Tuesday morning buffet

A little of this, a little of that and pretty soon you’ve got a full buffet.

• Kirby puts the brakes on the “Deangelo Gibbs is back” talk.
• If you’re interested, there’s already a lot of movement on some of the early lines for the first week of college football.
• Florida and TAMU are sponsoring what is sure to be called the Freeze Rule.
• Here’s a look at the number of quarterback pressures generated by SEC defenses last season.  You’ll be shocked, shocked to learn that Alabama led the conference.
• It sounds like Todd McNair’s attorneys outsmarted themselves.  No doubt the NCAA will take a win any way it can get one, though.
• Is it just me, or does it seem like those endless preseason watch lists come out earlier and earlier?
• Wait a minute — it is a “possibility” that Stetson Bennett could earn a scholarship if he stays with the program?  Thought this kid was a dead lock, SEC-ready beast.  Kirby’s sales pitch: “I certainly respect what he has done this far for the University of Georgia and he’s a really good student as well. We’re selling him on the University of Georgia education.”  Not seeing a lot of playing time in there, but then I’m not as good at reading between the lines as some of you guys are.
• Florida won the SEC All-Sports Award for a 12th consecutive year and for the 26th time in 27 years.  Georgia, by virtue of having the best showing in women’s sports, finished second.

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A different pay to play

The NCAA weighs in on the new world of sports betting.

To ensure integrity in sport, the NCAA supports a federal model addressing legalized gambling and has suspended its championship host policy related to sports wagering.

“Our highest priorities in any conversation about sports wagering are maintaining the integrity of competition and student-athlete well-being,” said Mark Emmert, NCAA president. “Sports wagering can adversely impact student-athletes and undermine the games they play. We are committed to ensuring that laws and regulations promote a safe and fair environment for the nearly half a million students who play college athletics.”

Now, mind you, throwing games is illegal under state law and the Supreme Court’s ruling doesn’t affect that in the slightest.  But that’s not the cause of Emmert’s anxiety, in any case.  This is all about keeping student-athletes away from sports books by criminalizing yet another NCAA regulation.  Good luck with making that work.

Today, in settling it on the field

Because you never know when your potential national champion is out there lurking as the seventieth-best regular season team.

ACC basketball coaches recommend NCAA tourney to expand from 68 to 72 teams, widen the lane & move 3-point line back. They do not favor changing from halves to four quarters

— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) May 17, 2018

On the other hand, there’s always a bigger March Madness check.

You guys can keep pretending all you want about why postseasons don’t expand.  I’ll keep watching the money, thanks.

Jeffrey Kessler ain’t played ‘Bama, PAWWWLLL.

But he’s about to.

Shit’s getting closer to being real in the Alston/Jenkins trial, so the NCAA’s lawyers are in the throw stuff against the wall to see what sticks phase of the legal proceedings.

In filing requested by judge, Alston/Jenkins plaintiffs say they're available to start trial against NCAA over athlete-compensation limits in July, August or September.

— Steve Berkowitz (@ByBerkowitz) May 16, 2018

In filing requested by judge in Alston/Jenkins cases, NCAA continues to maintain its lawyers' schedules should result in delay of trial to at least June 2019. September start is "less objectionable" but does not afford "adequate time and opportunity to prepare"

— Steve Berkowitz (@ByBerkowitz) May 16, 2018

A trial day delayed is another day of not having to share.

Plaintiffs in Alston/Jenkins cases against NCAA over athlete-pay limits say the Jenkins case should be stayed during trial of Alston case. That means they want Jenkins to remain an independent action that could go forward in New Jersey if Alston fails in California/9th Circuit

— Steve Berkowitz (@ByBerkowitz) May 16, 2018

Anything but Judge Wilken.

U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken asked the sides in Alston/Jenkins cases concerning athlete-compensation limits to make statements concerning how the trial should proceed. The NCAA's began with this: pic.twitter.com/YVAfGaImgc

— Steve Berkowitz (@ByBerkowitz) May 16, 2018

Delay, delay, delay…

Building a better future, one bet at a time

While the NCAA likely doesn’t have any idea what to do about the impending collision between widespread legal gambling and amateurism, you can be damned sure it’s feverishly preparing for its coming payday from sports betting.  Start with this:

As of this morning, the NCAA has still not announced plans to allow college athletes to control their own names, images and likenesses…

However, the NCAA does not move equally slowly on all potential initiatives.

When it comes to monetizing revenue streams related to its college athletes, the NCAA shifts from operating at a snail’s pace into Speedy Gonzales.

Early this morning, the NCAA was proud to announce the launch of its newest initiative: monetizing college athletes’ game statistics. According to an article that appeared this morning on Bloomberg.com, “the NCAA has signed a 10-year partnership with the U.K.-based Genius Sports to centralize the data, and ideally make some money off it.”

While there is no doubt a financial benefit for the NCAA in mining player statistics, one is nevertheless left to wonder what the NCAA plans to do with this data, and why this initiative was consummated even while other, presumably more important matters remain unaddressed.

One hypothesis, raised by Ebon Novy-Williams of Bloomberg.com, is that the NCAA’s data mining initiative could mark a first step toward the NCAA selling data to companies for gambling-related ventures.  Indeed, such data could emerge as a valuable revenue stream given that, also today, the Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act — a statute that had disallowed for state legalization of sports gambling in 46 of 50 states.

What a happy coincidence!  Although “you can’t sell your names, only we can sell your names” admittedly isn’t the best look right now… not that anyone at the NCAA is likely to give a shit as long as the checks roll in.  Besides, it’s only what’s on the front of the jersey that matters, amirite?

Oh, and let’s enjoy this amusing analogy.

First, and placing emphasis on the phrase “sports betting right”, such fees would account for the derivative quality of sports betting: Leagues provide the games upon which bets are made. Leagues then expect to receive a portion of the share, much like a player or musician expects to receive a portion of a royalties associated with others trading on their identities or talents.

Well, some players, anyway.

I can hardly wait to hear Emmert and Delany twist themselves in verbal knots explaining the difference between the NCAA goose and the student-athlete gander.  Somehow, I won’t be surprised to hear it all justified as being in the best interest of the player, who, after all, is only there to get an education.

You better, you better, you bet.

With yesterday’s Supreme Court ruling ending the federal prohibition on sports betting, you’d best get ready for this scenario to be tossed around.

Now, college athletics will have to deal with the players who don’t get paid.

Legalized sports betting works in the professional model, because, for the most part, the players are making so much coin that it’s not worth the risk to mess with monkeying with their games.

Let’s say you’re a 19-year-old star shooting guard, or starting quarterback, or any college athlete who doesn’t have any real money. Yes, there’s always been the idea of game fixing and the athletes have always been vulnerable, but now this is different.

There’s a difference between some shady character trying to get a player to do something to affect an outcome, and a player telling his roommate or friend to go on their phone and place a wager.

Sure, there are currently ways for enterprising youngsters to bet, but that’s a much bigger PITA now than it may become as states inevitably chase their share of the wagering public’s dollar.  And it’s going to be awfully tempting for kids who see big bucks swirling around everyone else who participates in their sport.

Does anyone figure the NCAA has the first clue what to do about it?

The transfer epidemic myth

You’ll be shocked, shocked to learn that players aren’t transferring in ever higher, record-setting numbers.

Then, again, it’s never been about the raw numbers for coaches, has it?