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Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Slive: SEC has prepared over-signing legislation, schools will vote in Destin

SEC commissioner Mike Slive has prepared legislation that involves the practice of over-signing – a hot-button issue this year around the league. And Slive has a view on it, and hopes the legislation passes.

But the commissioner isn’t saying yet what his view is, or what the package specifically involves.

"There will be action because (the proposals) will come forth as proposed legislation for the presidents, the A.D.s and the other groups to opine on. But I feel good about them," Slive said during an interview this week. "So I think the goal is to make sure that our prospective student-athletes are treated in a way that is as they should be treated, like students our treated. And I think this package does that."

The package, as Slive described it, involves not only over-signing, but all issues relating to what he called “roster management.”

“In other words, it’s more than just the question of over-signing or grayshirting,” Slive said. “It’s a question of over-signing, grayshirting, early admissions, summer school admission. We’ve put together what we call a bit of a package to address these issues, that will give our people a chance to think about these issues in a more global fashion. So then it will be an important discussion item in Destin.”

The over-signing issue - teams signing more players than they have room for - has garnered plenty of attention, with SEC schools coming down on different sides of the issue. Georgia head coach Mark Richt has been outspoken against it, calling it “an awful thing to do.” But South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier has said it was something his program needed to do because of the academics in his state.

Slive indicated that more debate has gone on behind the scenes.

“Well, we’ve had some discussions to get the proposed legislation in place. I can tell you that the First Amendment in the Southeastern Conference is alive and well,” he said. “I have a view and not a vote. And I will certainly exercise my view. ... I like this legislation."

The full interview with Slive, which involved a range of issues that will come up in Destin, will run this weekend in the Macon Telegraph and other McClatchy newspapers.

7 comments:

Mike said...

UGA needs to stick with Florida on this. If these inferior, poorer SEC schools continue to give the middle finger to UGA and Florida on this, both need to be prepared to leave the SEC.

The Big 10 would LOVE to add Florida and Atlanta to its footprint. And in the Big 10, UGA and Florida would get a great upgrade in academic reputation.

Unknown said...

Yeah. I cant wait for that road trip to west Lafayette.

Unknown said...

Texasdawg, you're an idiot if you think either Georgia or Florida has any desire to leave the SEC, it would be the dumbest move ever in NCAA Football. You're even dumber if you think the B10 would want them. Florida maybe (if they were desperate, which they are not)but Georgia has nothing academically to offer the B10.

Furthermore the article is misleading. [Georgia head coach Mark Richt has been outspoken against it, calling it “an awful thing to do.”] That quote is completely out of context, making the reader think he is referring to oversigning. Go here and read the whole quote and you get an entirely different feel from him on this subject:
http://uga.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1221047
The money quote for the lazy: "Not to say we haven't gray shirted, or talked to a kid about gray shirting, but if you tell five of those guys, hey, we've got 20 spaces, I can sign 25 and there's a good chance by the time school starts there will be room for you because of the attrition which seems to happen every year...That's how we go about it if we talk to a kid about gray shirting"

Tim said...

Donnie,

UGA and UF are pretty even academically and both are better schools then OSU, IU, Iowa, and Purdue. Please research things before speaking your mind!

It makes YOU look like an idiot!

scooter said...

Donnie, I agree with much of what you say, but have to disagree in part with your put-down of UGA academics. Given that too much is made of the U.S. News & World Report rankings of universities, still in their rankings of "national universities" they produced the last few years UGA finished above half of the Big 10 schools. I was a little surprised to see that myself. I know all of these rankings are very subjective, but consider there may just be a grain of truth in them.

Doug said...

UGA and UF heading to the Big10?

That right there is funny.

Slive has two pieces of legislation drafted. The first has a lot of teeth and will curb oversigning. The second is nothing but hot air.

Anonymous said...

I predict the "hot air" version will be very popular with at least 7 of the Conference members.