Football is by far America's most popular sport. Whether it be high school teams, college teams or NFL teams, fans live and die by the successes or failures of their team. The coaches are as revered as a deity. Newspapers somehow find the newsprint to maintain a sports section not subject to shrinking news. Football stories find their way to the front page while "Rome burns". What does this get us? Football scandal!
In every college football scandal there is
Tatoogate at Ohio State University earns Coach Tressel a pass into early retirement. The University of Southern California using "professionals" posing as college athletes earns Coach Carroll a lucrative trip to a NFL head coach position. And now Penn State raises the bar on scandals by being caught in a sex scandal which has earned their legendary head coach , Joe Paterno, the retirement he never sought.
The sooner college sports programs become a part of the academic experience, and only that, the better. Sports scholarships should have academic qualifications attached to them. Athletes should be enrolled in meaningful academic programs. If the NFL needs a source of players, let them organize a farm system Ala MLB.
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