It’s All About The Green: Why The NCAA Punished Pryor & Co. The Way They Did

December 23, 2010
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By now, most college football fans have gotten wind of the news. Five Ohio State Buckeyes players, headlined by Terrelle Pryor, will be suspended for the first five games of the 2011 regular season for what the NCAA cites as “improper benefits”. Those improper benefits would be receiving tattoos from a local tattoo shop in Columbus, in exchange for autographs and other memorabilia. While the news itself is shocking enough, many people question why the NCAA would suspend the players for next season, instead of for the upcoming Sugar Bowl.

To answer that question, all you need to do is pull out your wallet and look inside (unless you’re broke). Money is driving the NCAA’s decision to suspend these players for next season instead of the Sugar Bowl, just like it did in the decision to rule Cameron Newton eligible.

Similar to the Cam Newton case, the NCAA knows that it can make a lot of money off of the Buckeyes’ Sugar Bowl matchup against Arkansas on January 4th. If the NCAA were to suspend these players for the bowl game, it would essentially be sending dollars up in flames. The NCAA, sponsors, and even the universities themselves would all be affected negatively by a decision to suspend these players for the Sugar Bowl. They’d be taking a hit where it hurts the most; the wallet. It would be assumed that the Buckeyes would be at a severe disadvantage without the five players being eligible to play in the game. While fans of the two schools playing would still be interested, many casual fans tuning in to see a Pryor vs. Mallett showdown would likely reconsider their decision to watch the game. Does Bauserman vs. Mallett sound even close to as intriguing if you’re not a Buckeye or Razorback fan?

The NCAA knows that by suspending these players for next season, it is preserving all of the potential money that it can make off of the Buckeyes. Who cares about next year, right? If Ohio State does in fact struggle without Pryor leading the team, another team will take the Buckeyes place in a BCS bowl, and the NCAA will make its money off of that other team. In other words, as a current BCS participant, the Buckeyes mean money now.

The NCAA’s decision in this case also gives credibility to the speculation that Cam Newton was given a free pass because Auburn is playing for the national title. Had Auburn been a mediocre team at 8-4, chances are the NCAA would’ve taken action against Newton.

When you think about the amount of money that is at stake, it doesn’t seem weird that the NCAA decided to take the route of suspending these players for next season instead of this year’s bowl game. Money talks, and the NCAA has proven twice now this season that they are listening.

– K. Becks

6 Responses to It’s All About The Green: Why The NCAA Punished Pryor & Co. The Way They Did

  1. Amanwhoknowsnothing on December 23, 2010 at 10:49 pm

    I see that money is definitely a diving force behind the NCAA and its decision to suspend players next season, but why are actions being taken against selling the golden pants? My information may be incorrect, but as I tuned into to sportscenter it sounded as if the players had sold their precious golden pants which they received after beating Michigan. Is it against the NCAA to seel jewelry?

    • K. Becks on December 29, 2010 at 1:21 pm

      They ruled it as accepting improper benefits. In other words, no, you cannot sell your jewlrey for money.

      A lot of times, there is a lot of gray area about what are “improper benefits” and what aren’t. However, the players knew that this was against the rules, which is why they lied to the NCAA the first time around. The lying is also what got them suspended for five games instead of four (if you recall, Georgia wide receiver A.J. Green was suspended four games this season for selling his 2009 Independence Bowl jersey).

      It’s really sad to see, but not surprising, that these players have indicated that all these awards don’t really mean anything to them. Lots of former players would have cherished these awards as some of their most prized possessions, but to these five players, they mean less than a new tattoo.

  2. Amanwhoknowsnothing on December 23, 2010 at 10:49 pm

    I see that money is definitely a diving force behind the NCAA and its decision to suspend players next season, but why are actions being taken against selling the golden pants? My information may be incorrect, but as I tuned into to sportscenter it sounded as if the players had sold their precious golden pants which they received after beating Michigan. Is it against the NCAA to sell jewelry?

  3. kindofabigdeal on December 23, 2010 at 11:11 pm

    the way i understand it the NCAA sees selling these items as a way for boosters to essentially give players exorbitant amounts of money at little or no expense to the players. for example lets say a certain players ring is worth X number of dollars and he decides to sell it on ebay. a serious booster could pay say 25 times the value of the ring and get away with it if the NCAA didnt regulate selling items.

    • K. Becks on December 29, 2010 at 1:25 pm

      Boosters didn’t have anything to do with this particular situation, but that is an interesting point you bring up. The thing about boosters is, they usually get away with it until the NCAA gets wind of it, because the schools are going to look the other way when boosters do things. Boosters are the ones that give the schools money, and a lot of them have some real leverage on school’s athletic programs.

      I said it in an article awhile back, but it’s worth saying again. This is happening at the major university near you, and it’s just a matter of whether or not the NCAA will catch up with them.

  4. Sugar Bowl Preview | aroundthecorn.com on January 4, 2011 at 4:13 pm

    […] To address the first issue, Tressel doesn’t have a choice. There is a reason that the five players are going to start tonight, and it has to do with the color green. If you don’t understand, then maybe you should read this. […]

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