Cam Newton Recruiting Investigation Shaking NCAA to Its Core, Except Not Really

So someone came out and said that Cam Newton‘s “camp” asked a Mississippi State alum for a big wad of cash in order to secure the services of the supremely talented quarterback.

So, uhh … we’re supposed to be shocked by this?

Just a couple of weeks after former agent Josh Luchs shared personal stories of paying countless college players, and after the UConn basketball program admitted to major violations, the Newton story is just the latest chapter in a weird, broken NCAA system.

The facts are fairly simple:

Millions and millions of dollars are made by thousands upon thousands of men and women. From athletic directors to head coaches to reporters, photographers and play-by-play announcers to the guy who sells hot dogs at the games. Not on the list are the athletes who actually create the profitable product.

The NFL forces high school players to be “out of high school” for three years. Because they’re unlikely to take up carpentry for that period, the players are essentially forced to play college football. For free.

While playing in college at age 18-21 or so, these players can suffer torn ligaments, broken bones, concussions and a whole slew of other debilitating injuries. Or, a player could Maurice Clarett himself, thereby committing career suicide.

So, really, it’s not all that super that the best college football player in the country may or may not have been up to some shady business prior to beginning his college career, but please, don’t blame him. Blame a broken system.

Photo of the day

What should be the caption for this photo? Leave your suggestion in the comments section below.

Quote of the day

“If people want to watch soccer, they can watch soccer. The people who are attracted to this game, they’re going to see the big hits. They don’t care about touchdowns.”
–Steelers safety Troy Polamalu, unhappy with Roger Goodell’s crackdown on big hits

Comment of the day

I think this giant man is being facetious about Bruins goal celebrations. I think.

“WOW! Maybe the player that scores should leap into the stands a la the Green Bay Cheeseheads. Or maybe tear off his shirt and do the air plane around the rink before being piled on by his teammates like the English footballers. Or maybe the fake mooning similar to Randy Moss.”
–giant man