College coaches, agents agree that something must be done about unscrupulous agents. Jack Bechta
Even after Nick Saban reached out to Roger Goodell, the NCAA, and the NFLPA last week via three high level conference calls, there are still many at the highest level of the NFL wondering why the agent issue has become their problem. Some of the top NFL brass I spoke to recently are downright confused as to how locking out NFL scouts from their campuses will stop unsavory agents from seducing young men into breaking NCAA rules.
Well, for those who may still be confused as to why the coaches (Tressel, Brown, Davis, Stoops, and Meyer) went to the NFL to help solve the problem, it’s called “leverage”. Saban locked out the scouts in an attempt to bring attention to the issue. He has no intention of making the lockout a permanent policy. I believe Saban and the coaches are asking the NFL to lean on whomever they have to in order to get the problem fixed.
The NCAA and the NFLPA have few resources in terms of an enforcement arm. Furthermore, the NFLPA has bigger fish to fry with the looming CBA issues and is most likely unwilling to contribute money or resources to police the problem. I believe Saban’s first conference call was with the players' union, the second was with the commissioner’s office and the third included the NCAA, the union, the NFL, and even some agents.
I represented several of Saban’s players when he was at Michigan State. He was great at helping my clients get into an all-star game and was always available to take my calls. So I don’t think he is anti-agent; he is just anti-unscrupulous agent. He knows the system is broken. As a matter of fact, he has been openly encouraging highly regarded agents to be available to his seniors and is developing a system at Alabama to help players screen and choose reputable counsel.
The irony in his “call to arms by top college coaches” is that the vast majority of agents want the same things that he wants: accountability, enforcement and punishment of rule-breaking agents. Several reputable agents I spoke to recently are hoping that something gives soon. However, we are not optimistic that the cycle will be broken.
The problem is that right now there are only two governing bodies that can inflict pain on agents: individual states who have antiquated laws on the books that govern agents, and the NFLPA, which has the power to suspend and fine agents. Unfortunately, both governing bodies have little or no enforcement resources.
Furthermore, the inherited conflict that exists within the Players Association is that many of the players who would rule on agent disciplinary actions may be represented by those same agents they have to discipline. In addition, think of the chaos that would unfold if agents with large numbers of top players were decertified. I really don’t think NFLPA player reps want this on their plate right now.
Most states and schools require agents to register with each one of them just to solicit their amateur athletes. Once the rule abiding agent registers, he/she usually then gets treated like a sex offender. Once an agent completes the process, we get a letter saying, “Thank you for registering; now please DO NOT CONTACT the players until they have exhausted their eligibility.” So while some agents honor the rules and wait for the player to finish his last game to give their presentation, the agents who haven’t registered are interacting with those players and will most likely sign them the day after the game. Thus, bad agents are rewarded, good agents are punished. The state laws do absolutely nothing but lock out those who abide by them.
The fact is that not a single agent has been severely punished lately for providing benefits to college players. The majority of hard working reputable agents and coaches want to see the axe fall on somebody’s head. We all want an example set and agents desperately want an even playing field. The problem is there is nobody to swing the blade, so the chain never gets broken. However, this could change in the coming weeks as the NCAA is in the process of handing over incriminating evidence to the union that could implicate some prominent agents. We’ll see!
I am also hearing that there is a committee being formed that includes representatives from the NCAA, the attorney general’s office, the NFL commissioner’s office (Ray Anderson), Grant Teaff of the college coaches’ association, and some others for the purpose of revamping the whole system from top to bottom and coming up with a solution that makes sense for everyone.
I also want to interject something important here. Although the agents are currently the focal point, the issue of providing college players with extra benefits goes way beyond the agent community. There are many so-called independent financial advisors, boosters and marketing professionals out at work who are aggressively greasing palms. Maybe somebody should call the SEC and Madison Avenue, as well; maybe they’ll swing the axe.
Personally, I hope something goes down soon, because I, like the coaches, and like many other hard working agents who play by the rules, am fed up with it.
Follow me on Twitter: @JackBechta
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I want to thank the listed coaches for taking a pro-active stance in identifying a problem, and then making attempts to bring it to the forefront to be recognized by all influenced bodies.
"You cannot begin to fix your problem until you first admit that the problem exists".
Kudos to Coach Saban, and Davis, and all of the others listed here, These are good men that want to keep a certain level of integrity in the sport that they have a passion for. They truly care about the young men that they coach and try to give life guidance to. They work very hard to help put many of these kids on the right track in life, and then watch a few scavenger rouge agents circle these kids like vultures for their benefit.
Great Job Gentlemen! Thanks for proving that there are indeed good people left in this world that are willing to fight for a cause they believe in.
I hope that Saban's efforts to install a program that will help players vett and select reputable professionals (agents, financial professionals, etc) goes well and becomes a model for lots of schools. If you look at college as a stepping stone to the NFL, which it primarily is for many players, not the educational project as it is for most students, then it only makes sense for college coaches to incorporate other aspects within their program that will help, not hinder, a player's ability to do well in the NFL. That should, theoretically, become a recruiting advantage.
But there is a flaw in the proposed system - until the axe can fall on the players themselves, ie being blacklisted from the league for a certain amount of time (or life, in my opinion), things won't get better. It's the simple law of supply and demand - if there is demand for unscrupolous agents, there will always be a steady supply of unscrupulous agents (and other professionals). The only effective method is to address the demand, and I don't see how that's happening here. Am i way off base on this one?
Jack, as for the SEC and financial advisors, good luck on that one. To begin with, many are brokers, and aren't regulated by the SEC (their regulated by FINRA). Moreover, if the SEC didn't, and couldn't, catch Bernie Madoff, what makes you think they give two squirts of piss about potential NFL players and their investment advisors? It won't happen, no how, no way, at least not from the SEC or FINRA.
Who is Saban to act like he is on some high horse morally? How many players did he abandon, leaving them the minute he had a better job, even though they had been recruited to play for him and could only transfer by sitting out a year? Is that fair? He has a $32 mill contract, yet expects poor african american kids to play for nothing, then compares agents to pimps? Who is a bigger pimp than the college coaching fraternity?
The solution here is obvious. Abandon the system of slave labor known as the NCAA. Face reality. The NCAA is a development league for the NFL. Let schools pay market rates for players, and the laws of economics will sort things out. Don't tell me schools "can't afford" to pay players, not when they pay coahces and university administrators the money they do. The money is there, it's just a matter of how it is distributed.
I thought this was going to be worked out when the NFL and players sacrificed the rookies in the new CBA. If the rookies are slotted, then doesn't that take out the need for an agent.
"Abandon the system of slave labor known as the NCAA. Face reality. The NCAA is a development league for the NFL. Let schools pay market rates for players..."
No.
Form an NFL minor league and let the schools go back to having amateur athletes.
You want to play sports AND get an education? Go to college. You want a pro career? Join the NFL minor leagues. Baseball does it right, for once.
Jack, thanks for your article. It presents the issues in a realistic manner, and I find it encouraging as well. The group whom you report is forming is of particular interest, although the absence of an NFLPA representative in that group is of extreme interest.
At present, the NFLPA has done nothing but posturing, and I am firmly in agreement there's almost an inherent conflict of interest involved in NFLPA oversight of agents. I don't see anything but words ever coming out the NFLPA on this issue, until some sort of structural change is made.
I really hope an independent enforcement body is set up. Even if it doesn't have subpoena power, if it has the clear discretion to partner with federal, state or local enforcement personnel (who would have subpoena and other investigative powers), that could help a lot. From what I see, though, the Collective Bargaining Agreement would have to be amended so that enforcement over agent misconduct becomes the exclusive province of such an independent body. If not, if the body can merely "recommend" to the NFLPA, I think it's likely nothing would ever come of any such recommendation - due to the inherent conflicts of interest the NFLPA has.
I hope it happens soon. Otherwise, the effect of the next piece of egregious agent misconduct might have an impact on public perception that might best be described as nuclear. And sooner or later that will result in something draconian being imposed from the outside, by people who have no idea what they're doing.
Meateater:
Are you serious? Do you really think scholarshipped athletes are "playing for nothing"? That is a rediculously silly comment.
First, they receive free tuition, books, room and board at institutions of higher learning. That alone can be worth a 6-figure fortune. It is a cost that is out of reach for many non-athletes. Nevertheless, these kids qualify for other grants and aids including Pell Grants that provide them a very good income while they are on the academic free ride. The athletes get tutors and access to academic help that most never see. Additionally, they have an opportunity for fame and fortune. These kids receive hero worship for up to 4 years.
The slave comparison is ludicrous. A slave has no choice in the matter and cannot leave. These kids actively pursue scholarship offers. Most relish the attention. They choose to accept an offer from a school knowing what is included and what is not included. If they really feel used by the program with which they sign, no one is stopping them from leaving. In fact, there are thousands who would gladly trade places with them and they know it.
With regard to Coach Saban. Your comment about his abandoning kids when he took another job is incredibly silly. All coaches move between jobs. The coach for whatever school you follow (LSU perhaps?) came from another program. Did all of them abandon the kids when they left? Get real and get over it!
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Aug 19, 2010
04:39 PM
I agree with your statement "that once you register, you then are treated like a sex offender". That is just like an individual who obtains a concealed hand gun license, is more suceptible to harsher penalties by the law because "we know better".
Also, probably more than a few of the players that are currently reps are represented by agents that recruited them illegally...