Rob Grover's questions about inconsistencies of NCAA rules seem to
come up regularly, but are certainly worth some kind of reply.
 
First, many of those NCAA regs that seem so ridiculous at times are
specific expressions of general principles agreed to by all member
institutions (in fact, ALL NCAA regs are voted on by member
institutions).  They tend to pop up because an ambiguity in a general
principle leads to a demand for a specific rule -- or because
an unanticipated loophole emerges which members decide needs
plugging.  It's important to keep in mind that these regs exist
because a majority of the colleges and universities want them; and
many regs exist because somewhere, sometime an outlaw program took
advantage of a loophole or ambiguity to gain an unfair edge on other
schools.
 
As far as Rob's specific questions:  1)  I don't know why they
wouldn't flash "Happy Birthday" on the scoreboard.  There might be a
formal rules compliance interpretation lying around that
specifically mentions that -- or perhaps the Maine officials decided
that if they did it for Steve Kariya they would have to do it for
all Maine students.  A group of students shouting birthday greetings
is probably more "spontaneous."  2) For every school that does award
retroactive financial aid, there are others which do not.  In any
event, the NCAA's general principle is that aid cannot exceed actual
costs (tuition, fees, room, board, books).  If an athlete comes in
late, and doesn't have to pay 3 weeks of room & board, for instance,
then the actual cost is 3 weeks less and the aid awarded must
reflect that.  Nothing inconsistent there.  3) Of course friends
(one of whom is an athlete) can exchange gifts and expenses -- and
that is reflected in NCAA rules.  Athletes can even be invited to
someone's house for a home-cooked meal.  But if the gift has the
appearance of an improper benefit, then there could be a problem.
If Joe Hatrick is my roommate and I give him a 6-pack of Coke for a
birthday present, that's not a problem.  If I give him free use of a
'96 Corvette (my uncle just happened to have an extra one), that's a
problem.  And, if Joe remembers the form he signed agreeing to abide
by the NCAA's rules, he'll know better than to ask me for a friendly
$100 loan.
 
I can appreciate that at times the interpretation or enforcement of
these rules can appear ridiculous.  If every athlete, coach, athletic
program, and school would compete in a true spirit of sportsmanship
and fairplay, then there'd be no need for them.  But in the real
world, as we've seen so recently, the rules are the only way -- no
matter how imperfect they are -- to keep a level playing field.
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Dr. Stephen E. Roth                [log in to unmask]
Dean of Student Services
Canisius College                            (716) 888-2522
Buffalo, New York 14226                 FAX (716) 888-3190
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