Supreme Court Rules in Favor of TSSAA

[CoachT]

You do understand that this particular "clarification" of the undue influence rule was added only this year, right? One can only speculate why they chose to make it more specific at this point in time.

 

That was as of June 2006, you are correct, but I wasn't sure if it was changed/added then or just carried over from previous years.

[Antwan]

Here are a few things I have been able to find out:

 

BA will pay for its expenses. TSSAA will pay for its expenses. (I think that will also mean that if BA pursues the antitrust, which could be considered frivolous, then TSSAA could go after those expenses. Not positive so wait for further clarification on that.)

 

Case was remanded to lower court which will come out with a new decision based on what the S.C. said. That lower court can then determine the antitrust issue or just leave it alone and let it die.

 

BA is still a member of the TSSAA.

 

 

It's time to let this case die. Gee...I think I said that more the 3 years ago.

[itzme]

That was as of June 2006, you are correct, but I wasn't sure if it was changed/added then or just carried over from previous years.

 

Added for this past school year.

[CoachT]

Added for this past school year.

 

As many of us have stated, the TSSAA needs to clarify the rule. Apparently they have already done so and we weren't really aware of it.

[BDURHAM]

Coach T, thank you for the updates.

 

It will be interesting to see the repercussions.

 

I hope someone writes a book about how it all

started, from beginning to end. It would be a

great story on the evolution of high school

football.

 

A good writer would start before BA was created

and document how a school such as MBA competed

in the NIL (with honor). Another background focus

should be on Baylor and McCallie, the old Castle

Heights, CMA, etc.

 

I think another theme in the book should be the

development of travel teams and the specialization

of sports by athletes. What has been driving this

madness? Pros? Colleges? High Schools? Parents?

 

How the public vs. private issue ended up in the

Supreme Court is an interesting and sad story.

Let's hope we learn something from the history.

 

How everyone moves forward from this point is important.

 

 

Here are a few things I have been able to find out:

 

BA will pay for its expenses. TSSAA will pay for its expenses. (I think that will also mean that if BA pursues the antitrust, which could be considered frivolous, then TSSAA could go after those expenses. Not positive so wait for further clarification on that.)

 

Case was remanded to lower court which will come out with a new decision based on what the S.C. said. That lower court can then determine the antitrust issue or just leave it alone and let it die.

 

BA is still a member of the TSSAA.

[mtnman]

4.

Q. Is it permissible for a coach to contact a student or his/her parents prior to his enrollment in the school?

 

A. No, a coach may not contact a student or his/her parents prior to his enrollment in the school. This shall apply to all students whether or not they have an athletic record.

 

This is what I am interested in..... (assuming you considor enrollement as three days into school)

 

A DI school, who begins football, girls soccer, golf or whatever on July 29th cannot call a student or send him/her a letter saying we start practice on Monday unless they come from a feeder school?

 

I guess in 99% of students who are going to play a fall sport, they will contact the school and find out when practice is.

[CoachT]

4.

Q. Is it permissible for a coach to contact a student or his/her parents prior to his enrollment in the school?

 

A. No, a coach may not contact a student or his/her parents prior to his enrollment in the school. This shall apply to all students whether or not they have an athletic record.

 

This is what I am interested in..... (assuming you considor enrollement as three days into school)

 

A DI school, who begins football, girls soccer, golf or whatever on July 29th cannot call a student or send him/her a letter saying we start practice on Monday unless they come from a feeder school?

 

I guess in 99% of students who are going to play a fall sport, they will contact the school and find out when practice is.

 

A public school coach can contact a prospective athlete at a public school feeder school just like a private school coach can at a private school feeder school. It is when a public school student attends a private school, or vice versa, that the three days applies. At least, that is the way I read it.

[canton]

Added for this past school year.

 

 

 

 

 

I don't know exactly when it was added, but I read it in the TSSAA handbook for the 2005/2006 school year, which was two school years ago.

[itzme]

I don't know exactly when it was added, but I read it in the TSSAA handbook for the 2005/2006 school year, which was two school years ago.

 

You may be right, and I may be mistaken. The material point is, it was not there in 1996!

[CoachT]

You may be right, and I may be mistaken. The material point is, it was not there in 1996!

 

I'm not sure when anything was written down, instead of understood or implied, but in the 80s we knew which schools we were allowed to visit (meaning the public feeder schools in our county) and talk to the prospective student-athletes and at which schools we weren't. I remember being surprised that BA did not honor this in 1996 when the case first happened. I just figured that since the contract had been signed between those students and BA that they assumed that made the contact OK. I don't remember wondering if the undue influence rule was too vague. We had always understood what that rule meant.

[itzme]

I just figured that since the contract had been signed between those students and BA that they assumed that made the contact OK. I don't remember wondering if the undue influence rule was too vague. We had always understood what that rule meant.

 

 

No representative from BA ever went in to any of these kids homes, nor onto their campus to speak with them. The sole "violation" of the admittedly vague undue influence rule was these letters to kids who already had signed enrollment contracts as well as earnest money down.

 

I doubt you had a lot of transfers from private schools to concern yourself with. I do know of three transfers from BA middle school to public high schools, all three of which were athletes. (Incidentally, two became all-state performers) I know for a fact that all three met with their future high school coaches before starting school. Big deal. They knew they were transfering, and wanted to get a jump on building the relationship. Technically, that was recruiting also I suppose, but please don't presume that other public high school coaches were as wise as you were to discern what the rule meant in every instance.

[Antwan]

No representative from BA ever went in to any of these kids homes, nor onto their campus to speak with them. The sole "violation" of the admittedly vague undue influence rule was these letters to kids who already had signed enrollment contracts as well as earnest money down.

 

I doubt you had a lot of transfers from private schools to concern yourself with. I do know of three transfers from BA middle school to public high schools, all three of which were athletes. (Incidentally, two became all-state performers) I know for a fact that all three met with their future high school coaches before starting school. Big deal. They knew they were transfering, and wanted to get a jump on building the relationship. Technically, that was recruiting also I suppose, but please don't presume that other public high school coaches were as wise as you were to discern what the rule meant in every instance.

 

 

I would think it really depends on what was said...and was their a paper trail? I really doubt there was.

 

I think what all of this comes down to is that BA wanted to challenge the recruiting rules. They did so for all of this time. The rules were upheld by

the Supreme Court. I don't see that a lot of good was accomplished. The lawyers representing the tssaa have made a lot of money. If BA's worked pro bono...they are out a lot of money.