Our Robyn Norwood had a centerpiece story in USA Today the other day examining college sports programs like the University of Southern California and Ohio State, and the inherent problems the NCAA faces in trying to discipline. First among them: Their size makes them somewhat impervious to getting a spanking. From her story:
How do such powerhouse football programs ultimately fare after major NCAA sanctions? Are some simply too big to fail?
Recent cases suggest that. The Miami Hurricanes, hit with NCAA penalties for lack of institutional control in 1995, won the 2001 national title. And Alabama, sanctioned in 2002, won it in 2009.
USC — penalized because the NCAA concluded former running back Reggie Bush and his family received improper benefits from prospective agents — remains publicly cautious about its prospects on the field.
The Trojans' defiance of what the school considered excessive NCAA penalties is shifting toward acceptance. As J.K. McKay, senior associate athletic director and a son of the late Trojans coach John McKay, told boosters in a gathering attended by a Los Angeles Times reporter: "This is USC. We're going to be fine."
Others — including Larry Coker, coach of the 2001 Miami team and now of the fledgling program at the University of Texas at San Antonio — echo that sentiment about Ohio State.
"With Ohio State, I think you'll see the same thing, because so many good players in the state want to play at the school," says Coker, an assistant coach in Columbus earlier in his career. "When I was recruiting there for Ohio State, a mother once told me: 'Coach, my son was born to be a Buckeye.'"
Vacated victories don't mean vacated futures.
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