The Southern Methodist University football scandal, also known as Ponygate, was one of the most severe consequences that the NCAA has ever given out to a college or university. In this instance, the Southern Methodist University football program was found to be illegally paying their players after already being in trouble with the NCAA several times. The first time this football program had been caught by the NCAA for not following its rules was in 1985. This was when an incident regarding offensive lineman Sean Stopperich came up. Prior to transferring schools after going through an injury which made him unable to play, he was paid $5,000 by one of the Southern Methodist Universities booster programs to attend the school and play football there. This caused “the NCAA to place SMU on three years of probation in 1985, limit its postseason appearances, ban the boosters involved and strip the football program of 45 scholarships.” This did not show the program or the school a lesson though. Again in 1986 the Southern Methodist University football program was found breaking NCAA rules. This was their seventh time they had broken and been caught breaking NCAA rules. This time it was found that, “an unnamed booster had been found to have paid 13 Mustang players $61,000 from a slush fund with the approval of key members of the SMU athletic staff.” The result of this complication with NCAA rules is what became known as the, “death penalty”. This death penalty declared that there were to be, “no football in '87. only seven games in '88. no television or bowl appearances until 1989 and restrictions on off-campus recruiting and the number of assistant coaches until 1989 SMU which signed no high school players to letters of intent this winter... ... middle of paper ... ...amp%3Bhp%3D25%26amp%3Bacc%3Don%26amp%3Bwc%3Don%26amp%3Bfc%3Doff%26amp%. Sobocinski, Eric J. "College Athletes: What is Fair Compensation?." Marquette Sports Law Review 7:257. http://scholarship.law.marquette.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1172&context=sportslaw (accessed May 18, 2014). Sullivan, Robert, and Craig Neff. "Shame On You, Smu." Sports Illustrated, March 9, 1987.Article. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1135953/1/index.htm Thelin, John R., and Lawrence L. Wiseman. The old college try: balancing academics and athletics in higher education. Washington, D.C.: School of Education and Human Development, the George Washington University, 1989. Weingarten, Paul. "Governor 'Sorry' For Smu Scandal." Chicago Tribune, March 12, 1987. http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1987-03-12/news/8701190899_1_smu-scandal-bill-clements-smu-board
When I was accepted into the University of Oklahoma, I was not aware of the tradition or prestige that the football team carried. Moreover, I had no idea about the honor it was to don the crimson and cream in the arena of athletics. And, I never envisioned rooming with them. I enjoyed sports, but I loved reading and writing more. Initially, I was focused on building a collegiate career that one day would propel me to my goal of studying law. Yet, the more time I spent interacting with the athletes, the more parallels I noticed between their personalities and mine. Their diligence, perseverance and compassion were all traits that I could identify with since they were reflective of me. For the most part, the majority of the athletes were hungry to achieve and they desired knowledge at all costs; a combination that still resonates with me today.
Dallas was the biggest and most recognizable cities in America. Cowboys, Dallas the TV show, the SMU mustangs and football dominated the city. In the early 80’s SMU owned the best record in the NCAA from 81 to 84. The way they got there was quite literally on the back of top recruits Craig James and Eric Dickerson as well as head coach Ron Meyer who came to the program in 1976. In 1981 behind the pony express and Ron Meyer the small private school won the DI national championship. Which is Texas was all that mattered. SMU had it all money, power and now a championship. At the end of the 1981 ten win season Ron Meyer left to take a job in the NFL. When Meyer left SMU hired Bobby Collins the former University of Southern Mississippi Coach. In 1982 Dickerson finished 3rd in Heisman voting and SMU took its share of the National Championship. Between 80 and 84 SMU wen 49-9-1 the highest winning percentage in the NCAA at that time. But in 1987 SMU was the first school to receive the NCAA “death penalty” for repeat violations. SMU was eligible for the penalty because they were put on probation for 1981 violations. The 1987 season was suspended and for nearly 20 years SMU struggled to reach a winning record and were not a respected tea...
In 1986, it was hinted that people were giving money to Southern Methodist University to bolster the football program. After this was confirmed, the NCAA began taking action and started its own investigation into the program. Upon completing their investigation, they found that all prior allegations were true and began sanctioning the program. On February 25, 1987, the SMU football program, already the most penalized program in history, received the harshest sanctions ever hande...
Those who play popular and highly competitive college sports are treated unfairly. The colleges and universities with successful sports like football and basketball receive millions of dollars in television and ad space revenues, so do the National Collegiate Athletic Association, which is the governing body of big time college sports. Many coaches are also paid over $1 million per year. Meanwhile, the players that help the colleges receive these millions of dollars are forbidden to receive any gifts or money for their athletic achievements and performances. As a solution college athletes ...
Salvador, Damon. “Why College Athletes Should Not Be Paid?” 20 April 2013.Web. 18 May 2014.
Ever since college students started playing sports, back in 1879 when Harvard played Yale in the first collegiate sports game, the question of whether college athletes should be paid was addressed. From that point on athletes, coaches, and college administrators have brought forward points agreeing or disagreeing with the notion of paying college students. The students argue that they deserve to be paid due to the revenue that they bring for the college and because of the games they play and the championships they win. At first the idea of paying college athletes was out of the question, but now the argument has gone from a simple yes or no to a heated debate. Since college athletes are given a free education, they should not also be paid.
Today there are over 450,000 college athletes and the National College Athletics Association (NCAA) faces a difficult decision on whether or not college athletes should be paid. Many people believe that they should and many believe they should not. There are several benefits that college’s athletes receive for being a student athlete. Why should they receive even more benefits than their scholarship and numerous perks?
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Daugherty, Paul. "College athletes already have advantages and shouldn't be paid." Sports Illustrated. Sports Illustrated, 20 Jan. 2012. Web. 25 Apr. 2014. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2012/writers/paul_daugherty/01/20/no.pay/
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