NFL considering not inviting academically ineligible players to the Combine

[deep9er]

Deep, you have no idea what the F you are talking about. Scholarship athletes are given priority registration, built in study halls for some/most programs, and academic tutoring for any and every class whenever it is convenient to them. If their tests/projects/quizzes fall on a day that they may be gone for a game, then with just a little bit of communication they can easily get those deadlines moved.

Guys that aren't taking care of business in the classroom are idiots plain and simple. What the NFL is in essence saying if they follow through with this, much like any other job, if you don't have your "degree" in football (in other words, do what is necessary to stay eligible to play the game you are planning to do as your career), then you don't get the job. NCAA gives these athletes most of everything they need to succeed. What the hell else do you want them or the NFL to do that is LEGAL?!?

Dre......I KNOW players got this kind stuff, I said give them MORE, help them even MORE.

do YOU know what YOU'RE talking about?

 

[MarkOU]

Some shoe company would just create a a new event, similar to he NFL combine...

And guess what...? The NFL team scouts would show up for it...

This is 100% correct and why it's on the owners hands to make the change but I can't slam the league for trying.

 

[NinerSickness]

Dre......I KNOW players got this kind stuff, I said give them MORE

More special treatment for athletes than what they already get? I'm going to have to disagree with that. All the extra help in the world isn't going to get these guys to stay eligible if they're not willing to put in the work (like showing up to class).

 

[-AC-]

More special treatment for athletes than what they already get? I'm going to have to disagree with that. All the extra help in the world isn't going to get these guys to stay eligible if they're not willing to put in the work (like showing up to class).

Agreed...

Guys just need to apply themselves!

 

[imac_21]

Real talk.

Some jobs in the real world have requirements. Like pass a drug test, take an ethics test, pass a background check and yes have a college degree. The NFL can't make this change but they can speed it along. The owners have the power and should require employees have a degree before they sign contracts but they don't give a shit so the NFL will just force more free agency with this move, which they also restrict, putting a burden on ownership.

I would also like to see felons out of the league. How many of you work with felons? I sure as hell don't.

I have to disagree with this. What does a BA in Communications have to do with your ability to play football?

Really, a player doesn't have to go to college at all to play in the NFL, they just need to be 3 years removed from their HS grad. If there were a league that were willing to employ 18 year olds, that would be another option for players and they could enter the draft 3 years later.

Being a football player is not the equivalent of being a lawyer or doctor. There is no knowledge requirement to play in the NFL that these guys acquire away from football (ie in the classroom). Just like you don't need a degree to flip burgers at McDonalds.

Your comparison to other professions also falls apart when you consider there is a very specific degree doctors, lawyers, accountants etc need. What would you like football players to have a degree in? What college program would be most valuable to them? Presumably something along the lines of Phys Ed or Kinesiology.

But some of these guys are going to college to basically "major in football." Some of them are successful enough that they can "graduate early" with their football degree and have the top football companies in the world looking to employ them.

Do some of them fail? Of course they do, but not everyone that gets a business degree ends up working on Wall Street, or even in business at all. Sometimes even guys at the top of their class don't cut it in their chosen field.

 

[imac_21]

[/B]
My interpretation of this is that they are trying to limit the guys that may be ineligible for grades that year to enter the combine/draft as an escape route to their own stupidity. If a player was ineligible his freshman or sophomore year but gets their shit together and shows improvement in their grades, then not only are they eligible at that point, but they are showing commitment to their craft and maturity at the same time.

I would be more in board with this if there were evidence connecting poor classroom performance to poor on-field performance.

But really, what you do by banning these guys from the draft is hurt your business, because you're removing an opportunity for each franchise to get in depth information on the players.

Something that I just thought of. . .

Wouldn't it make more sense to require these players to arrive at the combine 2 days early to take some off-field testing? If players have a certain GPA, they get to skip that part. Then, if you want to get really tough on these guys, tell them they have to achieve certain standards in their pre-combine tests to do the on-field testing.

That allows the teams a chance to meet the player, get a baseline on intelligence and commitment levels, and if the player fails to qualify for on-field testing and a team is still interested, they can attend his pro-day. If they decide there are character and intelligence concerns, they can remove him from the board.

I just don't know how making it more difficult for the franchises to gather information on the player benefits the NFL.

It feels almost like bully tactics.

 

[Flyingiguana]

Real talk.

Some jobs in the real world have requirements. Like pass a drug test, take an ethics test, pass a background check and yes have a college degree. The NFL can't make this change but they can speed it along. The owners have the power and should require employees have a degree before they sign contracts but they don't give a shit so the NFL will just force more free agency with this move, which they also restrict, putting a burden on ownership.

I would also like to see felons out of the league. How many of you work with felons? I sure as hell don't.

here in canada we take our top hockey players from their homes and pay them a small wage to play junior hockey. u don't need a high school diploma to play sports. being smart is one thing, having 'hockey sense' is another.

having a degree isn't needed to play football or any sport for that matter. soon mcdonalds will require degrees to flip burgers.

 

[imac_21]

here in canada we take our top hockey players from their homes and pay them a small wage to play junior hockey. u don't need a high school diploma to play sports. being smart is one thing, having 'hockey sense' is another.

having a degree isn't needed to play football or any sport for that matter. soon mcdonalds will require degrees to flip burgers.

Adding to this, it happens when they're 15 or 16 year's old. In some cases they will end up moving 1500 or 2000 miles from home.