Finebaum rips Edsall for pulling scholarship | Page 2 | The Boneyard

Finebaum rips Edsall for pulling scholarship

At least one of the Michigan guys involved was not recruited by Harbaugh. BUT coach had already been there over a year with his commitment and carried guys until at least mid-January before dumping them off. As far as I'm concerned he owned every young man he then tossed aside. It was widely discussed as his strategy and does not compare in any way to what Edsall was faced with. Finebaum's self-righteous indignation on the subject was nothing more than a transparent attempt to project his own moral authority on the issue. Instead he failed miserably damaging his own credibility in the process.
 
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King Husky said:
Finebaum rips Edsall for pulling scholarship - ESPN Video
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Because Saban or any other SEC coach has never done such a thing with less notice. F••• that pencilneck Finebaum. It's just an excuse to pile on Edsall because they assume everybody in Connecticut still hates him and because he fizzled out in Maryland. Edsall will be the whipping boy until he happens to win enough games worthy of a New Years Six bowl, then he and UConn will be back to being feel-good darlings again.

But these a••h•les need to stop acting like UConn is the first school to rescind an offer. I don't remember Harbaugh or Meyer getting buried like this. Such reactionary and sensationalist b•llsh••.
 
sub legacy said:
Edsall will be the whipping boy until he happens to win enough games worthy of a New Years Six bowl, then he and UConn will be back to being feel-good darlings again.
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You're correct on the rest of your post except this point. Even at the Fiesta Bowl we were no darling. We were such an outsider to big boy football that the establishment lamented that there was something wrong with the system if this team was able to get into a BCS game.
 
MattMang23 said:
You're correct on the rest of your post except this point. Even at the Fiesta Bowl we were no darling. We were such an outsider to big boy football that the establishment lamented that there was something wrong with the system if this team was able to get into a BCS game.
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Fair enough. You're right — wishful thinking. Generally, any excuse to pile on UConn football in the media is a good one.

UConn is more like the mangy, stray underdog nobody wants.
 
I could give a rat's @ss about who says what and to what coach it gets said.

There is a systemic failure present in collegiate sports when an institution of higher learning can pull the plug on the foreseeable future of a kid who trusted said institution's commitment to him enough to forego any other college visits.

Edsall is a punk for doing what he did, but he's just another punk in a long line of punks who do the same thing every single year.
 
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UConnWingman said:
There is a systemic failure present in collegiate sports when an institution of higher learning can pull the plug on the foreseeable future of a kid who trusted said institution's commitment to him enough to forego any other college visits.
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Are you sure you are using the work punk correctly?

Just to confirm - you agree it is ok for the kid to back out of the commitment, even on signing day?
 
MattMang23 said:
Yup. Right on par with the media's and the NCAA's treatment of our men's basketball team.
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I used to think the vast conspiracy against UConn was overblown. After getting called out by ESPN/other media outlets on 1) a common practice and 2) one that was handled the best it could have been given we had just hired our DC is starting to lead me to believe that the conspiracy theorists may be on to something. I've added that chip to my shoulder now.
 
Bonehead said:
Are you sure you are using the work punk correctly?
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Absolutely. Edsall called the kid a couple of weeks ago to assure him that essentially his offer was safe (in light of coaching change, or specifically, to ensure commitments didn't start bailing). He then reneg'd on his word. Again, long line of coaches who've done it.

Bonehead said:
Just to confirm - you agree it is ok for the kid to back out of the commitment, even on signing day?
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No, I didn't say that. I said there's a systemic failure in collegiate sports, particulary where an environment gets created where a head coach (in this instance, Randy Edsall) is encouraged to go the unethical route and dash a kid's foreseeable future.

I mean, don't sweat it. UConn comes off looking really crappy here. But somebody else will claim the toilet seat soon enough. It's how the game gets played.
 
FastEddie said:
Finebaum is an SEC shill, and nothing he says should ever be taken seriously. Embarrassing that ESPN gives him a national forum to air his nonsense. Oh yeah, and he looks like Gollum from Lord of the Rings.
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Nick Saban wasn't too happy with Finebaum over the Cam Robinson incident this summer. Check out both videos and Saban's body language on the set. Bet Finebaum had a couple extra scotches to help him sleep that night!

Nick Saban Rips Paul Finebaum After Criticism of Cam Robinson Situation
 
UConnWingman said:
Absolutely. Edsall called the kid a couple of weeks ago to assure him that essentially his offer was safe (in light of coaching change, or specifically, to ensure commitments didn't start bailing). He then reneg'd on his word. Again, long line of coaches who've done it.



No, I didn't say that. I said there's a systemic failure in collegiate sports, particulary where an environment gets created where a head coach (in this instance, Randy Edsall) is encouraged to go the unethical route and dash a kid's foreseeable future.

I mean, don't sweat it. UConn comes off looking really crappy here. But somebody else will claim the toilet seat soon enough. It's how the game gets played.
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The problem with this version is that you, or I, or anyone don't really know what Edsall said to the kid and there is no way to know.

Maybe Randy made promises he couldn't keep but I doubt it - whatever conversations were had with the kid were before he had hired a DC.

Situation changed when the new DC was hired which wasn't even a week ago. New DC should be able to make his own player evals, should he not? Of course it sucks for the kid. But calling Edsall unethical is a leap too far. The timing was simply unfortunate.
 
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UConnWingman said:
I could give a rat's @ss about who says what and to what coach it gets said.

There is a systemic failure present in collegiate sports when an institution of higher learning can pull the plug on the foreseeable future of a kid who trusted said institution's commitment to him enough to forego any other college visits.

Edsall is a punk for doing what he did, but he's just another punk in a long line of punks who do the same thing every single year.
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You do realize that not all scholarships are 4 year scholarships............most have to be renewed year to year....
 
CTMike said:
The problem with this version is that you, or I, or anyone don't really know what Edsall said to the kid and there is no way to know.

Maybe Randy made promises he couldn't keep but I doubt it - whatever conversations were had with the kid were before he had hired a DC.

Situation changed when the new DC was hired which wasn't even a week ago. New DC should be able to make his own player evals, should he not? Of course it sucks for the kid. But calling Edsall unethical is a leap too far. The timing was simply unfortunate.
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Look, as a fan of the program, you're free to dissect or parse this particular episode anyway you like. The fact is, from a bird's eye view the system is geared in such a way to maximize profit over regard to the "student" athlete.
 
UConnWingman said:
I could give a rat's @ss about who says what and to what coach it gets said.

There is a systemic failure present in collegiate sports when an institution of higher learning can pull the plug on the foreseeable future of a kid who trusted said institution's commitment to him enough to forego any other college visits.

Edsall is a punk for doing what he did, but he's just another punk in a long line of punks who do the same thing every single year.
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Why do you hate the NCAA rules? The rules say neither school nor player can give their word and be committed until the first Wednesday in February. You seem to think that it is 100% fair to ignore the rules under which recruiting happens, and conclude that they can bind themselves prior to that date by giving a verbal agreement.

There is an argument to be made that Benedict should have made Edsall accept the verbals who had already committed. I have said that I would have done that in his shoes. But your holier than thou you know best attitude about this is absurd where everyone within the system recognizes what the rules are and live by them.
 
CTMike said:
The problem with this version is that you, or I, or anyone don't really know what Edsall said to the kid and there is no way to know.

Maybe Randy made promises he couldn't keep but I doubt it - whatever conversations were had with the kid were before he had hired a DC.

Situation changed when the new DC was hired which wasn't even a week ago. New DC should be able to make his own player evals, should he not? Of course it sucks for the kid. But calling Edsall unethical is a leap too far. The timing was simply unfortunate.
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Then simply tell the kid the new D.C. will have the final word, and evals will come from him. Certainly don't call and discuss his upcoming visit, and less than a week later pull the scholly.
If it went down as the kid's side is reporting, then it was a dick move & bad PR, there's no doubt about that.
 
CTMike said:
The problem with this version is that you, or I, or anyone don't really know what Edsall said to the kid and there is no way to know.

Maybe Randy made promises he couldn't keep but I doubt it - whatever conversations were had with the kid were before he had hired a DC.

Situation changed when the new DC was hired which wasn't even a week ago. New DC should be able to make his own player evals, should he not? Of course it sucks for the kid. But calling Edsall unethical is a leap too far. The timing was simply unfortunate.
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The double standard on this is incredible. I have seen several people on Twitter also say that UConn can't do this because we aren't a big time program. The only conclusion I can really draw is that UConn is in the northeast, and is presumably a bastion of liberal social justice warriors who don't actually value football. They won't hold SEC schools to that standard because they don't expect it from them given how they value football. But they expect UConn to put football below "doing the right thing" for this kid from NJ. It's therefore not surprising that our hometown network and its idiot talking heads are among the loudest complainers.

UConn doing this is like Bernie Sanders crossing a picket line to get lunch at Chick Fil A.
 
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Dean Wormer said:
Then simply tell the kid the new D.C. will have the final word, and evals will come from him. Certainly don't call and discuss his upcoming visit, and less than a week later pull the scholly.
If it went down as the kid's side is reporting, then it was a dick move & bad PR, there's no doubt about that.
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Is there anyone here who really believes that a UConn fan with no record of posting here happens to pick this non-story to decide he wants to speak on the Boneyard? I certainly don't.
 
UConnWingman said:
Absolutely. Edsall called the kid a couple of weeks ago to assure him that essentially his offer was safe (in light of coaching change, or specifically, to ensure commitments didn't start bailing). He then reneg'd on his word. Again, long line of coaches who've done it.
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Doesnt that leave doubt, the exact way you stated it?

Are you using essentially correctly here like punk earlier?
 
businesslawyer said:
Is there anyone here who really believes that a UConn fan with no record of posting here happens to pick this non-story to decide he wants to speak on the Boneyard? I certainly don't.
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Yeah, good point. You sure showed me!
Whatever, dude.:rolleyes:
 
UConnWingman said:
Look, as a fan of the program, you're free to dissect or parse this particular episode anyway you like. The fact is, from a bird's eye view the system is geared in such a way to maximize profit over regard to the "student" athlete.
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Nobody's parsing anything. Everybody knows the situation is tough for athletes and coaches who lose guys at the last minute all the time. We heard Finebaum soft-shoe the entire Harbaugh systemic oversign/flip/dump routine exactly 1 year ago with Saban directly referenced in the conversation. Then yesterday he gets on his pulpit with fire and brimstone and takes a totally contradictory stance of selective outrage to a non-confirmed story. This in a situation where a struggling university sacrificed millions to change the direction of the program from the dumpster fire they inherited last flipping week. This is serious drama queen stuff as far as I'm concerned and there just isn't any equivocation of these two scenarios. Yet Finebaum chooses to blow up at UConn while proclaiming Michigan's shell game business as usual. And they'll be just giddy about commit-flips when they cover signing day.
 
UConnWingman said:
Look, as a fan of the program, you're free to dissect or parse this particular episode anyway you like. The fact is, from a bird's eye view the system is geared in such a way to maximize profit over regard to the "student" athlete.
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All the more reason that UConn shouldn't be singled out and excoriated for faults of the "system".
 
Dean Wormer said:
Then simply tell the kid the new D.C. will have the final word, and evals will come from him. Certainly don't call and discuss his upcoming visit, and less than a week later pull the scholly.
If it went down as the kid's side is reporting, then it was a dick move & bad PR, there's no doubt about that.
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New coach comes in and your advice is don't call and discuss his upcoming visit? Completely ludicrous.

Maybe things could have been handled better, but you clearly are taking the hatchet job reporting as gospel when you have no way of knowing the other side of how this went down.
 
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HuskyHawk said:
The double standard on this is incredible. I have seen several people on Twitter also say that UConn can't do this because we aren't a big time program. The only conclusion I can really draw is that UConn is in the northeast, and is presumably a bastion of liberal social justice warriors who don't actually value football. They won't hold SEC schools to that standard because they don't expect it from them given how they value football. But they expect UConn to put football below "doing the right thing" for this kid from NJ. It's therefore not surprising that our hometown network and its idiot talking heads are among the loudest complainers.

UConn doing this is like Bernie Sanders crossing a picket line to get lunch at Chick Fil A.
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Absolutely nailed it. It's a regional northeastern echo chamber of bleeding-heart liberal politics which is oblivious and disinterested in the basic nature of competitive college football. Hence the hyperbolic, selective outrage.

Big-time programs can do this frequently with minimal blowback, yet it's suddenly reprehensible when UConn engages in the same tactics because they should just be glad to land any kid they can get. It's a poor justification for a double standard. Either proactively fix the overall system, or be equally as outraged when Harbaugh, Meyer, Saban, or any other big-time coach inevitably does the same thing within the coming weeks of Signing Day.
 
UConnWingman said:
Absolutely. Edsall called the kid a couple of weeks ago to assure him that essentially his offer was safe (in light of coaching change, or specifically, to ensure commitments didn't start bailing). He then reneg'd on his word. Again, long line of coaches who've done it.
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Just curious....how do you know what Edsall said to the kid in a private phone call? It was the follow-up call where the kid put it on speaker, not the original call, so only the kid, not his parents or coach, would know what was said. It's certainly possible, even likely from what we know of HCRE, that Edsall was very careful with what he said, may have even conditionally endorsed it, pending selection of his DC, but the kid took the conditional more as absolute.

So how do you know Edsall said the offer was "essentially...safe"? What does that even mean? I haven't seen those words used anywhere else...please share your source.
 
No such thing as bad press. I'm glad he's talking about UCONN and Randy having high standards for football players.
 
BlueandOG said:
No such thing as bad press. I'm glad he's talking about UCONN and Randy having high standards for football players.
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Weeeelll it's possible this might change the perception for a few recruits but not for most parents. My problem is this miraculous revelation among the talking heads that recruiting is a tough process and that people get hurt along the way. Worse than that the perception that we are outside of the mainstream when we have often been burned, losing high profile guys to the big boys who systematically pump and dump players. Todsy the narrative has started to swing a bit. But the firestorm yesterday was intellectually dishonest and brings their motives into question.
 
Amazing how much time and effort we are all spending on this topic.
We should be embracing the fact that this could quite possibly be the bets coaching staff this school has ever seen and look forward to the gridiron in 2017. Instead, we are following along with the sheep of the "journalistic" world and assisting with beating down our program.
I get it........but I am done with it.....moving on. I'm sure Rutty will do something dumb this week to take away the bad light anyway.
 
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