Oklahoma Sooners Return From Vacation When N.C.A.A. Wimps Out Again
by T Kyle King
on Mar 13, 2008 7:33 AM EDT
in Football
Last July, after the N.C.A.A. vacated Oklahoma's wins from the Sooners' 2005 season, I had this to say:
Don't put an asterisk next to that "L" in your media guide, or you're liable to have to erase it in next year's edition. This is a weak, wishy-washy, watered-down, wussified sanction, but, there being no "Y" (chromosome) in "N.C.A.A.," the sport's overarching organization lacks the masculine fortitude even to follow through with that exceedingly lame punishment against a prominent institution.
On appeal, the N.C.A.A. will overturn this pitiful excuse for a deterrent and reinstate Oklahoma's "vacated" wins. Count on it.
I hate to say "I told you so," but . . . I told you so.
BCSBusters and I have our respectful disagreements, but, when he argues that the N.C.A.A. has lost the ability to govern college football, reasonable sports fans may differ over the reasons this is so, but no one can doubt that he has a good point.
This is not to say that I think it necessarily is wrong that Oklahoma's appeal succeeded; I didn't follow the case that closely and, as I have argued repeatedly, the notion of "vacating" wins (rather than requiring them to be forfeited) is wussified nonsense, anyway. That the N.C.A.A. is a finger-wagging, politically-correct, fussbudget nanny killjoy regarding purely symbolic ephemera but a paper tiger when it comes to enforcement of meaningful regulations, however, cannot be gainsaid.
Trot out a guy in an Indian headdress at halftime of a basketball game and these sniveling busybodies will get the vapors, but, by golly, if anyone forces a familiar football program to concede a halfhearted demi-forfeit (but not really) in the wake of an investigation that determined sanctions were appropriate, these guys turn into Barney Fife.
They'll stand up for the photo op like they were Elliot Ness when the punishment is first handed down and their toughness is splayed across the headlines, but, six months down the road, when no one is watching, they'll fold like deck chairs on appeal.
Remind me again why we even have an N.C.A.A.?
O.K., morning rant over; I'll be back this evening to report on the second installment of Wednesday's baseball doubleheader with the Florida State Seminoles Indigenous Peoples of North Floridian Tribal Affiliation.
Go 'Dawgs!
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Not The 1st Time, Won't Be The Last
Oh well, if they continue to beat us 3 out of every 18 years, and need absurd refereeing decisions as well as to be cheating just reach that level of accomplishment, then I'm cool with that.
by Kanu on Mar 13, 2008 12:32 PM EDT 0 recs
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