I don’t feel bad for Jeremiah Masoli that the NCAA has denied a waiver that would have allowed him to play at Ole’ Miss this season without having to sit out a year like most transfers.
The kid has had his chances and he has blown every single on of them. But that doesn’t mean that the NCAA wasn’t hypocritical in its ruling.
In a press release following the announcement, the NCAA said: “The waiver exists to provide relief to student-athletes who transfer for academic reasons to pursue graduate studies, not to avoid disciplinary measures at the previous university.”
On the surface, I agree with the statement. Masoli didn’t transfer to Ole’ Miss to further his education – he transferred so he could play one more year of college football in hopes of getting drafted into the NFL.
Don’t forget that after he plead guilty in January on a felony burglary charge, Oregon suspended him for the entire 2010 season. So essentially, the waiver allowed him to leapfrog the suspension at Oregon and play at Ole’ Miss without facing any discipline.
But while I agree with the rule in principle, how is Masoli any different than Darius Barksdale or Ryan Perriloux?
Barksdale never suited up for the Rebels, but was charged with DUI and driving without a license in August of last year, then, when enrolled at Ole Miss for the spring semester, Houston Nutt suspended him for an undisclosed violation. Finally, just before practice began this year, Barksdale was kicked off the team entirely.
