Oversigning.com
26Oct/1024

Joseph Agnew Sues the NCAA

It is being reported that former Rice Football player, Joseph Agnew, through the law firm Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, is suing the NCAA regarding its prohibition on multi-year scholarships.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-10-25/ncaa-accused-in-rice-player-s-suit-of-antitrust-violations-on-scholarships.html

The suit was filed in California on behalf of former Rice football player Joseph Agnew. It claims that Agnew lost his scholarship after he underwent shoulder and ankle surgeries prior to his junior year in 2008. Rice changed coaching staffs after Agnew's freshman season, when he played in all 13 of the school's games. He appealed and had his scholarship reinstated for his junior year, but he did not play football.

Agnew's suit asks to represent other former players whose scholarships were not renewed.

The suit claims that the prohibition of multi-year scholarships, along with limits on the number of scholarships each school can give out, drives up the cost of an education for student athletes. It claims a violation of federal antitrust laws.

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/news/story?id=5727755&campaign=rss&source=NCFHeadlines

There has been a lot of argument on this site regarding the renewal of athletic scholarships.  Some feel as though the coaches have every right to pull a scholarship and not renew solely on the grounds of poor performance on the field--most of those people are also in favor of oversigning.  Others, meanwhile, perfer that the student-athlete get a 4 year scholarship agreement and as long as the student-athlete meets certain, clearly explained criteria, he is able to remain on the scholarship for the duration.

Many have argued that athletic scholarships should be handled like academic scholarships, but there are several flaws in that argument.

1. Academic scholarships typical spell out the requirements in plain English and the recipient knows exactly what he/she has to do in order to continue to receive financial aid.  These requirements are typically the same for all persons receiving the same scholarship, and typically the requirements are based on maintaining a certain baseline GPA, course-load, etc.  Athletic scholarships on the other hand, specifically the renewal of these scholarships, are very subjective.  Furthermore, we have seen that some athletic scholarships have not been renewed because of the limitation on the number that can be given out and the coaches desire to bring in someone he thinks is more talented.

2.   The person determining (typically the head coach) who gets a scholarship or who gets renewed has a tremendous amount riding on the decision and vested interest in the renewal process.  In comparison, there is no one issuing academic scholarships with their multi-million dollar career hanging in the balance.  Coaches have a vested interest in the decision in the renewal process, something that doesn't exist on the academic side. 

Regardless, Agnew's lawyers are claiming that the NCAA is violating anti-trust laws by limiting the number of scholarships, which in turn they claim drives up the cost of a 4 year education for student-athletes. 

Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP has filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against the National Collegiate Athletic Association alleging the NCAA has conspired with colleges and universities to impose artificial limits on sports scholarships, actions the suit claims violate federal antitrust laws.

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of a student-athlete who lost his scholarship after a series of injuries and a coaching change, alleges the NCAA and its member institutions forbid member schools from offering multi-year scholarships and illegally limit the number of scholarships in large part to maintain the profitability of the institutions’ sports programs, a violation of the Sherman Act’s antitrust laws.

The NCAA, whose member institutions number nearly every major college or university in the country, sets limits on the number of scholarships those institutions can grant, and prohibits schools from granting multi-year scholarships. The suit claims these limitations drive up the cost of a four-year education for student-athletes.

The prohibition on multi-year scholarships leaves student-athletes who lose their scholarships through injury or coaching fiat with two difficult options: paying tuition out of pocket or finding another college or university that will give them a scholarship, or abandon their education, the lawsuit states.

The lawsuit seeks to represent anyone who, while enrolled at an NCAA member institution, received an athletics-based scholarship for at least one year and had their scholarship reduced or not renewed, forcing them to pay tuition at a college, university or other institution of higher learning. If you have information you believe is important to the case, please contact Hagens Berman at 206-623-7292 or by e-mail at ncaa_antitrust@hbsslaw.com.

http://www.hbsslaw.com/cases-and-investigations/ncaa-antitrust 

Filed under: Off Topic Leave a comment
Comments (24) Trackbacks (0)
  1. Tre
    October 27th, 2010 - 09:41

    big surprise there. The NCAA tries to limit something and will lose another lawsuit. One of the biggest reasons against a college football playoff, because the NCAA would get the money to hand out.

    I personally have no beef with scholarships being guaranteed for the 5 years to play 4, as long as the student stays academically eligible, and they have medical scholarships available when the player is deemed not medically fit to play football.

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  2. Tre
    October 27th, 2010 - 12:14

    taking a redshirt off a kid late in the year happens a lot. And most coaches talk with the kids before its done, making sure it is all right with the kid. AJ McCarron was a play away from having his redshirt come off in the last 2 games of his red shirt year.

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  3. OSU'76
    October 27th, 2010 - 14:39

    John, this must be the cherry on the top of your anti-tOSU cake. You must be positively giddy. How many times have you checked this blog hoping against hope that there would be an entry soon? Especially since your attempts to disguise yourself over at Hineygate fell flat. Did you really think that no one would recognize you MrTresselTress or KindaClear?

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    • OSU'76
      October 27th, 2010 - 16:39

      Please. They sent your misogynistic ass packing. You will never start your own blog. You don’t have the balls. It’s much easier to spend your time trolling every blog that even contains the word Ohio.

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  4. OSU'76
    October 28th, 2010 - 07:16

    Did Tressel over sign his roster? No? What does a possible burning of a red shirt have to do with over signing? Nothing that’s what. Start your own blog John. You certainly spend enough time doing research to discredit Josh and/or Jim Tressel.

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  5. Joshua
    October 28th, 2010 - 07:28

    Wow is right…if this is your smoking gun and your quintessential piece on how Jim Tressel abuses players, and if you are asserting that taking Sabino’s redshirt off this late in the season is in any way, shape, form or fashion analogous with oversigning and forcing kids off the football team to make room for new recruits, then you are a bigger idiot than I have ever given you credit for.

    The only thing you are doing here is displaying your myopic hatred for Ohio State. Riveting stuff, really.

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  6. Lee Roi Jordan
    October 28th, 2010 - 14:44

    In response to DeepSht’s request for one example of an upperclassman redshirting we can look to Darron Thomas of Oregon – from the official site of Oregon athletics –
    http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=1550474

    Thomas played as a freshman, but then redshirted his second year because he was beaten out for the starting job and he could use the redshirt year to improve. Sabino played two years on special teams. When he did not win the starting job this fall, it appears he, like Thomas, opted for a redshirt year to improve without burning eligibility. Neither kid was either pushed from school (as with an urged oversigning transfer) or was cut from the team (as with an oversigning medical scholarship). Both can pursue the dual goals of many student athletes of both a college degree and a potential career in professional football.

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    • Catch 5
      October 28th, 2010 - 16:45

      For the record, I think this line of discussion (the redshirt) is silly and off topic, though I see the analogy – it just isn’t that big a deal to me. The question I have for Lee Roi is why is the student at OSU “opting” for the redshirt when the one at Bama is “pushed from school”. If you granted Saban and Bama the same viewpoint you do Tressel, I think your view of this oversigning issue would change dramatically. Can it not be that these coaches go to their respective students and explain that they have been passed on the depth chart, and here are your options…? Tressel presents a late career redshirt while Saban offers to help find a school where the kid will find playing time. Neither are denied either goal you go on to point out and neither have been “screwed over”. Either one, however, can be twisted in someone’s critical viewpoint to have done so.

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      • Joshua
        October 28th, 2010 - 17:56

        The day Saban signs what he has room for on signing day is the day he gets the benefit of the doubt with regards to all the transfers, medical hardships, and guys not being renewed. Those stories only exist because there is not roster space for everyone. It is October and based on the number of verbal commitments and the number of seniors on scholarship, the decision has already been made that there are players currently on the roster that will be gone via medical hardships, transfers, or just being cut. Of course, who exactly those players will be won’t be determined until Saban gets the extra advantage of evaluating the new recruits during spring ball and summer camp, and then come August, 7 months after signing day, we’ll know exactly who he doesn’t want anymore.

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        • Catch 5
          October 29th, 2010 - 09:24

          So, nobody leaves Alabama to find greener pastures? Nobody gets homesick or wants to go to a different school to join friends or family? No kid has ever had a personality conflict with the other players or coaches? No, in your eyes every transfer from Bama is solely the reason of oversigning. Oversigning is never the result (or precaution/preperation) of the former.

          How many players (and who) have just been cut?

          Yes, there are kids on the team now that won’t be next year. Can you not say the same for OSU and just about every other team in NCAA football? Do you have evidence that Saban doesn’t tell everyone up front what the situation is? Do you not think that some of the recruits that are going to sign know that if there isn’t a spot this year they will have to greyshirt?

          ( REPLY )
      • OSU'76
        October 30th, 2010 - 08:23

        I love how you use that “Physician, heal thyself!” line over and over on here and everywhere else you troll. You know John you can point out over and over and over and over the UTTER HYPOCRISY of what you believe is Josh’s motives for this site and it won’t change a thing. Stop wasting your time.

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    • Joshua
      October 30th, 2010 - 12:34

      Love how you make it sound like he was a starter who played the whole year and is now all of the sudden sidelined because Tressel lacks depth at LB.

      His body of work as a reserve linebacker last year consisted of 1 sack and a special teams player of the week award.

      You are really grasping for straws here…

      2009 (Sophomore): reserve linebacker … 5-yard sack in the Toledo game … special teams player of week: Minnesota … Top Ten Tenacious four times … second-year letterwinner

      2008 (Freshman): earned increased time on special teams as a true freshman … six tackles for year … backed up James Laurinaitis with the injury to Austin Spitler … took a blocked punt 20 yards in the first quarter against Purdue for that game’s only touchdown … special teams champion: Minnesota, Purdue … Jack Tatum big hit: Troy, Minnesota … special teams dog tags: Troy, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Purdue … enrolled at OSU in March … first-year letterman

      ( REPLY )
  8. Mad Frog
    October 29th, 2010 - 14:33

    So it’s like, I was on here thinking this blog would be about Adam Lambert and everything. Then I realized that I was really looking for oversinging.com, not oversigning.com. Ooh well, now I know why everyone thinks the SEC is corrupt (y’all).

    ( REPLY )
  9. OSU'76
    October 30th, 2010 - 08:13

    Outrageous? Absolute epitome of ineptitude? Come on man! Stop saying what you think Tressel is doing/has done in regards to Bino. You know nothing along with everyone else outside of the program. “Realized” “Platitudes” “Figured out” are nothing more than your twisted little minds way of trying to compare two situations that couldn’t be more different. Get a job or a hobby. Do something to take you mind off Jim Tressel and his program. You have been wasting your time for too long John.

    ( REPLY )
  10. BetterRED
    November 3rd, 2010 - 10:08

    good job DeepSthBoy, you have successfully said something so stupid about taking off a kids redshirt you have the entire site talking about it instead of the real problem at hand here. Keep in mind, they MIGHT take off his redshirt because Minn is still a team and OSU is still trying to get to a BCS game…When you are lacking depth you need to make a coaching move to fortify that position. AND I am not an Ohio State fan whatsoever. WOW.

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  11. BetterRED
    November 4th, 2010 - 20:11

    Deep boy,
    what is your point? The guy was a freshman so Tressle redshirted him…due to injuries they might have to pull his redshirt. It has been part of the game for a long time and it is not unethical……Good job trying to make this equal to Alabama’s 19 commitments with only 6 open scholarships. Right?
    Also, a greyshirt is ok unless you have a kid thinking he has a scholly, moving into the dorms and then finding out he is now on a greyshirt so he has to move out of the dorms (LSU). You are something else bud.

    ( REPLY )

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