Delany: Big Ten could de-emphasize athletics if O'Bannon plaintiffs win

[HudsonGator]

Delany: Big Ten could de-emphasize athletics if O'Bannon plaintiffs win


Ohio State versus Mount Union in a regular-season football game? Wisconsin against Wisconsin-Whitewater in a regular-season basketball game?

This isn't an outreach program between Big Ten schools and their Division III neighbors. It's one possible future Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany envisions if the plaintiffs prevail in Ed O'Bannon vs. the NCAA. In a declaration filed last week in federal court in support of the NCAA's motion against class certification, Delany threatened that any outcome that results in athletes getting a piece of the schools' television revenue could force the schools of the Big Ten to de-emphasize athletics as the Ivy League's schools did decades ago.

"...it has been my longstanding belief that The Big Ten's schools would forgo the revenues in those circumstances and instead take steps to downsize the scope, breadth and activity of their athletic programs," Delany wrote. "Several alternatives to a 'pay for play' model exist, such as the Division III model, which does not offer any athletics-based grants-in-aid, and, among others, a need-based financial model. These alternatives would, in my view, be more consistent with The Big Ten's philosophy that the educational and lifetime economic benefits associated with a university education are the appropriate quid pro quo for its student athletes."

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/col...-ncaa-obannon/

[Claygator]

Talk about a mess. Pay for Play will not work. On the other hand, where does the NCAA get off using player likenesses to make millions which it does not share with the players?

And who decides what the players make? Rest assured the Alabama will find a way to slip more cash to them than anyone else-not that that is really new.

[SadSouthernBuck]

If that happens look for the heavy hitters in the B1G (Ohio State, Michigan, Nebraska) to look elsewhere.

[bperkins10]

Delany is full of crap and know. There is no way they turn down the money they make and move to D III.

[COGatorman]

Kind of defeats the point of having an ATHLETIC conference if you aren't going to focus on ATHLETICS!!!

[GatorLaw]

Haven't they already de-emphasized football?

[BigSlick]

Call us when a small 10 school is even in the running for a national title!!!!!!

[qwghlmgator]

Originally Posted by bperkins10

Delany is full of crap and know. There is no way they turn down the money they make and move to D III.

Seriously. What a freakin' joke Delany is. He must love hearing himself talk (and seeing his picture on the interwebs). How 'bout we get the press to agree to not cover his next press conference (I hear it's about a contract he's signing with some aerospace company to design Big 10-branded jet packs)?

[gottapanda]

Originally Posted by GatorLaw

Haven't they already de-emphasized football?

LOL.