There was another piece of information in today's Star-Tribune that makes me
suspect a little more strongly that there may have been some sort of quid pro
quo.  Apparently, Woog had thought before the 93-94 season that McAlpine was
going to turn pro.  Because of this, he reallocated McAlpine's scholarship
money to other players, leaving his star defenseman without a stipend when he
chose to come back.  To me, this smells a bit like the Wooger trying to get
around the scholarship limit.  Even if there was nothing explicit said
between the two, I think the NCAA is justly suspicious of this sort of
transaction.  For them not to take some sort of action would threaten to open
a serious loophole in the scholarship limits.  Without getting into a debate
over whether the current structure of college athletics is a good one, if
you're going to stay with the current general concept, then the NCAA is
probably doing the right thing.
 
J. Michael Neal
 
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