It’s pretty sad I’m writing this. You may not even believe it after you read it.The NCAA recently changed its rules to include seventh and eighth-grade athletes as “prospective athletes”. Check out this post from the always-provocative content provided in journalist Mark Hyman’s blog http://youthsportsparents.blogspot.com/ -- http://tinyurl.com/8q5c2j.
Wow! If you’re like me, you’re wondering why such a rule would even be necessary in coaching. It stands to show how low the road to the recruiting of college athletes is traveled. Apparently, the road has enough ruts in it that the NCAA felt it was necessary to protect these young athletes from predatory coaches who ought to know better.
The business of recruiting college athletes is not for the faint-hearted. Consider this – when I recently visited a friend in Dallas who is a former high school coach, he pointed out a list that is regularly published in the sports section of the Dallas Morning News. The list includes the names of the top 100 high school football players in the Dallas area and the colleges to which they have committed or are considering for commitment. If there are 100 high school football players from the Dallas area being seriously considered by BCS-conference schools, then Houston, San Antonio and other large Texas metros probably have similar lists as well. That’s pretty serious business.
Personally, I’d be surprised if there are 100 high school students that annually receive full athletic scholarships at major universities across ALL athletics, but you understand my point.
It’s a little disturbing the NCAA has to go to such lengths to protect these young athletes.
1 comment:
Wow. Yuck. I am a mother of two boys and I promise you my kids won't be playing football. With any luck they will be endurance athletes like their parents.
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