Who?
Who?
What?? This is completely insane. What rule was supposedly violated? There's no rule against running road races if you're not making money. Does it have to do with being in a gap year? Even so, makes no sense.
d1 exp wrote:
What?? This is completely insane. What rule was supposedly violated? There's no rule against running road races if you're not making money. Does it have to do with being in a gap year? Even so, makes no sense.
Yes, does appear to relate to the gap year, when he was returning from mission.
"Since Ward had been out of high school for more than a year, the NCAA said that he had gained an unfair advantage by participating in the 'competitive' event before enrolling, thus he was in violation."
Don't forget the NCAA is there to protect and help student-athletes...
The NCAA is a joke
This is news?
Was he supposed to be doing a medical red shirt or a regular red shirt?
There IS a rule about gap years and time after high school. Basically they must have ruled that Ward used a year of eligibility by "competing" in a fun run (and presumably training for it and so on) during his year off. This rule is in place to prevent a super talented big-sport athlete from taking a few years after high school to train, possibly with a private coach competing at a high level, then come to the NCAA as a 25-year-old "freshman" and destroy everyone. Sounds awfully silly in this case.
Ah well... a lesson to all you Mormons: better invent a road-racing pseudonym during your mission!
All I have to say to this is... LOL
Oh no. He has to follow the same rules and finish four in five like everyone else. Poor guy.
The rule is there, he broke it. Tough cookies, try to get it changed for the next 25 year old that runs into this situation.
All of the BYU fanboys and track athletes posting under-pseudonyms need to stop whining about the NCAA in this case. You're right. The NCAA is there to protect student-athletes... protect student-athletes from 26 year old man-child athletes posing as undergrads.
His playing "dumb" seems like a poor excuse. You'd home a soon to be college graduate would have more sense.
The article is completely biased and shat writing:
“I recall someone wearing a tuxedo and another guy in a bird suit and a monkey or gorilla costume,”
UH OKay, so if he ran in Bay to Breakers would that also not count as a real race because people happen to be naked???? The whole people weren't taking the race seriously excuse is quite soft.
"He felt it was innocuous enough that it would be ignored.”
MEH GUESS HE FELT WRONG!
"As Ward noted, “If I were trying to gain an advantage by running in a competitive race, I wouldn't have chosen that race. It's not a competitive effort.” Perhaps fortunately for Ward, the stories of Harries and former Marine Steven Rhodes – another victim of the NCAA's lunacy – may provide a basis for overturning the NCAA's ruling. "
This isn't "Lunacy" on the NCAA's part. How are they supposed to distinguish between athletes competing in fun runs versus athletes competing to gain an advantage? They can't so instead they have enforce a pretty reasonable rule: If you graduated high school 7 years ago, took two years off or in Jared's case maybe 3 before finishing your NCAA career AND RACED DURING THAT TIME, then maybe you are TOO OLD TO BE COMPETING IN THE NCAA.
There's a point to be made here about BYU running athletes who are much older than most other institutions in the NCAA, yes.
There's also a point to be made about the NCAA winking at Olympic medalists and allowing them to continue will full eligibility.
The NCAA isn't about fairness. It's about making the big bucks. Giving Jared Ward an additional year of eligibility doesn't fill the NCAA coffers. Giving Missy Franklin a waiver on being a professional athlete in the college ranks does fill some coffers.
So guess who gets full eligibility? Case closed.
The NCAA should cap student-athletes at 23 years old maximum.
Why don't we just declare him ineligible for being way too old? NCAA really ought to have an age cap.
Could somebody please cite the rule that was violated? The only thing I can find is as follows (Bylaw 14.02.6):
Intercollegiate competition is considered to have occurred when a student-athlete in either a two-year or a four-year collegiate institution does any of the following:
a. Competes while representing the institution in any contest against outside competition, regardless of how the competition is classified
b. Compete in the uniform of the institution or, during the academic year, uses any apparel (excluding apparel no longer used by the institution) or equipment received from the institution that includes institutional identification
c. Competes and receives expenses from the institution for the competition.
Gap year legislation didn't go into effect until 2012, so how could that apply to a race run in 2009?
Unless Mr. Ward was running in BYU issued attire, this sounds like a mis-application of the rules.
I've asked this before and I'll ask it now:
What are the physiological changes that occur between the ages 23 to 25 that bestow an advantage to BYU athletes?
This situation is so stupid. The NCAA calls itself a non-profit yet Emmert and his cronies makes a fortune off of student-athletes and taxpayers while student-athletes get their brains bashed in and end up with permanent brain damage causing slurred speech like Peyton Manning.
Ridikkkulous wrote:
Why don't we just declare him ineligible for being way too old? NCAA really ought to have an age cap.
D1 does.
Stanford's running-back played pro baseball for the Pirates before playing football at Stanford. How does that work? Just because it's a different sport? Money is money, no?
Did this guy run a 2.16 marathon last month?