Real Sports Open Thread

Submitted by miCHIganman1 on

What does the board think of the HBO Real Sports on the NCAA and paying players?  So far, my disdain for Jason Whitlock has increased exponentially (if that's possible) and I actually agree with what Coach Rodiriguez said. 

Also, not a fan of the academia bow tie look

willywill9

March 30th, 2011 at 10:41 PM ^

Quite interesting.  I hope RR smacks Whitlock in the face, and lands a gig next year as HC for a non-competitor.

Also, they totally dismissed the notion about how unfair it would be to allow players to earn money at schools like Michigan, Alabama etc.  vs. Bowling Green, Ball St. etc.  Are there salary caps?  I don't know.

miCHIganman1

March 30th, 2011 at 10:58 PM ^

Completely agree.  They also completely glazed over the fact that the two major revenue earning sports fund the rest of the non-revenue earning sports.  When Bryant Gumbel referenced Michigan's profit, he didn't reference where that "profit" actually went and his silence on the matter made it seem like that amount just sat in coffers or just went to pay the heads of the departments and coaches. 

michWolves2580

March 30th, 2011 at 11:09 PM ^

Salaries would cause all sorts of trouble such as major parity flaws. When these people talk about paying players it would be to just let them benefit from their own market value. If adidas wanted to do commercials with Denard he can do them and get paid accordingly. It would be very much like the Olympic style. Michael Phelps is an amateur swimmer but gets paid for endorsements. I think its right to let these kids get to benefit from the value they created for themselves with countless hours of honing their skills 

Talcelm

March 30th, 2011 at 10:50 PM ^

Give RR the power to clean up football....make him the white knight!! Wonder who he would smite first?? Lol

willywill9

March 30th, 2011 at 10:59 PM ^

I loved RR's demeanor and positive attitude on this show.  I hope this discussion sparks additional investigation/coverage from ESPN, SI, or CBS Sportsline.

dennisblundon

March 30th, 2011 at 11:06 PM ^

Auburn really steals the show on this special and with barely a mention of Cam Newton. The arguements for paying players were poorly thought out, it was as if they had pulled them off the street and taped it live. At one point Gumbel tells Whitlock he is in control of the NCAA, he basically shit his pants  and mumbled through his answer. Rich Rod did represent well on behalf of college coaches trying to do things the right way and he finally got to bitch a little about stretchgate.

03 Blue 07

March 30th, 2011 at 11:26 PM ^

Hell yeah, Rich Rod, bringing up that paying players is a lot worse than stretching (and actually talking about Michigan, and the stretching thing, etc).

artds

March 30th, 2011 at 11:37 PM ^

The segment reminded me of why I dislike Richrod.
<br>
<br>He has politician's bullshit smile, doesn't come across as genuine, and that shameless pitch to the NCAA to try and get hired as a consultant was almost too much to bear.

03 Blue 07

March 31st, 2011 at 12:26 PM ^

Artds- why? Did you disagree with anything he said? I thought all of his points were valid and I agreed with all of them. What, precisely, did you not agree with? Was he wrong when he said the NCAA focuses on the parking violators and not the robbers? Did you disagree when he said he'd like to see a $300/month stipend for kids so they could travel home on break? Did you disagree with him saying that, overall, the whole system is cleaner than 25 years ago? Did you disagree with his saying that the main goal is (at least to him) to get kids to graduate and get degrees and make them better men (paraphrasing)? I guess I just wonder why this reminded you you didn't like him; I'd think it's most likely because of his diction, way of talking, etc., and not the content of what he was saying, as what he was saying seemed sensible and intelligent.

M-Wolverine

March 31st, 2011 at 1:17 AM ^

Who knew they were doing wrong, did it anyway, then blamed the University for them doing wrong, and shocked that after they sided with a place that was doing wrong, they were willing to do them wrong too. "I want the $300 handshake, but don't keep me out of my favorite classes". You can't have it both ways, and want to get paid to play football, but then be shocked they primarily want you to play football. If you were so serious about your education, you could have chosen to go to a place like Michigan, where if a class conflicts with Spring Practice, you go to class. Or you go to a place where you know they cut you if they find someone better, but "it won't happen to me". Go somewhere that they don't do that. Show THAT choice, and if those teams get better by doing the right thing, the bad one's will have to change.

Ernis

March 31st, 2011 at 7:15 AM ^

Younger generations seem increasingly self-absorbed and amoral in general, but it surprises me that the same naivete is exhibited in some top athletes. It seems that all the hard work they do, which only yields gains over the long term, would teach them the value of discipline and sacrifice.

So much for optimism.