a rock star
January 20th, 2012
8:05 pm
The problem with scholarships being guaranteed for 4-5 years is that athletes whose main motivation is the free ride, or who might not have the work ethic needed to mature and develope at the big-time college level once they realize that their talents alone won’t get the job done, might have little incentive to work hard and be team players. I’d suggest two year guarantees as an alternative.
George Stein
January 20th, 2012
8:06 pm
It has nothing to do with hard work, I’m With Stupid.
bamaguy
January 20th, 2012
8:12 pm
NIck Saban (named after a Saint) and Urban Meyer (named after a Pope) are the two most successful SEC coaches of the last few years. They are both devout Catholics. Maybe that’s the reason.
jim
January 20th, 2012
8:22 pm
Rediculous idea guaranteeing 4 years. All other gifted kids on scholorship are on 1 year grants and require that they perform. And those kids tend to be a little more responsible than jocks. The four year thing has already been tried and resulted in undisciplined and unmotivated groups of players. Plus the other downside is desperate coaches will then be forced to treat the malcontents badly to force them out.
Further all coaches oversign at some point to keep their rosters as close to full as possible. That is their job! The school that brought about this oversigning thing was Ole Miss (signed 37 couple years ago) and they went winless in the SEc this past season. Also schools in lower pop states with more in state competition have to take more grade chances and will as a matter of course sign more guys to get 25 qualifiers (see Mississippi Schools).It should be and is a snap for UGA to select and sign 25 great athletes and sign them. 11 million people and no big time in state comp. Same with Florida and Texas and Southern Cal, and Ohio St. But nature then takes it’s course at those schools with built in advantages. Over time the coaches start taking things for granted and the program goes down because the players are not being developed. And that is the key at the LSU/Bama programs. They have a done a terrific job of developing their players. $ stars go to UGA and never improve over and over and over again. Same as with Texas. Hell 5 stars go to UF and never improve. Saban in particular and to a degree Miles keeps their players motivated, in school and working like hell. Driven is the word. Both are due to slack off some over time and when they do they too will take a tumble. But all this spinning and whinning by Georgia interest is tedious and reflects badly upon the fan base and media there.
And oh by the way, new coaches tend to bring in more players that fit their programs and cut guys early in their admins that don’t. You mention Saban. His first full class @ UA had 31 signees. Guess what Richt’s first full signing class @ UGA had 31. Identical. This will be Saban’s 5th class and conjecture is it will have 27 or 28 guys sign on weds with one two current commmits being none qualifiers and going the jc route. Max 28. And oh yeah the 5th class of Mark richt’s…tadah…28 guys! Rest my case! Find another excuse tree to pee up!
Ignition
January 20th, 2012
8:25 pm
Honestly I feel Alabama should be banned from Atlanta if not the entire state of Georgia for this practice…..
And NEVER be allowed back to recruit until Saban is gone.
realitycheck
January 20th, 2012
8:33 pm
Bama 14 NC’s……..UGA 1 NC……..Wow, that’s a fair fight! As long as UGA keeps that clown as HC, they will never sniff a NC. Richt would have been gone in 4 or 5 yrs at Bama. No coach at Bama since Bryant that did not win a NC, lasted any longer than 4 years. The bars are set differently……At Bama it’s we will win another NC…….AT UGA, it’s let’s try to win the SEC. Anyone who’s not sure needs to look up the all time numbers because it’s embarassing for UGA to even try comparing themselves to Bama.
Dawgs on top
January 20th, 2012
8:40 pm
Jeff…Just a question regarding early signing….Do the players who enroll in January not sign early, or are they part of a different year’s class? Thanks…
Knutt Sack
January 20th, 2012
8:46 pm
The conversation needs to be more on all the scholarships that the male student athletes have lost over the last 20 years to Title IX. College Baseball programs must now divide full scholarships into partials and split them up to keep enough players on their rosters. Wrestling programs have been eliminated, Track programs cut…just to name a few.
This all occurs to keep the number of women on scholarship due to the number of men on scholarship( which includes football- the only sport to primarily generate revenue . with the one exception of the Men’s Basketball programs who are successful in getting to the tournament every year) in order to meet an antiquated federal law.
We have watched the number of football scholarships drop from 105 to 95 now to 85, while womens programs have risen 1400% during that same period.
If a kid is not ready, physically, mentallly, academically or socially to enter a school, the coaches at each program should have the option of moving the kid or removing him from the program to further enhance his chances to earn a degree. That sounds outlandish, but every school in the country has pushed players out the door, and do not dare say your program has not, if the kid is told he will never play, or he will never dress you will see the kid move himself out of the program.
Telling a coach he cannot fire a player( release him from scholarship) is akin to the union telling an employer they cannot fire an employee for lack of performance or following the rules.
This is just ignorant. The rules are not being broken, the federal government and the NCAA forced these programs to adapt due to lack of scholarships allowing a coach to keep enough players to perform up to their standards.
Zoli
January 20th, 2012
8:47 pm
It’s the game of survival of the fittest. A great problem to have but impossible to regulate across the board. Recruiting is similar to NASCAR’s saying “If ya ain’t cheatin, ya ain’t tryin”
Knutt Sack
January 20th, 2012
8:51 pm
Ignition
January 20th, 2012
8:25 pm
Honestly I feel Alabama should be banned from Atlanta if not the entire state of Georgia for this practice…..
And NEVER be allowed back to recruit until Saban is gone.
Should UGA be banned from playing in the SEC for losing to UCF, Boise St, and Michigan St, and totally embarrassing the conference with their lack of perfomance the past two years, winning the Fulmer Cup, or even having their AD busted with a female not his wife while driving drunk?
Knutt Sack
January 20th, 2012
8:55 pm
Heck, Lets just give them all trophies and tell them they are all winners, turn the scoreboards off and play every saturday until everyone is happy!
The illogical thinking of some is the same thing wrong with this country. Only the strong survive, everyone else are just specatators.
Knutt Sack
January 20th, 2012
8:55 pm
“Spectators”
ACE
January 20th, 2012
8:56 pm
Again, another article lacking substance.
If you want to require a 4-5 year scholarship, are you also going write into that contract that the athlete must stay there nfor that time? Contracts of this nature work both ways.
Instead, why don’t you place the blame where it belongs, the NBA and NFL which have anti-trust exemptions and have been allowed to use college sports as their minor leagues. They should be required to have real minor leagues, signing player right out of high school who have no desire to get a college education. Then you could require those who opt for college to have a 3 year scholarship, like college baseball.
For those coaches who pull the crap that miles anbd Saban do, the high school coaches should band together and start black-balling their staffs from their schools. When coaches start to see their tallent going to other schools because of their bad practices, they will eventually suffer the consequences.
Knutt Sack
January 20th, 2012
8:59 pm
Do you people realize it is against the law to feed dolphins? Do you know why?
Because if you keep feeding them and not allowing them to work for their food and to maintain their work ethic, they will stop hunting and expect the humans to feed them everyday.
The same thing applies to Football scholarships being guaranteed for 4 or 5 years.
We have already tried this nationally, it is called Welfare. Created to help people in time of need, but now it is expected and demanded by those too lazy to work.
Knutt Sack
January 20th, 2012
9:03 pm
How bout a coach at school “A” gets fired, School “A” goes out and hires a gunslinger coach who wants to bring in his style of players. One problem, the darn athlete at school “A” has a better deal than the new coach has. The student athlete has a 4 or 5 year deal, while the new coach has a three year rollover contract. The coach is expected to win,but if will not win with the same players with the same type work ethic that got his predecessor fired.