What happens if one of them hurts themselves during that time? If you say that you wouldn't go to the NFL under the same circumstances you are either way too idealistic or just plain lying.
What happens if a guy hurts himself his senior year in HS? Do you THEN allow HS juniors & sophs to sign pro contracts? That's EXACTLY where this is headed. These guys KNEW the rules and chose to attempt to subvert them. Plain and simple. Clarett first and then Williams & the others gravy-trained. Listening to the same agents that are telling Big Baby to sidestep college. There IS insurance available for guys like this... You don't think LeBron had insurance by say, the 9th grade???? But let's face it - VERY FEW THINGS IN THIS LIFE ARE GUARANTEED.
WHY stop with Mike Williams & Clarett. Why don't you attack the greed of Michael Clayton, Shaq and Josh Reed, they didn't spend their 4 years at LSU. As recently as the late 80's Juniors weren't allowed to enter the NFL draft until Craig Heyward won his case. It turned out to be a damn good idea for a lot of college players & NFL teams.
I have never been a fan of underclassmen entering into pro sports, but the rules were changed and I don't think that it has seriously impacted college FB. On the other hand, because college (& HS) hoopsters can enter the NBA at any time, it is seriously impacting the quality of college hoops. Also, look at how many underclassmen & high schoolers are applying to the NBA that end up on the dustpile to because they aren't drafted. Once they sign with an agent and declare for the draft, they are technically pros and they cannot turn back the clock & get a schollie or a free ride. THAT'S WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT. Some kids are getting bad advice because people around them see the $$$ and sway their decisions.... I have no qualms with Clayton, Reed, & Shaq. They all played through their junior seasons. All of them were ready for the next level, to boot. They KNEW what the rules were and they chose to abide by them. Clarett, Williams and others this year are challenging the rule and sending us down a VERY SLIPPERY SLOPE. The next logical argument will be for footballers to go from HS to the NFL. If the NFL can't stop 'em on the 20 what makes you think they'll keep 'em out of the end zone??? And meanwhile, all of the agents sit and fiddle while Rome burns... ..."AS LONG AS WE GET OUR CUT"... ...and major college sports and the kids in the dustpile circle the drain...
Yes I did and I will reply the same way I did before: THEY'RE GREEDY! I STILL don't feel sorry for either of them in the least!
So you say that nothing in life is guaranteed, right? You are wrong because Williams IS guaranteed to be a millionare if allowed to go in the draft. Clarett probably will be too. Who in the heck are you to tell these guys that they can't compete simply because they are too young? These guys probably grew up watching their moms and dads work themselves to death trying to put food on the table. Now they have an opportunity to make that life better and everyone is gonna come in and complain about what it will do the the college game or that they're too young. :dis: You say that these guys knew the rules and tried to "subvert them". They are not "subverting" a rule, they are challenging a rule. If the rule is fair then it will stand up to judicial scrutiny. If its not, then it won't. By your line of logic since it was a rule that women couldn't vote, women should've just played by the rules. The same with slavery. Rules are not infallible. If the rules are wrong then it is our CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT to challenge them. Its one of the great things about the USA. Don't ridicule these guys for exercising a right :dis:
My point wasn't to argue on whether or not they were greedy. I was simply pointing out that the article was an April fools joke.
NOTHING in life is guaranteed. Ask Len Bias' parents. Tell me that you're guaranteed that you'll wake up tomorrow. If you got that kinda pull then I'll look for you on Easter Sunday. The RULE was put there for the common good. Their belief is that the rule is arbitrary. They ARE subverting the system because they are looking to undermine the rules so they get theirs. I guess by YOUR line of logic that what is "fair" is what "law" is based on. Then WHY doesn't NFL requirements mirror NBA requirements? Is it because "judicial scrutiny" is sometimes nothing more than a whim about what is fair? Say that there is 1 out of 10,000 athletes that could go straight from HS to the pros. What happens to the 40 or 50 of them that are fooled into believing that they will get a shot not even being drafted? What happens to them? So we'll change the rules for that one special athlete. His family has struggled, so he deserves a chance. The hell with all of the others, the vast majority, who could legitimately benefit by going to school, taking the time to mature, even if they decide to leave early. Hell, who knows, they might even get an education for insurance in case they are injured! My argument is that these guys KNEW what was going to happen when they did this. If they lose the original court ruling they won't even really suffer the consequences, because there will likely be a supplemental draft for these guys anyway... I will ridicule people that think that they are bigger than the system that WANTS to make them millionaires IN THEIR OWN TIME. It's NOT about their exercising a right - it's about them thinking that they're bigger than the system. It's not their purpose that displeases me, it's their motivation. I guess I should start arguing that I want to start collecting Social Security at 50 because there won't be any $$$$ when I get to 67... Because that's not FAIR, RIGHT? Because it's NOT about the system, or what's best for EVERYBODY - IT'S ALL ABOUT ME. I don't begrudge these players the money that they make, but this will turn into an ugly precedent if it is allowed to occur. The lines are blurry and getting blurrier.
Ummmm, I'm afraid not: http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=1772226 I think they were referring to Msrs. Williams, Clarett, et al as April Fools.
