Ott's chances
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ColumbusHawk
Well-Known Member
The NCAA doesn't make the decision.
homes
Well-Known Member
Actually, they do. If the Big Ten denies his request, which could likely happen given its decision on Michigan's DL, then it goes to the NCAA.
ColumbusHawk
Well-Known Member
Usually, the NCAA rubber stamps the B1G's decision.
ArvadaHawk
Well-Known Member
I am hopeful that since Ott's PT this season is only marginally more than the stated limits, that he is given the benefit of the doubt since he is a true SR and has not used a redshirt. This kid needs a season to prove to the NFL his knee is strong enough. Otherwise, he won't have the opportunity to play football, again, until he's trying out at an NFL camp in 2017. That's a lot of time to be away from the game. I am assuming his kneed won't be ready by June 2016 to try out at an NFL camp.
Fryowa
Administrator
Would absolutely love to see it but it's not going to happen. The people making this decision aren't sympathetic Hawkeye fans and they have to be fair to everyone. Unfortunately for Ott, rules are rules. The biggest problem is if they let Ott come back where do you draw the line?
What if there were a kid somewhere in the same situation who played say one more quarter than Ott. Do you let him come back? I'd be ****** if someone else got a redshirt and I didn't in that situation. Turn the tables and it's worse. What if Nebraska had an all American running back that was putting up Heisman numbers and the B10 let him come back after playing 30%. Iowa fans would be marching in the streets calling for his head.
As much as I hate it you have to have to look at these things objectively and by the rules in order to be fair. Unfortunately for Ott he fell outside the criteria.
To be clear, I hope I'm wrong and would love it if we got another season for his sake and the Hawkeyes'. I just don't think it's going to happen.
guffus
Well-Known Member
maybe there should be a rule where if you played 30-50% and then get hurt, they can come back and play in 50% of the next season games. kinda a compromise between an all or nothing approach. and it can't be random games, he would play either the first 6 games or last 6 games of the season.
ArvadaHawk
Well-Known Member
I understand your points, though I wouldn't be upset if a kid from another school received a waiver if it was appropriate. My point is that if the rules were hard and fast and non negotiable, then it would take all of 5 minutes for a decision to be made. But, if you have a player who never used a redshirt and sustained an injury just marginally outside of the stated rules, I would hope that reason prevails. This should really be about the individual player and not the school. Disallowing a waiver to Ott would all but ruin his chances of making an NFL roster.
Fryowa
Administrator
Trust me I feel your pain on this one. I think the problem is that no one has the same definitions of "marginally" and "reason."
I would bet the reason it's taking so long is because of red tape and just general bureaucracy. Maybe they'll surprise me and give him the waiver, I just don't see how you do that without being unfair to other players who've been in the same situation before. As long as the NCAA has been around there have to have been many times that kids have fallen just outside the limits and been DQ'd. If Ott gets the waiver how do you make it right to them?
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Fryowa
Administrator
It sounds good, but then you'll have the same situation where a kid plays 1 quarter past 50% and then he can't play in the next season's games at all. You're always going to have people trying to fudge whatever the limits are. The reality of it sucks especially when you're so close, but I don't know how else you could do it and still be fair, other than to stick to the written rule no matter what.
The one thing that Ott may have going for him is that he did not redshirt and did not play until the 8th game of his Freshman season. Couple that with the fact that he missed over half of this season, I think he has a case. That being said, I am not confident that he will get it.
homes
Well-Known Member
I think the other equitable issue for Ott is that he potentially will miss an entire year of football. He won't be ready for the NFL combine, and even though he might get signed as a free agent, I don't see him being fully ready for the NFL next summer, so the chances of him sticking with a team in 2016 is probably not great. Thus, he'd be without organized football for a whole year. With that elbow injury he had in the ISU game, he should be given credit for toughing out the Pitt game, not having it cost him. Again, applying the quarters he was "healthy" enough to play in, he qualifies. Application of the 30% rule to quarters played should be instituted. He should be given the medical redshirt. Objectively speaking, of course.
homes
Well-Known Member
I'm not familiar enough with the appeals process to comment on that, but that's a different subject.
This is the saddest part. Medical redshirt chances shouldn't even be an issue. He should be preparing for his RS SR season right now. But for whatever reason was thrown into the fire, far sooner than he was ready, 2/3 of the way through a lost season.
guffus
Well-Known Member
Well then, How about a rule where whatever game they had their season ending in, the games they ending up missing is what they are eligible for.
For example, if a senior player gets hurt in the 5th game of the season and misses everything after that, the player next year is elligible to play starting in the 6th game to the end of season.
if the player has a season ending injury in the 7th game, next year they are elligible to play starting in the 8th game until the end of the season.
FranklinHawk
Well-Known Member
It took an entire page, but we had to know at some point someone would figure out a way to blame Ferentz for this.
Billso
Well-Known Member
This is the operative point, which most folks are missing.
ChosenChildren
Well-Known Member
Kids don't want to redshirt. They want to PLAY. Blaming Ferentz for a "lost" season is ridiculous.
TychoBrahe
Well-Known Member
There are a few things on Ott's favor.
One is that he did not take a redshirt year, so we are not talking about a 6th season, just a 5th one, noting that a lot of players take 5 seasons to play 4.
Another is that he was injured twice significantly the same year, and his total playing time was severely impacted by these injuries. The NCAA, I think, might be trying to be more athlete-friendly than it used to be, given some of the issues that have arisen recently (the union issue, concussions, graduation rates, possible player exploitation, etc) so I think they may have more leniency than they used to.
Lastly, the guy has an NFL career ahead of him, he's by all accounts a good student (and a 'real' student, not just a guy trying to stay eligible), and it just looks good that a guy like Drew wants to stay another year in college and increase his draft stock, finish his education, and so on. He's the kind of person the NCAA wants to feature and keep in school, as opposed to some others who (like Jameis Winston), they were probably really glad left for the pros.
One is that he did not take a redshirt year, so we are not talking about a 6th season, just a 5th one, noting that a lot of players take 5 seasons to play 4.
Another is that he was injured twice significantly the same year, and his total playing time was severely impacted by these injuries. The NCAA, I think, might be trying to be more athlete-friendly than it used to be, given some of the issues that have arisen recently (the union issue, concussions, graduation rates, possible player exploitation, etc) so I think they may have more leniency than they used to.
Lastly, the guy has an NFL career ahead of him, he's by all accounts a good student (and a 'real' student, not just a guy trying to stay eligible), and it just looks good that a guy like Drew wants to stay another year in college and increase his draft stock, finish his education, and so on. He's the kind of person the NCAA wants to feature and keep in school, as opposed to some others who (like Jameis Winston), they were probably really glad left for the pros.
