Montana Writer Dismisses NCAA Investigation
Bill Speltz of the Missoulian, like many people who get sucked into the orbit of an NCAA investigation, just wants it to end. But the Montana investigation is not standard NCAA fare, which Speltz seems to forget:
I can just see him now, Mr. NCAA Man, eavesdropping from behind a tree out by the UM practice field:
“Hey No. 23, good luck Saturday! I baked some banana bread and it’s still warm. Wanna slice?”
“Stop right there, lady! Hands up against that walker. It’s people like you that ruin college football!”
…
We’re talking college football, folks. Not the Kennedy assassination.
The NCAA has been investigating the school since January, so the case has not yet hit the one-year mark even. As far as NCAA investigations go, this one is not even that long.
There are a lot of legitimate complaints about the NCAA investigation of Montana, including why it is taking it so long. But dismissing it as just another petty NCAA shakedown is not one of them. In the absence of the NCAA confirming what the investigation is exactly about, it is reasonable to assume that the investigation centers around questions of institutional control regarding the treatment of sexual assaults by football players. That is the best information available.
It is fine to say the NCAA should not investigate crimes or how they are handled. It is fine to say all NCAA investigations should be shorter. But it is misleading to lump the Montana investigation in with small extra benefits and recruiting violations.