Bear Down Wildcats

Okay. The University of Arizona is my alma matter, and am supposed to support the athletic program. But college basketball and college football became a business. To compete you have to sidestep the rules. It's a byproduct of a capitalistic system where winning becomes more important than right and wrong. It's not about playing by the rules anymore. And it is definitely not about amateur athletes. To blame Arizona for something every major program does is more than unfair. So the biggest fault is that UA isn't smart enough not to get caught? What does that tell you? It tells me the key to success is to be clever and cover your tracks.

So it looks like other schools are going to skate. And the lesson learned is to make sure you cover your tracks, and that everything shady needs to go deep underground. If UA was actually the only school who pays players I could deal with this better. But what I am seeing is we are the scapegoat and the shady aspect of high revenue college sports will continue. This makes me sick.

Even though I don't follow sports as much as others here, this is still devastating as a fan. Is there even a network about this from a fan's perspective, and how it affects the devoted fan? Sports is supposed to be an escape from day to day struggles. And to have this festering in my mind when it doesn't affect me personally is unhealthy. I have come to a decision that I don't need this. I can find alternate ways to entertain myself that are more wholesome. Say...like preparing to go on a hike. And college sports can go take a hike.

This may be just an emotional reaction that will fade in time. Yet this hits at a deep level. Consequently, I find I will only follow college sports as a casual observer until things change. I am definitely not going to devote myself to a point where I become vulnerable to emotions like this anymore.

I'm basically at this point too

As am I, cats B.B. and FB are the only sports a really follow but this has been a torpedo to that.

It’s actually ok, if it goes down, more time for other things I’m getting myself involved with.

The only real stress we should have, as fans/alums, is when there are 30 seconds left in a close game with the season on the line. All this other shit is inducing anxiety and taking away from the joy we’ve all come to associate with this team.

I’m with you guys: there are better ways to spend my time than rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.

I agree with this here 100%. Bring it all down.

Merkin wrote:I agree with this here 100%. Bring it all down.

+1

I for one will keep watching. Paid players or not. It is my connection to home.

LBdCactus wrote:

Merkin wrote:I agree with this here 100%. Bring it all down.

+1

+2

Burn the MF'er down.

Just is time to orbital death star strike the NCAA and college sports and start from scratch.

Subject: Major College Sports[/url]

Catintheheat wrote: Is there even a network about this from a fan's perspective, and how it affects the devoted fan?

*****************Interesting concept, we have support groups for everything else!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sports is supposed to be an escape from day to day struggles. And to have this festering in my mind when it doesn't affect me personally is unhealthy. I have come to a decision that I don't need this. I can find alternate ways to entertain myself that are more wholesome. Say...like preparing to go on a hike. And college sports can go take a hike.

************************Yes, go take a hike! That is great advice even though it probably wasn't meant that way the first 1 million times it was said. But don't hike alone. At least use the buddy system. Preferably, join a group or club like the SAHC (Southern AZ Hiking Club) that I joined in Tucson. For the price of their low-priced monthly newsletter (produced by volunteers), you can hike with others who know what they are doing and have a better SUV than you do and can get to more remote trail-heads than you could alone with a volunteer guide who has probably been there before.. !!!!!!!!!!!!!


This may be just an emotional reaction that will fade in time. Yet this hits at a deep level. Consequently, I find I will only follow college sports as a casual observer until things change. I am definitely not going to devote myself to a point where I become vulnerable to emotions like this anymore.

+++++++++++++Cosigned!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

An aside to CalStateTempe: Yes, Use the time you had spent on U of A sports on something wholesome for you, BUT I do NOT feel OK about it. I don't want something that I believed in, followed, and supported for 29 years soiled like this. Yes, let's take others down with us. At 81, I've probably realized my mortality more than the rest of you. I have often thought that I wanted to go out in a real fight and to watch my opponent die a minute before I did. Maybe I watched too many cowboy movies, but I did/do want to go out with my boots on. Actually, that is Plan 1B. Plan 1A is to have my boots off in bed with a movie star whose name changed every decade. I may as well have full disclosure and admit that Plan 1C was to leave this earth at the hands of a JUSTIFIED jealous husband at the age of 101.

Classic Dave LOL

Here's the moral conundrum I have:

1. If Miller offered 100k for Ayton, that is really bad for Arizona.
2. I believe that to be the going rate for top recruits.
3. I think it's totally fine that Ayton gets 100k for a season of CBB. Heck, it's a discount.

Yes!!! Love it and thank you for your wisdom Dave!

Just one other thought:

The real driver behind a lot of this is the one and done rule. 15 years ago, Ayton would have gone to the NBA directly.

Now, there's the one year mandate and it means you have a lot of kids who are in college because of an artificial mandate. Naturally, they would be pros, and then we wonder why the system treats them like assets. They are, because the OAD rule creates a class of kids who are just signing on for 7 months with the intent of fulfilling the draft entrance requirement.

LeBron James pretty clearly took money in HS. No one cared because he was obviously straight to the pros and didn't need to worry about college eligibility. Ayton should be in that realm, but isn't because of factors outside his control. Mike Porter Jr. will be a top 5 pick without suiting up for more than a game or two. This is an artificial college career to begin with.

Until this bs came out, I had no idea that college baseball & hockey players are allowed to have agents. WTF? I think the only way out of this mess is to follow the Olympic model. The NCAA has no chance to clean up this mess.