What it does open up is the infiltration of agents to be able to talk with high school seniors, and college freshmen/sophomores. There are too many good athletes (for their respective age level) that don't want to continue on in school for whatever reason that may see this as an opportunity. I still wonder why is it O.K. for IBM (or any large company) to insist on certain criteria for jobs (e.g. age, education, etc.) but the sports leagues can't. If the world's smartest high schooler wanted a job with IBM, they can say, ' Sorry, we require a college degree or similar work experience for than position' and there is nothing that can be done about it.
Disagree: Kids will jump even if they're not physically ready if offered a $600K signing bonus vs the risk of getting injured in College. The Glory that is college ball won't stack up against a certain payday. Non guaranteed contracts and room on the roster lets teams gamble that they can groom the next star by parking him on special teams. When a few do it...the rest will have to. Age limit doesn't seem out of line... There's an age limit to vote, to drink, to drive, to be president, to enroll in school, to work in certain places, to be in certain leaques. 20 is not too prohibitive. He's not allowed in a bar, yet he has inherent right to play in the NFL?? If he wants to play elsewhere for two years, he should -- CFL Europe etc.
because the NFL is the only viable buyer for his talent...for employing him as a professional football player. at least that's what the courts say. IBM might not hire the boy wonder right out of high school...but thousands of other organizations might.
None of these things except President prohibit you from pursuing your occupation. And in the case of being President or Driving, those have age clauses in place to protect everyone else.
I understand that point, however, just because someone is good at ONE thing should not force an entity to hire them. Since the (reasonable) rules are there, then everyone knows the rules going in. If an athlete wants a job before he is "age-eligible" then he should learn another skill and go to work somewhere else or else plow through college as best he can while honing his craft and wait until it's his time.
When IBM says they hire college graduates, it is a discrimination based on education, not age. If a football team required all their players to have a college degree, then I think they may be in the clear (though their team would suck).
But as I understand things, IBM could also say, "sorry, you're too young, we don't hire anyone for this position who is not yet 21" (or some other arbitrary age) Companies value maturity and experience and could very well refuse to offer younger folks a position. Personally, I don't care one way or the other about youngsters being in the pros. I do care that private entities are being forced to alter their hiring practices.
You're way off base, as someone stated, if IBM thought a sixteen year old kid was a genius, they would hire him. NFL teams are specifically barred from drafting these guys because of their larger organization, which brings in questions of collusion. No one is preventing IBM to hire the sixteen year old and no one is forcing them to.
Hmmmm. If only the league could claim some sort of age "BFOQ" (bona fide occupational qualification) requirement, like Hooters does for only hiring hot chicks. Not very likely. Does anyone know about the OTHER potential underclassmen who could declare? Can guys like Mike Williams from USC now enter the 2004 draft? Put me down as one who sees the End of College Football approaching very soon. In no time, it'll be nothing more than a lifeless shell, much like NCAA basketball. Any position player with even a modicum of potential will enter the draft after only one year due to riches and injury risk. And for those of you who don't agree, take a long, hard look at college basketball. All the best players leave early (or don't go to college at all), and the NBA Draft is only 2 rounds long! R.I.P college football.
Well college basketball became a guards game, but now even guards like Telfair and Livingston might make the jump. As if college basketball isn't mediocre enough and the talent in the NBA isn't watered down enough. I'm sort of torn because there are some cases when players really need to go to the NBA for financial reasons, but I do wish there was a sort of age requirement for the sake of college basketball and also for the fans getting a crappy product in the NBA.
The difference in the appaeal of the NBA and the NFL for underage players: Guaranteed and non-guarenteed contracts. Football is safe.
Bobrek- I think an employer can only set education qualifications not age qualifications. Meaning they can say a Bachelors degree required, which 99% of the time means you'll get someone older than 21, but keep in mind if Dougie Howser walked in and had finished college at teh age of 16 they couldn't dismiss him because of age (unless it ws a job that had age requirments by law like someone serving drinks, manual labor for a minor, etc)
IBM MAY hire him, but they would not be forced to. The NFL is essentially being forced to hire players. As you said, if no one drafts Clarett, there will be some sort of collusion charge.
The NFL has essentially set education qualifications which said that players cannot be drafted until three years have passed since their high school graduation. If a company requires a bachelor's degree, couldn't the NFL require 3 years of college "education"?
I don't beleive so, 3 years out of HS is simply an age rule (it does not show the person has done anything except aged, because the person didn't even have to goto college during those 3 years). A degree shows some "expertise". Now the NFL could require a degree, but then I think the XFL would make a comeback and overtake it pretty quickly
Actually I heard Kiper on SC this morning and he is changing his opinion already. He is now saying he could go late in the 1st round, because those teams witrh picks don't beleive he will be around late in the 2nd round. Give Kiper another 2 weeks and he'll have Mo going in the top 3 PS - I still beleive he will go around #20 (maybe as low as 30), I don't think many teams would risk him much higher than that position.
I still don't see what the big deal about him is. Size? Not much Durability? Not much Speed? Not much Toughness? Definitely Open field moves? Not really Ability to run in between the tackles? Yeah, in college Ability to bounce it outside? Doubtful A second gear? Not that I've seen I haven't seen as many games as an OSU fan, but what's so great about him over freaks like Kevin Jones, Greg Jones, Steven Jackson, Julius Jones, Cobbs, and the guy from Iowa.
I agree. Clarett is going to be the one stupid, sticky wicket that disrupts the entire apple cart. God, I hate that b*stard!
If that were true, why don't juniors leave in big numbers? I heard on the radio today that only 40 juniors declared for the NFL draft last year. Actually, that number may be higher, but I'm pretty sure it was only 40 who actually stuck around to be drafted. I don't think this will signal the end at all. That, and college basketball isn't a horrible sport, either.
Educational requirements? Dexter Manley anyone? Plus, even if there were educational requirements, if someone drafts someone out of school early, then those requirements must not mean much to them.
