04-25-2023, 05:10 PM
This is fascinating. It's the other side of the be careful what you wish for dynamic.
At one point in time, the Pac-12 mandated that a player offered a scholarship had to have it re-issued for four years. The idea being Pac-12 schools would guarantee their scholarships unlike say the SEC that would allow schools to not renew scholarships.
Now, since the players are free to transfer at the drop of a hat, there is no longer any reason to guarantee scholarships for four years. Now, players can be shown the door if they aren't performing up to par, and be told they can go somewhere else if they aren't good enough for Colorado.
This makes players vulnerable to having their education put in peril if they get cut at Colorado and no other school takes them as a transfer. It leaves them without a backup option if their pro football dreams don't materialize. Stanford has an opportunity to go a different route. Stanford can guarantee four years to recruits who sign, and give them their pro football backup plan in a way out other schools will not. Stanford can say we want you to realize your NFL dreams, but we also know the odds of making it are very small so we want to prepare you for life after football.
All Stanford has to do is maintain some level of market competitiveness in terms of available NIL compensation, and Stanford should do quite well zigging in this new era of college sports, while others are zagging.
Some may say Stanford is allowing under performers to stick around by not demanding they develop into good players. But if Stanford could move out under performers from the scholarship count - like they do medical retirees - and replace them in recruiting or by bringing in a few transfers who themselves want the Stanford backup plan if football doesn't work out, Stanford would be in pretty good shape from a talent acquisition and retention standpoint.
At one point in time, the Pac-12 mandated that a player offered a scholarship had to have it re-issued for four years. The idea being Pac-12 schools would guarantee their scholarships unlike say the SEC that would allow schools to not renew scholarships.
Now, since the players are free to transfer at the drop of a hat, there is no longer any reason to guarantee scholarships for four years. Now, players can be shown the door if they aren't performing up to par, and be told they can go somewhere else if they aren't good enough for Colorado.
This makes players vulnerable to having their education put in peril if they get cut at Colorado and no other school takes them as a transfer. It leaves them without a backup option if their pro football dreams don't materialize. Stanford has an opportunity to go a different route. Stanford can guarantee four years to recruits who sign, and give them their pro football backup plan in a way out other schools will not. Stanford can say we want you to realize your NFL dreams, but we also know the odds of making it are very small so we want to prepare you for life after football.
All Stanford has to do is maintain some level of market competitiveness in terms of available NIL compensation, and Stanford should do quite well zigging in this new era of college sports, while others are zagging.
Some may say Stanford is allowing under performers to stick around by not demanding they develop into good players. But if Stanford could move out under performers from the scholarship count - like they do medical retirees - and replace them in recruiting or by bringing in a few transfers who themselves want the Stanford backup plan if football doesn't work out, Stanford would be in pretty good shape from a talent acquisition and retention standpoint.