I’ve bit my lip for a while now, but my sanity is about to leave if I don’t talk about the poor state of college athletics under the direction of the NCAA.
The current path and direction of coll ege sports has left a bitter taste in my mouth. I once lived and breathed college football and college basketball.
“Friday Night Lights” in the fall wet my appetite, which was fed every Saturday in front of the “big screen” TV watching games from across the United States — coast-tocoast. From late August through the championship game in January, I was glued to my recliner.
College basketball was the same. From late November to April and the “Final Four” I watched.
No more. I did not watch a college football after September 21, 2024. That’s right, I did not watch any games nor did I watch the NFL.
I haven’t watched one basketball game either of college or the NBA. I’m just not interested anymore.
The NIL and transfer portal are the reason for my breakup. There’s no loyalty except to the highest bidder. Education is an afterthought because today’s generation believes they’ll never work.
College athletes think the world owes them for displaying their talents. They sign with one university after high school and four years later they’re playing at their fourth school.
I’m still trying to figure out how they are eligible at every stop. I know when I graduated junior college all my hours didn’t travel with me.
What money strings are being pulled?
All of their foolish friends are telling those athletes to get what they can — it’s owed to you. I don’t owe any athlete any thing.
Matter of fact, I say those school-hoping athletes need to be held accountable and reimburse programs before becoming eligible at their next one-year stop.
Watching the early season games was disgusting. I’ve never seen such childish behavior on the field.
Get a first down and point down the field as if nobody knows. Score a touchdown and dance around as if nobody saw it. Make a tackle and stand over the ball carrier as if you’ve done something.
I fault the NCAA powers and college coaches for allowing this to happen. Start penalizing players for unsportsmanlike conduct. When “me” players start costing teams to lose, teammates will handle things.
What the athlete of today is so proud of has been happening for a century. The object of the offense is to make a first down, and then another and another until you reach the end zone. The defense is supposed to stop the offense from accomplishing that.
It’s a team effort. It takes 11 players to score and 11 players to deny the score. Don’t pat yourself on the back because you don’t know which teammate( s) may be turning against your inflated ego.
I recently watched some old college games from the 1970s on YouTube and that was refreshing. There were no pointing of fingers for a first down, no dancing after a touchdown and no standing over someone after a tackle.
All the great running backs, wide receivers and quarterbacks of that time simply handed the ball to the official after every play. They acted like they had been there before if they scored.
Defensive linemen made tackles behind the line of scrimmage, linebackers and defensive backs hammered running backs and wide receivers. The defenders would help the offensive skill players up after collisions sending them back to the huddle.
I’m sure there was some trash talking by defensive players warning offensive players there’s more where that came from and vica-versa when running backs ran over defenders.
It wasn’t about the money, rather it was about the love and respect of the game.
• Rick Head is the Publisher and Editor of The Brantley Beacon and the Waycross Journal- Herald. He can be reached at beacon@btconline. net
