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Sidelines Kalani Simpson |
NCAA sends a message
with its rulingMANY people thought it was taking so long in getting the final decision on the fate of Hawaii's 2002 men's volleyball national championship because the NCAA was going to make a landmark, groundbreaking, precedent of a move.
It did.
And the message was received loud and clear.
Don't recruit foreign student-athletes.
Of course, the NCAA can't say that. So instead it makes these rules and this ruling, which speak loud and clear.
Does the punishment fit the crime? No. Unless you're trying to send a message, that is. It didn't need to be this severe, by rule, but even after taking an extra eight months to think about it on appeal, the NCAA decided to hit hard.
And so the banner came down and the trophy is returned and history is erased. Vernon Podlewski can keep his ring (the former libero had vowed to go into hiding if necessary, you remember), but on paper it's as if the championship never happened.
You can debate all day how silly the rules are, and you probably won't get an argument within the 50th state. They do seem unfair, compared to what American kids can do. That's not the issue. It doesn't matter what your personal definition of "professional" is.
The rule was the rule, and Hawaii didn't do its homework. UH dropped the ball.
I have no doubt that UH athletic director Herman Frazier (and the UH legal team) dialed every number, called in every favor during this appeal process. But it was too late. Hawaii was in violation, had used an ineligible player who had played with pros. Hawaii would suffer the consequences.
That said, it's impossible to keep track of every team or program an athlete has spent time with, or if he or she was paid or reimbursed, if it was pro or semi-pro or any of that stuff, in the shadowy world of the European club scene.
"That's how they do things over there," is the familiar refrain, the excuse. Well, how they do things over there makes them ineligible under NCAA rules.
And that's the point. The NCAA is making rules and rulings that make these guys more trouble than they're worth. That's the precedent here. That's the message.
But of course UH will continue to go the international route. It's brought too many good players, too many good people, to stop now.
Fine. No excuses then. Hawaii and its compliance staff have to know everything about every student-athlete, need to go over the NCAA handbook with a fine-tooth comb. Hire a private investigator to do background checks on recruits, if necessary.
This has happened too many times.
It doesn't matter how unfair the rule. What matters is what happens if you break them.
And now, the timing. Ho, ho, good one, NCAA. Releasing the ruling just days after the NCAA men's volleyball championship that was hosted here, so as not to face the music. So as to not affect attendance.
How convenient. Chicken. Despicable. Galling.
But the joke was on the NCAA there, at least.
Nobody showed up anyway.
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Kalani Simpson can be reached at ksimpson@starbulletin.com