“Armageddon threats”

It sounds like Mark Emmert’s threats to the California legislature have gone over as well as you might expect, based on the tone of yesterday’s hearing and vote (9-0) by the state assembly’s Committee on Higher Education.

… chairman Jose Medina called the NCAA’s threats and requests to slow down the legislative process during the past couple months “akin to bullying.”

“I don’t take too fondly to threats to the state of California regardless of where they come from,” Medina told ESPN on Tuesday evening.

It’s what a charm offensive looks like, minus the charm.

And how could the committee not be swayed by the powerful reasoning of Long Beach State athletic director Andy Fee?

He raised the scenarios of athletes accepting endorsements from casinos (giving the gambling industry a foothold in college sports) or marijuana products (a substance banned by the NCAA and illegal under federal law) as potential issues that should be considered. He also said the threat of not being able to compete in championship in the future could negatively affect coaches trying to recruit athletes.

“Where are the protections that prevent these things from happening? That’s why I urge a pause,” Fee said. “This is a good conversation. It’s the mechanism I oppose.”

Andy likes talking.  He just isn’t comfortable with the talking leading anywhere.  And his gambling concern is simply precious in this day and age of schools accepting “integrity fees” from the industry.

These people make it difficult to take them seriously.  Not that they care, of course.  They just want to hold off Armageddon as long as they can.

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UPDATE:  Political blogger, California resident and (most importantly) Georgia alum Ed Kilgore has a few thoughts on the subject here, including what should be our collective woke moment.

Perhaps I’m biased because my own alma mater, the University of Georgia, lost two all-American football players (A. J. Green and Todd Gurley) for parts of two separate seasons for, respectively, selling jerseys and autographs.