Pocket change

You have to give some serious credit to Steve Spurrier. The man loses his voice, and he still manages to steal the show at the SEC spring meetings in Destin.

I'm not sure what inspired Spurrier to float the idea of coaches paying players.

Cash.

Out of the coaches' own pockets.

Per game.

Here are some ideas:

-- Maybe he knew the Stephen Garcia mess was going to be a hot topic and he wanted to change the topic. He probably still can't stand Garcia and his childishness, probably knows he can't justify Garcia's reinstatement with a straight face (other than by acknowledging Garcia gives him his best shot at an SEC title). So hatching the pay-for-play idea, and getting a cluster of other coaches to pledge their support of it, is the perfect way to eliminate about 78 questions about his lout quarterback.

-- He wants to present himself as hip to recruits, and maybe even his own players. Spurrier looks young for his age and his still plenty formidable as a coach, but the man is 66 years old and is going up against a lot of young guys who like to grind on the recruiting trail. Spurrier probably will always prefer playing golf over playing the recruiting game, but no doubt the importance of recruiting has been impressed upon him the last few years in Columbia. Gainesville was a magnet for talent when he was coaching at his alma mater, but it's a harder deal in Columbia. Maybe this is Spurrier's way of trying to get an edge. Now the guy can walk into a recruit's home and say: "If it were up to me, you guys would be getting paid. And I'm willing to pay you out of my pocket." You don't think that'll resonate with Joe Five Star?

-- Maybe he has some real misgivings about the fact that coaches are cashing in on the exploding wealth generated by college football, while players are still getting what they always have (scholarships, room, board). Maybe he sympathizes with former Georgia receiver A.J. Green, who was suspended for four freaking games after having the audacity to even think of profiting from his own name. Maybe he sees the relentless commercialism in college athletics and deems it relentlessly hypocritical for greedy, money-grubbing conferences and schools to police athletes for accepting an extra Skittle.

Bottom line, Spurrier's idea is just not workable. So we're going to go from shady, hundred-dollar handshakes given by rogue boosters, to legal hundred-dollar handshakes given by head coaches? What if a player misses a key block or drops a pass and his ticked-off coach wants to knock 10 percent off his weekly payment?

Some football players in Columbus might argue that $300 a game is a pittance compared to the cars, tattoos, weed and booze they (allegedly) get under the table from the folks in that town (completely unbeknownst to Jim Tressel, of course).

NCAA president Mark Emmert seems to be open to examining some ways to give athletes more than they've been getting, and major props to him for recognizing that something needs to change. But he's not a fan of Spurrier's idea, according to this article.

“It’s the appropriate time to look at providing the full cost of attending school for student-athletes. I disagree with tying it to football games played or performance.

“It’s not about that. It’s about providing appropriate support for a student-athlete. Paying people to play football games is something we wouldn’t do and should never do.”

The range of proposals to help student-athletes with the full cost of attending college that Emmert has heard is as wide as a football field. Everything from Spurrier’s proposal to Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany saying student-athletes should get $3,000 per year.

“Some people say, ‘Let the free market reign and pay players whatever the schools can afford,’ ” Emmert said. “We already have that. It’s called the NFL. That’s not what the NCAA is about.”

To effect change, you have to start somewhere. Spurrier's idea seems unworkable and maybe even preposterous, but simply starting the conversation could end up being a good thing.

LW

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