Did the NCAA do enough in its punishment of Penn State's football program? Will this penalty be a signal to other universities to better police their athletics departments, and keep the behavior of coaches and administrators consistent with the values of their institutions?
Those questions, and others, will be debated in the weeks to come in the aftermath of the Jerry Sandusky scandal at Penn State, which ultimately included Joe Paterno and numerous others. However, on the topic of the state of college athletics, and whether lessons will be learned here, chew on these facts as a sobering reminder of today's sports reality:
- The $60 million fine levied by the NCAA on Penn State amounts to one season of football revenue at the school.
- While the rest of the U.S. economy has suffered since 2008, television contracts for college sports conferences have increased by an average of nearly 350%.
- Connecticut, Auburn and Alabama have won national championships in mens basketball and football while on NCAA probation or under investigation.
The point, unfortunately, is that college sports are a big business and misdeeds in college athletics are not a new phenomenon. Yes, the heinous acts by Sandusky and the cover-up by Paterno and others is the worst scandal in college sports. But, bad behavior in college athletics is an all-too-familiar story.
Are the NCAA sanctions against Penn State severe enough? I think they are, and while some may argue that the death penalty was needed, I could argue back that this penalty is harsher than a one-year ban (i.e., the death penalty) for PSU's football program.
The answer to the question about this penalty being a deterrent to others is more vague. College athletics is growing even bigger with conference realignment and the restructuring of network deals for all of the major conferences. I'm pessimistic that a sea change will happen as a result of the Penn State scandal; my hope is that the events in Happy Valley will cause a re-awakening of the mission of colleges and universities and the role that the sports programs play in fulfilling those missions.
As a final comment, let's give a positive nod to Mark Emmert and the NCAA. For once, the president of the NCAA was given the authority to act swiftly and decisively much like his colleagues who run our country's sports national governing bodies or professional leagues like the NFL and NBA. We can only hope that yesterday's sanctions, and how they were handled and announced, becomes the embodiment of what the new NCAA will be all about. Let's hope that this president and governing body, who have been irrelevant during conference realignment and a college football playoff re-design, regain their understanding of the role the NCAA can play in collegiate sports.
No comments:
Post a Comment