Wait, What?

I've lived in Arkansas for a little bit over a year now. As far as football is concerned, I expected a world of change once I got here. I heard all about the SEC before I even got here: tradition was a word thrown around a lot, the rabid fandom, the intense competition. Since I've been in SEC country, the reputation preceding my arrival is still more of a fantasy than it is a reality; at least that is the case with the Razorbacks. Though, I sincerely hope Bret Bielema turns it around here. With all that said, it's safe to say I'm not going to be a diehard fan of SEC football. I respect it and I'll cheer on the Hogs. But I'm a B1G Boy. There is something I've learned here, though. Something I greatly desire as a Wolverine, as an all around supporter of the Big Ten Conference.

Consistency.

There is just something so consistent about the top dogs in the SEC. I'm not talking Razorbacks or UK Wildcats. I'm talking Bama, Missouri, Texas A&M... And I'm not even really talking about wins and losses. I'm talking performance on the field and knowing what team is going to show up. Some of the top teams of the SEC have experienced losses, upsetting ones. It's because they get out played, however.  B1G top dogs look like Pomeranians. We don't get out played, we succumb to self-induced hysteria and, dare I say, ineptitude.

Let's do a fun little connect the dots game, starting with my team. The Michigan that I watched play Notre Dame looked tough. Offensive line protected the QB. The quarter back was on point. Defensive line did a wonderful job. That's the last time during this season that I ever saw Michigan play with an offense and a defense that were on the same page. And, I say this cautiously since it seems like the picks thrown at this game were just a sample of the COSTCO sized quantity to be ordered up later in the season.

Michigan v UConn. Obvious disaster. Michigan wins in scathe and shame, only to retroactively be embarrassed when UConn is wrecked by one of college football's lowest achieving teams (Buffalo Towson). In conference play, I offer you the Michigan - Indiana game. Defense lets 47 points go by. FORTY SEVEN POINTS. Was the Defense asleep? I was asleep, literally speaking. Got made fun of for the rest of the night... On the other hand, Devin (Head Case) Gardner breaks a school record? And if you don't like the phrase "head case," I'm dying to be proved wrong. Seriously, I don't even know what I would do if I was wrong. But the fact is he's unpredictable for a reason that no one has been able to resolve.

Indiana terrified Penn State with a win, as Michigan later loses to Penn State in a battle of who could make the worst coaching decisions. Northwestern takes on TOSU* like champs for 7/8 of the football game and then makes The Nuts look like a great football team at the end. TOSU was the same "powerhouse," top 5 school that, through much labor, struggled to lay down Wisconsin.

Northwestern's loss to TOSU was all a big foreshadow to the massive failure against a team named after an animal that dies often from heart attacks (Gophers). Meanwhile, Michigan State is still watching Youtube videos to learn how to get an offensive touchdown. And as I live and breathe, trying to understand our very mixed up world, Minnesota is poised to embarrass the hell out of Nebraska - the supposed sleeping giant of the B1G.

I'm not turning on my people. I never will. I just can't take being called "The Cupcake Big Ten," with literally nothing valid to say back. It would be nice if the stars of this conference played to their potential and not their fears. Just give me some consistency. Stop playing down to the talent (or lack there of) before you. I'm rooting for you. Millions of us are. But what you're doing is not working. Take your scholarships and millions of dollars in salaries and figure this out. We look very small, very sweet, and very uninterested in sitting at the table with the big boys. If you're going to keep living up to this cupcake persona, you're going to get eaten.

*And that's why you shouldn't call yourself THE Ohio State University. It looks really stupid. 

But We Can: Johnny Manziel, Big Business, Ethics

I'm still all sudsy from my last diatribe about Miley Cyrus reactions...

Today, I'm really confused about the Johnny Manziel NCAA case as it pertains to the fairness of rules. In my previous post I questioned the racial relationship between outrage over Miley Cyrus and the lack of it for pretty much every other black female doing the same thing in the pop music industry (pop, hip hop, and rap alike). I think it's difficult to say what's going on. But if anything is clear, it's that there is an acrid insincerity present in how these situations are viewed and handled when it comes to rules societal (or organizational in Manziel's case).

I am amazed at the discussions and consequent decisions surrounding Johnny Manziel's investigation. Cliff notes version: The Texas A&M quarterback was being investigated for signing autographs in exchange for money. The problem is that NCAA rules do not allow athletes to receive money, gifts, or services for any reason associated with that athlete's association with their college team.

I believe that Johnny Manziel's case decision was too soft based on the current NCAA rules. That's the stubborn pragmatist in me. But I truly question the concept that it should even be considered a big deal in the matter of what is right or just. So what if a kid makes 10K in autographs? A lot of people our age have never seen money like that. Manziel may have, since his family isn't doing too shabby. Maybe it's the reason he got off so easy? Needless to say I've never seen a couple grand for signing my name. Reggie Bush hadn't. Terrelle Pryor never had seen money like that. Neither did Chris Webber. And these are young men we're talking about. Kids thrust into a world of fandom and celebrity that is incredibly overwhelming. These athletes are big deals. You stick them in a totally surreal situation and they are to resist the temptation to do better for themselves? And for what? The team?

College sports is so beyond the team.

"The team" could have been a legitimate argument 50 years ago. But teams are brands now. They're franchises, entities, corporations. These players aren't student athletes. They're athletes who go to school. You can tap dance around it however you want but that's the reality of college sports.

I think the entire issue of college athlete compensation needs to be reexamined and adjusted. Entertaining athletic stipends, allowing personal profit, etc. is a slippery slope. But the reality is that colleges make MILLIONS off these players and their images, literally:

That's Denard Robinson, former Michigan quarterback. Did he get money for this?

Nope.



The insincerity is in the message of the NCAA's rules. You cannot profit off of yourself, your hard work, your talents, your image, your name.


But we can.


Schools make tons of money on jersey sales, concessions, seats sold ($294 is average price for Notre Dame football ticket!), pictures, advertisements, twitter hashtags... the list goes on. And the player gets a degree? Degrees are great. I have one. From an awesome school too. But so do millions of other folks. These athletes do what millions of others can't do. Thus, something about this equation is just wrong. Recent laws guarantee players continuance of scholarship for those injured during activities related to their sport. That's about it. Yet it's entirely normal for big profit college sports to recruit students that wouldn't normally be able to get into some of the institutions they play for. That is, if it weren't for their athletic prowess. And while big name schools have made a concerted effort to individually tailor these players' academic paths for success later, the system often leaves these guys (and girls) high and dry. Of course there are plenty of highly qualified athletes that intellectually meet the standards for attending these schools. It's just that not every football and basketball player is a high achieving neurology major or pre-law student. But it is convenient for announcers and schools to highlight these kinds of players often.

So if the real concern is about players being distracted and fear of discord between teammates, then stop selling jerseys with their names on it. Stop putting their pictures on covers for video games and billboards. Stop deifying them. Quit making them celebrities. And if you refuse, get your scruples together and guarantee them something for their work besides a degree. Their work on the fields and courts isn't earning them good grades. But it sure does get them beat up. Guarantee them that all those concussions they get will be taken care of even after they're done playing for a team. The NFL just settled on a $765 Million resolution like this today. How about a graduation package, with real money, as a humble and deserved "thank you" and a head start for the real world?

Manziel-esque "scandals" have repeated over the decades to various degrees. They will continue to repeat. Yet no one has stood up against the Goliath that is the NCAA. The NCAA needs to handle its business before someone handles it for them. Every Goliath falls.