Golden Nuggets: Larry Scott Says Treating College Football Players as University Employees is a "Terrible Idea"

After not discussing the issue much, Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott has chosen a side in the debate over unionization of Northwestern's football players. He is vehemently opposed and made his case in a USA Today column.

The decision last week by a National Labor Relations Board official in Chicago to upend collegiate athletics by characterizing Northwestern University's scholarship football players as "employees" is a terrible idea that will do nothing to improve college sports and may well destroy them.

Yes, those are strong words. And let me be clear — I am not defending the status quo. The Pac-12 Conference, of which I have been commissioner since 2009, along with other conferences around the country, have been pressing for NCAA reform that would reflect the evolving needs of student-athletes, allowing for increased academic support, improved student-athlete health care, and enhanced athletic scholarships up to the full cost of attendance. I am confident reform is coming within the NCAA in the next few months, and soon universities will be allowed to provide this additional support for student-athletes.
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Right now, for technical legal reasons, the ruling only applies to the sport of football and private universities, but the misguided thinking that produced it might be applied to other sports and public universities as well. And because the "revenue" sports at most universities support the "non-revenue" sports – including sports such as baseball, soccer, softball, volleyball, swimming, and tennis (which I played while a student at Harvard) — the entire world of intercollegiate athletics as we know it could shrink dramatically because of a lack of resources. Women's sports could be hit particularly hard, which would be a real travesty given all that we have achieved over the last 40 years since the advent of Title IX, especially because it is unknown how "employee" status would intersect with Title IX.

Lacrosse

• Several alumni returned to Berkeley to celebrate 15 years of Cal Lacrosse.
• In an unusually high-scoring game, Cal lost 15-20 to USC.

Crew

Golf

• Brandon Hagy won the Aggie Invitational, his third tournament victory of the season.
• With her first career under-par finish in a tournament, Hannah Suh finished fifth at the Ping/ASU Invitational. Cal finished 8th out of 15 overall.

Softball

Baseball

• Although the Bears rallied in the ninth to force extra innings, Cal lost 6-5 in 10 innings at Wazzu.

Basketball

• UC Irvine head coach Russell Turner has had a second interview with Cal.

Football

• Lavelle Hawkins and Jeff Tedford are reunited.

Yup. MT @TBBuccaneers WR Lavelle Hawkins makes it official as he signs his contract with the #Bucs pic.twitter.com/wdJG4IgcPb

— Cal Rivals (@CalRivals) April 7, 2014

• Brennan Scarlett talks to Uncle Ted about his injury, time on the sidelines, and return to the field.