Is it Time to Get Rid of the NCAA?
With all of the talk about conference expansion, a truly revolutionary thought has come to mind. Some of you will read what I’m about to say and dismiss it as merely an outrageous idea. Others will look at the suggestion and realize that it could be a real possibility with a bit of organization and smart business dealings. Some of you may oppose the idea altogether, but still see it as a possibility. Whatever your position, here is some food for thought.
We live in a world that likes to create rules. Some of them are needed. Others are simply written and enforced so that someone can justify their job. I get it; I have worked in corporate America for fifteen years. The more rules and regulations placed on a particular business and industry, usually means less profits at the end of the year. It usually means that some undeserving organization (not unlike our federal government) is taking what they deem to be ‘their share.’
If I am Jim Delaney, the Commissioner of the Big Ten, I am not only laying the foundation for the ‘Super 16,’ I am laying the foundation for the future of college athletics. Think about it, how many bogus rules has the NCAA enforced to carry out their agenda? Is the NCAA truly about the student athlete or are they really concerned about the flow of money? Are the rules the same for everyone? If SMU can get the death penalty in football, why can’t the Wolverines get the same in basketball for their ‘crimes’ during the Steve Fischer era? Let’s see what happens to USC soon! Is the NCAA ever going to investigate a household name like Kentucky? Will they ever look into allegations made even after Calipari bolts for the NBA? Why wouldn’t they?
The answer to all the above questions is quite simple. The answer is money. With the Big Ten proving that it can build its own network, hand out $22 million annually to its respective conference schools and still stay in the black, why do we need the NCAA? They are only a political firm meant to broker their ideals and control the flow of money.
Why not four super conferences that have their own football playoff? How about the same in basketball and for that matter hockey? The NCAA is an outdated dinosaur. They have the best event in collegiate sports, the NCAA tournament. Other than the tournament, what good do they really do?
I know, I know, you are going to point out all of the non-revenue sports and title nine. I think those are valid arguments, but largely believe that they could exist and flourish just fine in a conference super alliance. I am sure that a university coalition of four conferences and eighty teams could create a tourney experience as good or better than the NCAA basketball championship. The NCAA tournament would become the new NIT.
Would a four conference super alliance leave some schools out in the cold? You betcha!! That is precisely what division 2,3,4…16 are for. Is the ‘little guy’ getting left out? Probably, but it will also force some of the ‘one-sport’ schools like Georgetown or Providence to rethink their status as a division one sports power. They will either get with the program and step into the world of real college football or become irrelevant at every level. What I am suggesting is probably inevitable.
The biggest issue that I have with the NCAA is that they enforce the rules they want when it is convenient for them to do so and not everyone gets scrutinized equally. The officiating is inconsistent and the need to have non-revenue sports that nobody ever goes to see is a little ridiculous. Collegiate sports are big money and it is a big business. Why should some third party organization be in charge of it? Four twenty team super conferences could run the whole shebang!! That means less bureaucracy, less interference, fewer stupid rules, more efficiency, a better product, a football playoff and more revenue for conferences and individual schools.
I believe that four conferences totaling eighty schools could manage their money and tournaments much better than the NCAA. The rules that are largely in place are meant to keep the playing field level and keep the ‘little guy’ in the game. I understand this. I think it is a noble idea, but I also think that the NCAA penalizes some of the upper echelon at the expense of the mid-major.
I like a good underdog story as much as the next person, but let’s face it; television and the internet have changed sports forever. So has instant replay. Fans want a high quality product. They want a decisive champion crowned and currently, our system largely fails to do this thanks to the NCAA.
Does anyone really care about the Meineke Car Care Bowl outcome? Does anyone remember who played in the Little Caesar’s Pizza Bowl or the Liberty Bowl? The list goes on and on. I like going to a bowl game as much as anyone. The top two teams in each super conference could participate in a playoff while the bowls picked up the rest. Would the traditional bowls have any meaning? They could become part of a new playoff system. If the field expanded to as many as 16 teams (4 teams per conference) than the scholarship numbers would need to be increased. Why couldn’t each school have a fourteen game season if they had one hundred scholarships to give?
Knock off the redshirt eligibility crap. Just give student athletes five years to play four seasons. An agreement needs to be put in place between professional basketball and the college game. If a team wants to draft a player based upon potential, than why not let the kid play college for as long as he wants before entering the league. Make him put his money in an account left untouched until he and his professional team deems it is time to jump into the professional ranks. Surely an NBA team would be happy to pay less money with more of a guarantee if they could do away with their development league in favor of leaving kids in school with the world’s best basketball coaches. How about following the NFL and simply making a kid wait three years?
The NCAA needs to understand that student athletes are in school to get both an education and maximize their earning potential. Or do they? Let’s just get rid of them and let the university coalition make the rules.
I think that selection Sunday is a lot of fun when the seedings come out for the tournament, but I also think they have become a load of crap. I have a beef with the way sports media favors the east coast. Lets eliminate seedings and speculation. Lets just have a 48-team tournament based upon a super conference alliance. Based upon where you finish in your conference subdivision and conference tournament, determines your seed and where you are playing.
If the little guys want to cry foul than maybe a provision is made allowing them a couple of play in rounds. I just think that this year’s Midwest bracket was complete garbage and was designed to penalize teams like Maryland and Michigan State. Both of who were conference co-champions. Duke’s bracket was a joy ride.
My point is simple; college athletics is here to stay. It is a massive business and one that is going to continue to grow. The Big Ten has already provided every major conference in America with the recipe to become hugely successful and profitable. It is time to start looking at ways for conferences to eliminate ‘the middleman.’
The NCAA could be looked upon as a middleman as much as anything else. We are in a direct to consumer society. Maybe it is time for a new business model.
