NCAA Refuses to Let Marine Play Football

After serving his country for five years, 24-year old Marine Sergeant Steve Rhodes decided to go back to school. He was a football player before he went off to war, and wanted to get back on the field once back in college.

After speaking with Middle Tennessee’s football coach he was given the chance to play, and up until this week everything was fine.

Then the NCAA, which oversees college football at most university’s, got wind of Rhodes’ activities in the military.

While an active member of the armed forces, Rhodes participated in a football intramural league. “There were guys out there anywhere from 18 to 40-something years old,” says Rhodes, who played in the league just for fun and was not compensated in any way (other than his regularly military pay).

But, according to the NCAA, because Rhodes was in a league, he is no longer eligible to play football at an NCAA school. Well, not until he’s 30 years old.

The official rule keeping Rhodes from playing a game this season is NCAA bylaw 14.2.3.2.1. Steeped in layers of legal jargon, the rule essentially says that student-athletes that do not enroll in college within a year of their high school graduation will be charged one year of intercollegiate eligibility for every academic year they participate in organized competition.

By NCAA standards, Rhodes’ recreational league games at the Marine base counted as “organized competition” because there were game officials, team uniforms and the score was kept.

DNJ

Rhodes was heartbroken by the decision. “This is extremely frustrating. I think it’s unfair, highly unfair,” he said in response to the action taken by the NCAA.

As Rhodes notes, the blanket bureaucracy simply defies logic, especially since he participated in the intramural “league” for fun and received no compensation.

Never mind that he was serving the United States honorably, something the NCAA apparently refuses to consider.