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Law and Sports: Cam Newton vs. the NCAA: Dan Wetzel at Yahoo! Sports Rivals.com Suggests the Rules Must be Changed: Why Should Everyone Else Be Allowed to Profit from "Amateurs" Who Serve as Sacrificial Lambs?

By Andis Kaulins

Dan Wetzel of Yahoo! Sports, hits all of the essential issues in the Cam Newton vs. NCAA case:

A new look at Newton, dad - College Football - Rivals.com.

Tom Green writes at the Independent Florida Alligator in NCAA needs to rethink amateur status given to college athletics:

"The monster that is college sports is beginning to rear its ugly head, which for a long time has been hiding behind a veil of amateurism.

This summer college football, just one of the many faces of the college sports monster, has been masquerading behind news of conference expansion and possible realignment.

But that façade was smeared by sanctions resulting from improper benefits received by athletes and investigations of possible rules violations regarding illegal contact with agents ? all because the NCAA doesn?t pay its athletes.

It?s getting out of hand, really."

Let me tell you college sports world, your rules are screwed up, to say the least.

Take a look at these articles which discuss inter alia some USC football players of the past and whether, in comparison, the school should keep the Heisman Trophy award in one case and the other not. I really do not like it at all that a player like Bush is blotted out of the record by the NCAA -- while all those who profited (e.g. coaches, administration) continue to profit -- while countless other people, including current players at USC, have to suffer sanctions for obscure financial transactions with which current players had nothing to do -- while the name of the worst sort of criminal from the same school is frequently mentioned as a record holder at Heisman Trophy award presentations.

Either remove all or none of those who somehow besmirch the record.

Jemele Hill, ESPN - Reggie Bush should keep Heisman

AASN - Reggie Deserves to Keep His Heisman

John Taylor - College Football Talk - Survey says: Bush shouldn't have Heisman stripped

It would seem to us that no matter what else a player does, the quality of his play on the field should be the deciding factor, not subsequent behavior or after-the-fact application of the ridiculous amateur rules that guide the two-faced NCAA or affiliated institutions or awards.

Full post as published by LawPundit on December 12, 2010 (boomark / email).