Paul Finebaum of Sports Illustrated wrote in an article entitled “Under Emmert, NCAA has sunk deeper, lost even more credibility“:
It’s a sad state of affairs in college athletics. The organization that will easily — and without a conscience — destroy a coach for not following the letter of the antediluvian rule book or take away a young man’s eligibility because of an honest mistake has literally made it up as it goes along.
Meanwhile, the man behind the curtain, Mark Emmert, smiles for the cameras in his shiny suit as his organization and its credibility and integrity seemingly go up in smoke.
Truer words were never spoken. The hypocrisy of it all!
Here’s a little thing, though. Those words were written on September 1, 2011, long before the Penn State scandal, long before news of UNC’s transgressions broke, long before the Shabazz Muhammad debacle, and long before the botched Miami investigation. But Ohio State and Cam Newton were still fresh in everyone’s minds. Tresselgate (Tattoogate) and Camgate (Newtongate).
Of course, Finebaum expressed himself from a frustrated sports reporter’s viewpoint:
Instead of being honest about the cesspool he swims in daily, Emmert’s game lately has been to run off to ESPN for another doleful defense of the indefensible — the state of college athletics.
It’s too bad Oprah quit because I can’t think of a better forum for Emmert and his crocodile tears and vapid promises.
That was then and this is now, you say? Well, you probably didn’t read this piece back then because you never thought it would be an issue for Penn State. NCAA rules violations were problems for the rest of them; Penn State stood alone at the top of the heap, unassailable and clean. But that made us a big target for the NCAA vindicators, as we know now.
So, just for laughs give it a read.
