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MulletMan
09-21-2012, 09:34 AM
In a world of constant controversy surrounding college sports and the media always focusing on the most negative stories about coaches and athletes, here is a story that won't get the publicity that it should.

FSU will honor the scholarship of a recruit who can no longer play football (http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/8405297/florida-state-seminoles-commit-richy-klepal-quits-football-fifth-concussion).

JasonEvans
09-21-2012, 11:54 AM
In a world of constant controversy surrounding college sports and the media always focusing on the most negative stories about coaches and athletes, here is a story that won't get the publicity that it should.

FSU will honor the scholarship of a recruit who can no longer play football (http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/8405297/florida-state-seminoles-commit-richy-klepal-quits-football-fifth-concussion).

Wow, in an era where kids who are already in school and on scholarship get their scholarship's pulled because they have not been as good as hoped on the field/court, FSU's decision to honor a commitment to a kid who has not even showed up on campus yet is really admirable. Mad props to FSU! I hope that this extremely honorable way they treated the kid brings them positive vibes on the field and the recruiting trail. Truly impressive.

John Calipari, who arrived at Kentucky and promptly pulled the scholarships of several lesser players, should take note... but he won't.

-Jason "I hope this story gets a decent amount of attention in the media" Evans

Bluedog
09-21-2012, 12:26 PM
Nick Saban, among other coaches, has pulled scholarships due to injuries. Seems like common practice in football, unfortunately. Good for FSU.

http://blogs.ajc.com/recruiting/2012/02/05/dalvin-tomlinson-speaks-out-on-alabama-grayshirt-scandal/

Jderf
09-21-2012, 12:34 PM
Nick Saban, among other coaches, has pulled scholarships due to injuries. Seems like common practice in football, unfortunately. Good for FSU.

http://blogs.ajc.com/recruiting/2012/02/05/dalvin-tomlinson-speaks-out-on-alabama-grayshirt-scandal/

Which is incredibly strange. You would think that, even without introducing any altruism whatsoever, it would be in most coaches best interests to honor these commitments even after career ending injuries. I mean, shouldn't it be a huge handicap in recruiting if a rival coach can just tell a prospect, "Yeah, he runs a decent program, but all he cares about are wins, not his players. Look at what happened to player so-and-so. The kid was dumped the moment he couldn't contribute on the field. Here, we take care of our own."

Is the value of a single extra scholarship really that high? Or do most high school recruits just not think that something like this could happen to them?

Bluedog
09-21-2012, 12:59 PM
Which is incredibly strange. You would think that, even without introducing any altruism whatsoever, it would be in most coaches best interests to honor these commitments even after career ending injuries. I mean, shouldn't it be a huge handicap in recruiting if a rival coach can just tell a prospect, "Yeah, he runs a decent program, but all he cares about are wins, not his players. Look at what happened to player so-and-so. The kid was dumped the moment he couldn't contribute on the field. Here, we take care of our own."

Is the value of a single extra scholarship really that high? Or do most high school recruits just not think that something like this could happen to them?

Well, a lot of SEC coaches oversign their rosters purposefully.


Saban, who coached in the Big Ten at Michigan State, said it would be a huge mistake to go to a hard cap similar to what the Big Ten uses. The Big Ten schools are required to establish a budget number for how many scholarship offers they can give and can't go more than three over what they have room for under the 85 limit.

"In my opinion, it would really affect the quality in our league," Saban said.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=6593311

So, the have to cut some guys if they sign 100 guys and can only have 85 on scholarship. Just nobody thinks it's going to be them. Sounds like also getting/keeping players academically eligible at Alabama is no problem, while at Michigan State, Saban would have players rules ineligible. SEC has some "advantages" that other leagues do not. Oversigning seems wrong to me, but coaches have concern over the summer melt.

greybeard
09-21-2012, 01:19 PM
Athletes looking to play at Albama are looking to play pro ball. They understand the risks, or should. If not, that a serious injury has costs, can serve as a useful wake up call.

Also, how long before football factories start looking at injury lawsuits, before they filter down to high schools? A factor to consider?

Letting a kid with cranial damage who wouldn't be able to play is generous. Did it take up a football scholarship space? I don't know. Did it expose the football program to potential liability if a much more serious injury were to ensue playing in your program? Not.

johnb
09-21-2012, 03:43 PM
Football recruiting is a cesspool. The current rules are designed to maximize the product available for television by guaranteeing that the best players congregate on the top teams and that future NFL players stick around for a few years.

They are not designed to protect players who get injured (removing a scholly from an injured player is unethical and close to immoral in my book) or to enhance the education of the kids who matriculate.

Change the rules: 17 freshman per year, a few transfers per year, and 68 total would spread around the best players and would motivate teams to retain players (and to recruit players who can be retained). It's a de facto punishment for transfers out, drop outs, etc, and so most teams might be suiting up 50-55, which is still a few more than an NFL team. It would also reduce overhead costs and potentially allow more programs to be in the black. And if that means that SEC teams might be a little thin at some positions, boo hoo.

crimsonandblue
09-21-2012, 03:59 PM
It's not clear from the article, but I've seen this from time to time before and it's usually the school and not the athletics department/program that offers up the scholarship.

I know back in the 80s, Kansas had a great recruit named Chris Lindley injured trying to hop a train (does anyone still do that?). He had his foot severed. His scholarship was honored by the school, but I don't think it affected our total scholarship limits available.

Not that this isn't a nice gesture regardless.

formerdukeathlete
09-23-2012, 05:11 PM
It's not clear from the article, but I've seen this from time to time before and it's usually the school and not the athletics department/program that offers up the scholarship.

I know back in the 80s, Kansas had a great recruit named Chris Lindley injured trying to hop a train (does anyone still do that?). He had his foot severed. His scholarship was honored by the school, but I don't think it affected our total scholarship limits available.

Not that this isn't a nice gesture regardless.

I think this is a medical hardship.

Tyler Rice did not play a down for Duke Football but since he was injured in practice, if I recall correctly, his full ride was honored all four years.

Mike Cappetto, our Football video coordinator, went medical hardship due to an injury, and I believe the last two years full ride were honored.

Nick Saban and Alabama move injured or injury prone players off the active roster in this fashion.

The guys attending on medical hardship do not count toward the 85.

TruBlu
09-23-2012, 05:37 PM
Glad to hear this about FSU. They just moved up a little in my opinion of them.

Has there been any discussion about the scholarship for Blair Holliday? I know that at this moment we are all praying for his recovery, and a lot is still unknown. I would think that Cut would hold a scholarship for him when he is able to return to school, whether or not he is able to play football again.

Back when Eric Meek was hit by a car while in high school, and his future playing days were in doubt, Coach K called him and his parents to assure them that the scholarship was going to be there for him.

SCMatt33
09-23-2012, 06:18 PM
It's not clear from the article, but I've seen this from time to time before and it's usually the school and not the athletics department/program that offers up the scholarship.

I know back in the 80s, Kansas had a great recruit named Chris Lindley injured trying to hop a train (does anyone still do that?). He had his foot severed. His scholarship was honored by the school, but I don't think it affected our total scholarship limits available.

Not that this isn't a nice gesture regardless.

This is correct, although there doesn't necessarily need to be a medical reason for it. Once the person is no longer an athlete, his scholarship status means nothing towards the NCAA limit. It is only whether or not the school is willing to pay. Usually, those guys who get recruited over can keep the scholarship if they want to, but they usually want to play somewhere else and transfer. I have a great example from personal knowledge. My sister's boyfriend is a swimmer in a mid-major conference D-1 school. The current sophomore class was apparently very disappointing in terms of performance through their freshman year to the point where the team over-recruited by about 5 spots this year beyond the NCAA roster (not scholly) limit. Even the highest recruited athlete from that class, who had gotten a scholarship, is likely to get cut. The school, however, is allowing him to keep his scholarship if chooses not to transfer, and the swim team can give (or split) the athletic scholarship to another athlete(s).

The NCAA limit only affects people who are actually participating in the sport, and the decision to allow an athlete to keep a scholarship if (s)he is no longer playing has more to do with the school and not the team. The exception to this would be if the school says that they will only allot x number of scholarships to a sport regardless of whether the athlete plays. Then the coach could conceivably be put in a situation where he has to either be down a man on the roster or pull the scholarship, but with a school as big as FSU, I'd doubt that this is the case here.

Devil in the Blue Dress
09-23-2012, 06:51 PM
Glad to hear this about FSU. They just moved up a little in my opinion of them.

Has there been any discussion about the scholarship for Blair Holliday? I know that at this moment we are all praying for his recovery, and a lot is still unknown. I would think that Cut would hold a scholarship for him when he is able to return to school, whether or not he is able to play football again.

Back when Eric Meek was hit by a car while in high school, and his future playing days were in doubt, Coach K called him and his parents to assure them that the scholarship was going to be there for him.
I seem to recall that when Shane Battier's brother Jeremy had enough concussions that he had to stop playing football at Duke, he kept his scholarship and graduated from Duke. I think Coach Cutcliffe will step up regarding continuing the scholarship if Blair can continue to go to Duke whether he plays football or not.

formerdukeathlete
09-24-2012, 07:20 AM
This is correct, although there doesn't necessarily need to be a medical reason for it. Once the person is no longer an athlete, his scholarship status means nothing towards the NCAA limit. It is only whether or not the school is willing to pay. Usually, those guys who get recruited over can keep the scholarship if they want to, but they usually want to play somewhere else and transfer. I have a great example from personal knowledge. My sister's boyfriend is a swimmer in a mid-major conference D-1 school. The current sophomore class was apparently very disappointing in terms of performance through their freshman year to the point where the team over-recruited by about 5 spots this year beyond the NCAA roster (not scholly) limit. Even the highest recruited athlete from that class, who had gotten a scholarship, is likely to get cut. The school, however, is allowing him to keep his scholarship if chooses not to transfer, and the swim team can give (or split) the athletic scholarship to another athlete(s).

The NCAA limit only affects people who are actually participating in the sport, and the decision to allow an athlete to keep a scholarship if (s)he is no longer playing has more to do with the school and not the team. The exception to this would be if the school says that they will only allot x number of scholarships to a sport regardless of whether the athlete plays. Then the coach could conceivably be put in a situation where he has to either be down a man on the roster or pull the scholarship, but with a school as big as FSU, I'd doubt that this is the case here.

Re your reference to swimming, swimming is an equivalency sport where scholarship money may be apportioned among members of a team.

FBS Football is a headcount sport where if you are on scholarship, it is a full scholarship. This is also the case for Mens and Womens Hoops, Womens Gymnastics, Womens Indoor Volleyball, Womens Tennis.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Division_I_(NCAA)#Head-count_sports


I think you will find that virtually every FBS Football team honors the scholarship of a scholarship player who becomes injured in practice or in a game and who no longer is able to play. The medical hardship (honoring the scholarship) while the player is no longer able to play is sometimes thought to be abused by coaches (as moving stiffs off scholarship count to free up space for recruiting new players or giving walkons a scholarship), but the alternative is just to cut the player, which unless things just changed (to make scholarships a 4 year commitment), is an option freely available.

As to Blair Holliday, he was not injured in practice or on the field. Were he, there would be no question but that the University would honor his scholarship as a medical hardship. My guess is that if he were available to come back to school there would be an easy path, in keeping with financial aid policies, or by virtue of individual donor(s), for this to occur.