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In my era, the Sixties, Freshman in all sports could not play, swim or run on a Varsity team. I would suggest that this is better for all.

"Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany says making freshmen ineligible in college football and basketball could help correct the imbalance between athletics and academics"

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/big-tens-d ... ncaaf.html

Water Pony wrote:In my era, the Sixties, Freshman in all sports could not play, swim or run on a Varsity team. I would suggest that this is better for all.l

It goes back further than the sixties, sir, although there was a temporary change during the Scfond World War. Maybe some sports historian can tell us just when the division between freshman and varsity teams was made, if not at the inception of intercollegiate sports.

I don't know, myself.

Let them do that, would be great for other conferences

Water Pony wrote:In my era, the Sixties, Freshman in all sports could not play, swim or run on a Varsity team. I would suggest that this is better for all.

"Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany says making freshmen ineligible in college football and basketball could help correct the imbalance between athletics and academics"

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/big-tens-d ... ncaaf.html

1) the rule would favor "rich" programs (B10) that could afford to park players for an extra year;
2) in revenue sports, the rule hurts players as they are forced to risk injury for a year before they can play. In addition, they would give up a year of eligibility; and
3) the rule favors strong programs by making it harder for weak programs to improve quickly.

Rule: the Conference Commish represents the interests of the schools, not the athletes.

Water Pony wrote:In my era, the Sixties, Freshman in all sports could not play, swim or run on a Varsity team. I would suggest that this is better for all.

"Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany says making freshmen ineligible in college football and basketball could help correct the imbalance between athletics and academics"

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/big-tens-d ... ncaaf.html

In the mid-60's, UCLA BB's freshman team regularly thrashed the varsity squad (aka the National Champions) in scrimmages. The freshman had Lew Alcindor at center.

Let them do it. That means others conferences that do not do it would be able to get freshmen that want to play immediately. Especially in hoops. No one wants to be parked for a year if they are a high caliber athlete.

I really don't know what the Big 10 is thinking-there is no way they can do this alone and no way a majority of big conferences will follow. Especially confused why they would suggest changes this year when several constructive, meaningful changes go into affect with regard to next years recruiting classes. Starting with recruits in the Class of 2016 some pretty long awaited, constructive changes in core courses and high school progress requirements are going to require a substantial number of the unprepared recruits to be mandatory freshman redshirts anyway. Why not see if these changes which are the most stringent in many decades will work before punishing qualified kids who are more prepared for college than Class ever before. Not all kids need the freshman redshirt-focus on those that do

No Quarter wrote:

Water Pony wrote:In my era, the Sixties, Freshman in all sports could not play, swim or run on a Varsity team. I would suggest that this is better for all.l

It goes back further than the sixties, sir, although there was a temporary change during the Scfond World War. Maybe some sports historian can tell us just when the division between freshman and varsity teams was made, if not at the inception of intercollegiate sports.

I don't know, myself.

I was playing in the 50s and freshmen could not play. We made great practice dummies for the varsity and no 20 hour a week practice limit which could make for a long day.

translates to Big 10 wants to stop talented kids that used to be fine riding pine for two years from going to MAC/CUSA schools where they can play early and often on TV.