Question About College Basketball Rules

[military_irish]

I am in the middle, for the millionth time, of watching the movie Glory Road. About the Texas Western team that won the National Title. Which was the first team start an all black team in a championship game.

At the beginning of the movie the coach offers scholarships to players playing on playground courts. Are teams today allowed to offer anyone with college eligibility left a scholarship?

I guess this could go for any sport but just curious. Not sure if the rules have changed. I know when it comes to basketball it is easy for schools to "fake" grades for one year until they go pro.

Just thought I would ask the question for someone who may be in the know.

 

[Old Man Mike]

You can pull a thirty year old off a playground as long as he hasn't been to college on a scholarship before. At least in my day and for many years thereafter that was true. Scouts used to hang out at all the legendary pick-up courts in the basketball heavy areas. Sometimes there'd be a local legend who could outplay all the college studs who'd come back home and have their fun rocking at the "neighborhood" hoops. Sometimes a school would try to get such a Non-Kid signed to play, and almost always they found out that the guy had no operating neurons in his brain, either from drugs, alcohol, or natural stupidity, or a "disregard" for team play or anything disciplined long-term. But Man that guy could shoot your brains out on any given day.

This still goes on to my knowledge on certain NYC courts like the ones that grew the "AND ONE" team of barnstormers. Things have become more commercialized now, and a lot of these guys have become parts of almost Globetrotter-type entertainment companies with scripted action. Still in the deep hearts of every big city there are the "insider" courts where the fancy dans come to show what they've got. Those places were pretty intimidating to me as a 6'o" white guy with glasses, whether I could play or not. You just felt that this was a special culturally-isolated environment where you didn't belong. Scouts however were welcome.

 

[military_irish]

I know that some players can be offered scholarships, mostly walk-ons though. Just have not heard of, in this day, of players from the "park" getting offered.

Just didn't know if scouts today are "scared" again to offer kids in the streets for fear of ramifications of the media.

I know that kids that live in the "streets" may have more baggage but than again some may have more talent. In the end that is all that coaches, most anyways, care about.

Thanks for the response though OMM.

 

[hack15]

Athletes today to be eligible for participation have to be cleared by the NCAA's clearinghouse. So just having a bird dog spot a kid playing on the hard top and offering him isn't really possible anymore.

 

[bigedefense]

Not quite the same thing, but when I coached at a Division II school, we had a Graduate Assistant who's job was to find guys that had played at the Div I or Div I AA level & left school because of losing their scholarship to either injury or didn't pan out for that school. We usually signed 2 or 3 a year. Some had only 1 year left, some had 3. We basically hit this avenue hard starting in April, trying to find players to fill a position of need or an upgrade of what we had. Worked out pretty well for us. Thinking back, I can think of 5 guys in 4 years that went on to be on an NFL roster after their time with us. So, in football, as long as they have cleared the NCAA clearinghouse & are admitted to school, it's fair game.