Andrew Bucholtz

The news came out late last week that an elite athlete can’t participate in his sport for a year. That’s hardly uncommon: heck, it even happened more than once last week alone, but things tend to get weirder and more unusual when you’re talking about college sports, though, and that’s what makes the case of Everett Golson stand out. It all begs the question of what role academics ought to play in the NCAA.

Titus Young was arrested for a third time in a span of a week recently, a concerning feat that’s had the sports blogosphere quipping ever since. As Andrew Bucholtz explains, however, given the possibility of mental illness – or even traumatic brain injury as Young’s father claims – the case in general is one that the football community is going to have to find a better way of dealing with.

This year’s NFL draft starts on Thursday, and it may begin with a selection that’s more remarkable than it seems. The prevailing consensus amongst draft experts is that the Kansas City Chiefs will take an offensive tackle first overall, either Texas A & M’s Luke Joeckel or Central Michigan’s Eric Fisher. At first, that might appear to be a dull story: many see going for an offensive lineman with the top pick as both a safe move and a reflection of the lack of elite quarterback prospects in this draft. However, taking an offensive lineman first overall is highly unusual in the NFL’s recent history, and that represents an important story in its own right.

Football coaches everywhere should be keeping a close eye on the story of Mike Rice. The former Rutgers men’s basketball coach was fired this week after video evidence of him physically and verbally abusing players surfaced, and the scandal has since engulfed athletic director Tim Pernetti (who resigned) and school president Robert Barchi (who’s still there, for the moment). It’s a story that could go well beyond basketball, though, and there are plenty of implications for football, a sport where many coaches have long been known for being hard on their players.

Running back has long been an important position in the NFL, but as a title, it’s a bit of a misnomer. In reality, the position’s often about much more than just running ability, especially in today’s league where there’s such an emphasis on passing. This year in particular, with a new head coach on board in Chicago, Bears’ RB Matt Forte stands to cash in on the air game.