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Maurice Clarett Wins
By Keith Dobkowski
V.P. of Sports and Legal Research
On Thursday February 5, 2004, a Federal Judge found the National Football Leagues' policy of denying entry to the league until a player is three years removed from high school to be a violation of federal antitrust laws. Maurice Clarett, the standout running back on The Ohio States University's National Championship winning team two seasons ago as a freshman, brought suit. Clarett, who had multiple NCAA violations during his lone season at OSU thus causing Clarett to be benched for his entire second year of college, claimed that the NFL's rule limiting draft eligibility to players three years out of high school was a violation of his rights. Clarett argued that there is no other league in the world for professional football like the NFL. The Arena Football League, Canadian Football League and NFL Europe do not offer the athletic competition or money of the NFL and therefore do not offer direct competition to the NFL.
Since the NFL is the lone league of it kind, Clarett claimed that his right to work and earn a living playing football was violated by the NFL's three years out of high school rule. Simply put, the antitrust violation was the NFL's failure to allow players into the league to earn a living playing football until they were three years removed from high school.
The NFL countered by stating that the three-year rule is not subject to antitrust laws for it was agreed upon between the NFL and NFL Player's Association in the Collective Bargaining Agreement of 1993. Further the NFL argued that Clarett does not have standing because he was not a party to the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
So what does this all mean? For Clarett? The NFL? High School Athletes? And how come other American Sports have flourished with high schoolers directly entering the professional ranks?
If Clarett decides to enter this year's draft, most experts have predicted that he will be drafted at earliest in the second round. While Clarett has the size and speed to play in the NFL, as well as the pedigree coming from The Ohio State University as the starting running back during their National Championship Season, Clarett only has one year of playing college ball. Clarett has a history of injuries. And scariest, Clarett will have a big target on his back if and when he plays in the NFL. Lavar Arrington said as much as the 2004 pro bowl. "If he can make it that rookie year without being assassinated, I think he'll be all right," stated Arrington (pictured below).
How many others will see Clarett as a boy entering a man's game. Will Ray Lewis or Julian Peterson hit Clarett just that much harder to say welcome or possibly goodbye? You would believe so cause if Clarett takes that hit and pops up or even runs over the best the NFL has to offer, high school kids will be sure to follow Clarett's path. Not only do the likes of Lewis and others want to show that this is a man's game, but they have financial incentive to do so. An influx of young players and therefore cheaper players will drive the older players from the game, especially in the NFL's hard salary cap era. (Lewis Pictured Below).
The NFL is in the process of appealing this decision. Regardless on the outcome, Clarett should not be affected at all and may become the first and last one-year and out player drafted. The NFL claims that an agreement on when player becomes eligible for the league was reached between the NFL and NFL player's association and therefore Federal Antitrust laws would not apply.
Here, I would urge the NFL to not only increase their arguments, but to increase the years needed to enter the professional leagues. Mandate a bachelor's degree for the sake of the league. My own research has shown a link between underclassmen entering the NBA and an increased rate of crime over those who stay all four years. The numbers roughly state that underclassmen leaving before their junior year are arrested at nearly a 50% clip, while graduates were arrested at just above 10%. The NFL is in the business of promoting its league and a league full of felons does not sell.
Further, United States law supports different rules for different age brackets. Under constitutional scrutiny, only a rational basis between the objective and the result is necessary in order to discriminate on the basis of age. Here, Clarett has essentially claimed that age discrimination in the form of Antitrust Violations have prohibited Clarett from joining the NFL. If the NFL could substantiate that the reason for their action is not for the protection of current players, but rather for the duel protection of the college educational system and stopping the criminal actions of early entrants, the NFL should be able to convince a court that's it actions are constitutional.
In the case that Clarett's suit is upheld the net results in the NFL will not be major. Few high school and first year college players have the strength, speed, size and ability to compete in the NFL. Most experts and columnist point to one player during the past 30 years who actually had the speed, size and athletic ability to forgo college and enter the NFL. He is the one and only Hershel Walker (pictured below).
Both Major League Baseball and the National Basketball Association allows players to go directly from high school into the pros. The NBA has had mixed results. Lebron James is the first high schooler to average 20 points a game and one of only three have ever averaged more than 10 points a game in their first year. Jermaine O'Neal took five years to settle into stardom and both Kobe Bryant and Tracy McGrady spent years on the bench learning their craft. Lebron may be the Hershel Walker of the NBA. Most high schoolers enter the draft as toothpicks needing years of proper diet, workouts and aging to fill out their slender bodies. Lebron, like Hershel, is a man-child. Therefore, Lebron appears to be the exception and not the rule.
MLB has not had a player go from high school in the league since the 1970's. All three were pitchers and only one, Mike Morgan, had a long career. Can't miss prospects like Drew Henson miss all the time. This does not mean that the NBA is a sub-par league in comparison to MLB and the NFL, but rather the differences in the sports business models allows the NBA to move in a different direction than both MLB and the NFL. The NFL does not offer guaranteed money or contracts and therefore a win now approach is more apparent. And MLB has a substantial minor league system that most players participate in for years before being offered major league money and guaranteed contracts. The NBA offers guaranteed money to first round draft picks for a minimum of three years. This allows players the needed time to develop and grow into their bodies. Further the NBA will continue to sing its old manta, "you can't teach height." Which is substantially different than size.
Maurice Clarett has changed his life, but he will not significantly change the NFL. A few high school athletes may take bad advice and make terrible decisions declaring for the draft only to shunned and have their college eligibility destroyed. However, these players will be few and the system as it stood just days ago, will continue to thrive in nearly the exact same manner.
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