[VFRing98]

For those who think it's fine for him to leave right before the Sun Bowl, a few questions:

•What if an outstanding player who has no designs on the NFL, but intends to go to med school and make a career as a physician needs to study for a critical exam in a key biochem class?  Can he drop out before a bowl game?

•What if that exam is not at the end of the season, but before the midseason Under Stanford Control (again) game?  Can he come back after the exam if he wants to?

•What about an engineering student/starting football player who has a chance for an internship at Google beginning mid fall quarter?  Can he quit the team midseason and come back next year?

All decisions pitting loyalty and significant contributions to team against personal self interest. 

•What if dropping out - for an end-of-season game, mid-season game or remainder of a season - becomes more common and increasingly accepted? 

•Can or should the university condition a scholarship offer on a commitment to complete a season without interruption? (As I understand it, scholarships are technically year-to-year, but renewed annually).

•What, if any, reasons justify a player leaving a season early or skipping a game?  Is just any personal best interest sufficient?

Answers, for me:
1. Yes
2 and 3: up to coach/players
4. I'm ok with it
5. Not unless all coaches are subject to the same conditions, and even then, I'd probably lean no. It should be an at-will arrangement
6. Any personal reason is good enough. For crying out loud, this is football, not the military.

[VFRing98]

For those who think it's fine for him to leave right before the Sun Bowl, a few questions:

•What if an outstanding player who has no designs on the NFL, but intends to go to med school and make a career as a physician needs to study for a critical exam in a key biochem class?  Can he drop out before a bowl game?

•What if that exam is not at the end of the season, but before the midseason Under Stanford Control (again) game?  Can he come back after the exam if he wants to?

•What about an engineering student/starting football player who has a chance for an internship at Google beginning mid fall quarter?  Can he quit the team midseason and come back next year?

All decisions pitting loyalty and significant contributions to team against personal self interest. 

•What if dropping out - for an end-of-season game, mid-season game or remainder of a season - becomes more common and increasingly accepted? 

•Can or should the university condition a scholarship offer on a commitment to complete a season without interruption? (As I understand it, scholarships are technically year-to-year, but renewed annually).

•What, if any, reasons justify a player leaving a season early or skipping a game?  Is just any personal best interest sufficient?

Answers, for me:
1. Yes
2 and 3: up to coach/players
4. I'm ok with it
5. Not unless all coaches are subject to the same conditions, and even then, I'd probably lean no. It should be an at-will arrangement
6. Any personal reason is good enough. For crying out loud, this is football, not the military.