Keep Up the Good Work NCAA. (Insert Sarcasm Here)

You would think it was a no brainier.  Putting a limit on how early a coach can offer a scholarship to a kid.  It makes so much sense.  There is absolutely no reason that a 13 year old kid should be shopping for college scholarships.  We are looking at you Lane Kiffin.

Lane Kiffin famously offered a scholarship to 13 year old 7th grader David Sills.  The kid has never played in a high school game, much less is ready to choose a college.  He can't sign a letter of intent until 2015!  You may argue that what harm can it do good for the kid, but we think it is dangerous.  The scholarship offer puts a lot of pressure on a young kid.  At 13 your mind is not ready for that kind of pressure regarding anything.  Much less a sport like football.  Remember how stressful talking to girls was?   And it sets a horrible trend.  The only thing this will do is encourage coaches and teams to look at younger and younger kids in order to get to them first.  Add this with over signing, and you have a recipe for disaster.  "Sorry kid, I know you have had that scholarship offer for 6 years. And you have been dreaming of coming to USC.  But we just don't want you now."  Think it's bad when coaches do this to college kids?  Wait till they have 6 years of hopes, from their most fragile teenage years, crushed.

 So what will the NCAA, champions and protectors of all, do about this?  Nothing.  On Thursday, January 13, 2011 the legislative council of the NCAA defeated a proposal that would have stopped coaches from making offers until after a kid's junior year of high school.  Of ...course they did.

Let's not forget the NCAA's statement of purpose:

"Our purpose is to govern competition in a fair, safe, equitable and sportsmanlike manner, and to integrate intercollegiate athletics into higher education so that the educational experience of the student-athlete is paramount."


Yeah you guys are doing a great job living up to your lofty words.



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