It all seems so obvious.
Jake Kelly suffers a tragedy when his mother tragically dies in a June, 2008 plane crash.
Kelly wants to transfer to a school closer to his home, giving up a burgeoning Big Ten career to do so.
Kelly is granted his release by Iowa coach Todd Lickliter with the proviso that he transfer close to home. Voila! Kelly lands at Indiana State, a stones throw away from hometown Marshall, Ill. He literally could not have transferred to a closer Division I school.
Kelly files a hardship exemption with the NCAA to avoid the usual mandatory one-year waiting period transfers have to sit out citing his family situation.
It’s a slam dunk, right? What is there to ponder? So far as anyone knows, everything is on the up-and-up, everything checks out. No one is contesting it. This is a “move along, nothing to see here” ruling if there ever was one.
Maybe it is. Or maybe it’s not.
The NCAA works at its own pace. It cares not about the convenience of Kelly or the ISU men’s basketball program, much less the logic of their case. It certainly doesn’t care about the fever-pitch excitement of the Sycamore fanbase as they rightfully get geeked up about what Kelly could mean to ISU’s prospects.
So Jake Kelly waits. ISU waits. You wait. I wait. Every other person interested in ISU basketball waits … until the NCAA is good-and-ready to make a decision.
It could be Monday (don’t hold your breath), it could be … whenever. Time waits for no one, but we all wait for bureaucracy.
All of it is absurd, but it goes hand-in-hand with most things related to NCAA eligibility.
Kelly’s hardship case should have been approved yesterday. The fact that he has to present a hardship case at all highlights the restrictive practices of the organization.
Why do student-athletes have to jump through hoops just to make a simple life decision? Players should be able make these types of decisions without penalty. The one-year wait to transfer? Get rid of it. A scholarship shouldn’t amount to indentured servitude. It doesn’t in any other academic field. The better you are as a college athlete the more restrictive it gets as rules tighten by division. It makes no sense.
I can see the counter-argument from a mile away. If athletes have freedom to move just like any other normal human being, the abuse will be on a scale never previously seen.
In the current way of doing things, that’s true, but I don’t think that would be the case if a few tweaks are made to the current system.
First off, scholarships are finite. Each program has a 13-scholarship limit in men’s basketball, so its not as if the Kentucky’s of the world are going to stockpile 20 McDonald’s All-Americans.
In the current system, which greatly favors the program over the athlete, players can be run off if a coach is enraptured by someone better without penalty. Scholarships are a one-year contract are they are used as both carrot for the wooed and stick for the discarded.
But what if the chess pieces were moved around? Instead of making transfers sit out a year, why not penalize programs who ship out scholarship athletes against their will? If a scholarship is taken away from an athlete against their wishes, or, if it’s not related to an academic, legal, or a very well documented insubordination problem, then that program has that scholarship spot frozen for one year.
The NCAA loves to codify things, so let them codify away. Put a percentage on the number of missed practices, team activities, etc., that would entail forfeiture of scholarship without penalty to the program. So long as the burden of proof is on the program and the athlete would get a fair hearing to defend himself if they so choose.
That would force coaches to think twice about tossing an athlete to the curb in the pursuit of the next big thing, or even, if things just aren’t working out. They offered the scholarship to begin with, why shouldn’t they be penalized if they give up their commitment?
Best of all it would give athletes freedom they should have that any person has to live their lives.
Would abuse end? Of course not. Abuse occurs now. It will occur in any system. But at least athletes would have the same freedoms to live their lives as their fellow students do.
And it would also avoid silly non-decision decisions like the Kelly hardship case.
• Time for your annual comedy — It would be extremely self-serving of me to assert that my baseball picks are an annual Tribune-Star tradition … because they’re not.
But if they were, they’d be an annual comedy tradition. My crystal ball continues to produce howlers.
Last year, I picked a Tigers-Diamondbacks World Series. That worked out well. I might as well have put my crystal ball of fail in a massive truck of fail and drove it off fail cliff onto the fail rocks below.
I should never be trusted. My 7-year-old daughter Cassie, a baseball nut and the biggest Pittsburgh Pirates fan this side of Tom Reck, is who you should listen to … she likes a Yankees-Phillies World Series.
High off my beloved Milwaukee Brewers’ first playoff appearance since 1982, my mind could be more clouded than ever. So have a good laugh as you read on:
• NL East — Mets, Phillies, Braves, Marlins, Nationals.
• NL Central — Cubs, Brewers, Cardinals, Astros, Reds, Pirates.
• NL West — Dodgers, Diamondbacks, Giants, Rockies, Padres.
• NL playoffs — Mets over Dodgers; Phillies over Cubs; Phillies over Mets.
• AL East — Yankees, Rays, Red Sox, Blue Jays, Orioles.
• AL Central — Indians, White Sox, Tigers, Twins, Royals.
• AL West — Angels, Rangers, A’s., Mariners.
• AL playoffs — Rays over Angels; Yankees over Indians; Rays over Yankees.
• World Series — Rays over Phillies in 7.
A World Series rematch? Take what I just wrote to Vegas and bet heavily against it.
Todd Golden is sports editor of the Tribune-Star. He can be reached at (812) 231-4272 or todd.golden@tribstar.com. Please check out Golden’s blog at blogs.tribstar.com/downinthevalley
From the Press Box
From the Press Box: Kelly case highlights NCAA eligbility absurdity
- From the Press Box
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TODD GOLDEN: Don't give up on ISU baseball just yet
If you had to pick one word that would describe the 2013 Indiana State baseball season, it would have to be frustration.
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FROM THE PRESSBOX: Content McKenna has enjoyed seeing ISU's progress
It all happened so fast in June 2010.
One minute, Kevin McKenna was head coach of the Indiana State men’s basketball program. Then — poof! — he was gone.
McKenna resigned from his head coaching position at ISU on June 13, 2010 to take an assistant coach position on Dana Altman’s then-burgeoning University of Oregon staff. -
MVC can't wait on Crieghton to move forward
Will they go or not? That’s been the question that the Missouri Valley Conference and Creighton have been faced with since rumors of the Bluejays’ potential exit went public in December.
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FROM THE PRESSBOX: Can Sycamores reverse fortunes heading into MVC Tournament?
Mastery of a basketball season comes in many forms. Mostly, it comes in forms that involve avoidance of turnovers, anemic scoring and poor defense.
The mechanics of X-and-O success in basketball are obvious, but what’s often overlooked in building a successful campaign is managing the rhythm of the season, which is the hardest thing of all. -
FROM THE PRESS BOX: Accountability isn't Lansing's alone in ISU's recent struggles
Taking ownership has always been one of Indiana State men’s basketball coach Greg Lansing’s strengths.
When ISU has lost games in his three seasons at the helm that it was expected to win, Lansing has always been willing to fall on the sword and take blame for it. -
TODD GOLDEN: Indiana State has far more occasions to rise to
Rejoice, Indiana State basketball fans. The Sycamores’ 68-55 victory at No. 15 Wichita State on Tuesday is worthy of celebration.
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TODD GOLDEN: Big plays in last 10 minutes story of the season for Indiana State
You’d think I’d have learned by now.
It’s 20 games into Indiana State’s men’s basketball season and I still expect the Sycamores’ offense operate like a well-oiled machine from the opening tip. -
Sycamores blossom on Hawaii trip
Quick quiz … what’s the state flower of Hawaii?
Don’t worry. I can’t just rattle state flowers off the top of my head. I had to look it up too, even though I’ve seen them all over the place in Honolulu.
I didn’t even know that Indiana’s state flower is the peony, which replaced the apparently unloved zinnia in the 1950s.
Hawaii’s flower, and they’re ubiquitous in Waikiki tourist shops and in actual flora on Oahu, is the yellow hibiscus.
The yellow hibiscus is big, bold and bright. I’ve never seen one blossom, but I imagine it has to be a beautiful sight.
What I have seen blossom — and it’s the only reason flowers would be brought up in my column — is the Indiana State basketball team at the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic. -
TODD GOLDEN: ISU needs to have its realignment head on a swivel
Have you ever driven past a cow pasture during a severe thunderstorm? If it’s really bad, the cows will congregate in a herd to protect themselves from the tumult.
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TODD GOLDEN: ISU AD Prettyman keeps it close to the vest
Do you want to know who’s on the short list to become Indiana State's next football coach?
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TODD GOLDEN: Trent Miles leaves Sycamores with giant legacy
To glean perspective on Trent Miles’ time as Indiana State’s football coach, I went back into the Tribune-Star’s archives to remind myself of what the football program was like when Miles arrived to rebuild it.
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FROM THE PRESS BOX: Scoreboard watching and the threat matrix for ISU
Indiana State football coach Trent Miles reaffirmed his belief Tuesday that a victory over Youngstown State on Saturday will propel the Sycamores into the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs for the first time since 1984.
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FROM THE PRESS BOX: Twists and turns, but Luck passes eye test
Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck made his much anticipated Lucas Oil Stadium debut Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings.
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FROM THE PRESS BOX: Looking back and forward at ISU athletics
It started in State College, Pa., and ended in Eugene, Ore. Few Indiana State athletic seasons have spanned the nation in as many sports as 2011-12 did for the Sycamores’ athletic teams. And from coast-to-coast there was glory and heartbreak alike.
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FROM THE PRESS BOX: ISU progresses under Prettyman
He didn’t say a word, but it was as clear as Indiana State Director of Athletics Ron Prettyman sat in the PK Park dugout and watched the Sycamores take batting practice prior to their NCAA Regional at Oregon last Thursday, he beamed with pride.
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TODD GOLDEN: MVC pitching helped prepare Sycamores for regional
Nick Petree, Pierce Johnson, Ty Blach.
These aren’t just elite-level starting pitchers Indiana State’s baseball team faced this season. They comprise three of the last five pitchers the Sycamores faced period. -
FROM THE PRESS BOX: ISU baseball has pluses, minuses for tourney bid
Last Thursday, when Indiana State’s baseball jumped around in a celebratory dogpile after clinching the Missouri Valley Conference regular season championship at Bob Warn Field, no one thought that a little over a week later, the dreaded NCAA Tournament bubble would fly over Terre Haute. -
FROM THE PRESS BOX: Subtle switch has fostered MVC baseball parity
When Indiana State was crowned as the regular season baseball champion of the Missouri Valley Conference last Thursday, it marked the fifth different regular season champion the league has had since 2005.
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FROM THE PRESS BOX: ISU has done enough to be in NCAAs
When you get older, you’re supposed to get wiser. I don’t know if I qualify, but I’m trying.
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FROM THE PRESS BOX: TH’s Murans back in the Derby … this time with favorite
When Terre Haute native Paul Murans experienced his first Triple Crown horse racing run as part-owner of Mucho Macho Man in 2011, the experience was — to borrow a phrase from one-time Marquette coach Al McGuire — seashells and balloons.
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TODD GOLDEN: IHSAA debate interrupts more pressing issues
State Senator Mike Delph has sowed a 15-year-old wind and put the emotional class basketball debate back on the public’s mind.
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TODD GOLDEN: ISU eyes prize one game at a time
Most baseball fans know that the baseball season — even a college baseball season — is a marathon, not a sprint.
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TODD GOLDEN: Grass is green enough for Indiana State in Missouri Valley
Take a look around the Missouri Valley Conference landscape and it would be easy to assume that a significant portion of the league membership is searching for perceived greener pastures.
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FROM THE PRESS BOX: Sycamores are Odum’s team now
Soooo … who wants to talk about the 2012 Indiana State men’s basketball season?
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FROM THE PRESS BOX: ISU will face uphill climb in MVC in 2013
The Missouri Valley Conference Tournament semifinals are always scintillating. No more so than Saturday when Illinois State upset 15th-ranked Wichita State 65-64 and when No. 25 Creighton took care of business with a 99-71 victory over Evansville.
Arch Madness indeed. -
FROM THE PRESS BOX: Effort, heart, concentration are fleeting for ISU
Every time Indiana State’s men’s basketball wins a game, you think to yourself, OK, now is when these Sycamores live up to their potential.
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FROM THE PRESS BOX: Peyton’s place belongs to Eli
The good people of Indianapolis justifiably puffed out their chests throughout Super Bowl week as the city received deserved rave reviews for the job it did as hosts of Super Bowl XLVI.
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TODD GOLDEN: Teammates, colleagues express their loyalty to Weatherford
Sometimes you worry whether someone is stopping to smell the roses when they smell rosiest.
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FROM THE PRESS BOX: Does melted ice reveal Belichick's heart of gold?
If you’re into Youtube — and who isn’t these days? — there’s a vintage television profile of then-Cleveland Browns coach Bill Belichick posted on the popular site.
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TODD GOLDEN: Indiana State men caught between expectation, reality
The Missouri Valley Conference is hush-hush on how it puts together its matchups for the annual conference schedule.
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TODD GOLDEN: Don't give up on ISU baseball just yet
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