Give Greg McGarity credit for original thinking on one thing. He’s against a nine-game conference schedule, alright. But instead of making up the standard flimsy excuse about how it’s for the fans’ sake, he’s thinking of somebody else.
“What does it say if [the players] have to be at their very best for nine conference games a year, plus a 10th (rivalry) game. I think some kids would love to say, ‘Let’s start out with a softy.’”
‘Let’s start out with a softy.’? They’re not getting that now!
But, hey, Greg, if you’re worried about what the players want, I’m sure they’d be happy to give you a list with some other items to add to your agenda.
Get The Picture 
Ridiculous. If 10 games are too much for our precious young people, then only schedule 9 games… period. The baseball and basketball teams play dozens of games each year and it doesn’t seem to be too much to ask of them. Professional football players, the vast majority of whom are only a few years older than our players, end up playing 18-20 games including the preseason before the playoffs even start. I think our guys will be OK, Greg. Don’t try to pass off job security measures for professional coaches as being about the kids.
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More concern for the student athlete. Note how, as the Senator points to, concerns invoked for student-athletes are always ones that the good-souled administrators of college football have uncovered…never the ones the student athletes themselves have noticed or mentioned. Funny how that works.
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“If 10 games are too much for our precious young people,” load ’em up in the Summertime
“Finally, though, the NCAA is doing away with the smoke and mirrors and allowing programs to make summer workouts mandatory for football players, just as they have in men’s and women’s basketball.
Beginning this summer, schools are allowed to require athletes enrolled in summer school to participate in weight-training, conditioning and film sessions for an eight-week period as determined by the teams.”
http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/sports/57826829-77/players-summer-coaches-workouts.html.csp
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“Let’s start out with a softy.”
You don’t see weight rooms with posters saying “Buffalo – August 31.” You see a focus on Clemson, etc. I wish people would be honest about it and say the system is currently structured where you lose once and either you’re out or it’s out of your control. Therefore, scheduling is a balanced process that is difficult to manage. This is the beauty (and the beast) of the best regular season in sports.
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Wonder how Saban is pitching his Peach Bowl opener with a 4-8 West Virginia. “Better tighten those chin staps guys this team held Oklahoma to 16 points.” Bammer’s OCS is a combined 13 and 35 in 2013. Yikes! Bamma takin’ care of bidness.
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We do it for the children.
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Recommendation for McGarity – Never use the word “softy” in any context again.
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Here for all your scheduling needs…
http://www.eventective.com/misc/mediaview.aspx?p=229507
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“Let’s start out with a softy”?
Oh hell yeah, more cushion for the pushin’
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That’s what they both said
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If this were Facebook I’d be liking that.
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I think the kids would rather play games that actually get their pulse rates up.
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Greg McGarity is a lousy AD.
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Greg McGarity needs to learn to STFU. He’s a gaff machine.
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