When Mark Emmert was named NCAA president in April 2010, the natural question to ask was this: Whom will he choose to emulate in his new role?
We now know the answer. He is Don Vito Corleone.
Earlier this month, Emmert called for a meeting of the five families — also known as the 50 university presidents — to discuss the seemingly out-of-control cheating going on in college football. With both schools from last season’s championship football game (Auburn and Oregon) joining Ohio State, USC and North Carolina in running afoul of NCAA rules, it was time to put an end to this war.
One can almost see Emmert standing in the middle of a long table surrounded by the presidents with all their various functionaries sitting behind them.
“How did it all come to this?” Don Emmert undoubtedly asked. “We are all reasonable men (and a handful of women). It is time for us to make the peace.”
The upshot of the meeting was that the presidents were all shocked — shocked — to learn there was cheating going on, even as they were being presented with their winnings as they left. They also said academic standards needed to be tightened. Novel idea.
Then they went back to raiding each other’s conferences, all in pursuit of extra TV dollars.
Just to review in case you weren’t paying attention: Nebraska is now in the Big Ten, which has 12 teams. The Big 12 has 10 teams. Colorado and Utah are in the Pacific-10, which at least had the decency to rename itself the Pac-12. Brigham Young is an independent.
Wait, there’s more: Texas A&M wants out of the Big 12 to join the SEC. The SEC says no thanks — for now. The SEC might recruit Florida State, Clemson and Missouri. Or it might not. If the ACC were to lose Florida State and Clemson, it would try to raid the Big East again — because that worked out so well last time.
(Memo to ACC Commissioner John Swofford: Good work bringing Miami into the conference. If the latest allegations are even half-true, the ’Canes will make Ohio State and Southern California look like Harvard and Yale. Or Williams and Amherst.)
Meantime, Emmert wants to hold another meeting. This is what he does: He holds meetings.
Please. Enough already. If Emmert or a BCS school president tells you the sun will rise in the East tomorrow, check the western horizon at dawn.
Here’s what needs to happen: The NCAA needs to go away, the same way all corrupt organizations must eventually go away. The Berlin Wall fell, and so did the Soviet Union. The reserve clause went away, and baseball didn’t crumble. New Coke ceased to exist because it was awful.
All those pretty NCAA buildings in Indianapolis need to be torn down. The time for meetings among unreasonable men needs to end. Michael Corleone had it right: You don’t have to wipe everyone out — just your enemies.
The NCAA and the BCS school presidents are the enemy.
College athletics needs to governed by three separate organizations: one for football, one for men’s basketball, one for non-revenue sports. Each is completely different from the others, with needs and issues that have almost nothing in common. To be fair, this is an idea Duke basketball Coach Mike Krzyzewski has pushed for years.
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