On December 29, 2008 -- just four days before his team was scheduled to play in the Sugar Bowl -- Alabama's head football coach Nick Saban announced that one of his key players was being suspended for the game. The Crimson Tide's All-American left tackle Andre Smith, the heart of the team's formidable offensive line who would be selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the first round of the NFL draft a few months later, was forced to miss the final game of his college career. His absence was a key part of the Crimson Tide's unexpected and complete defeat at the hands of the Utah Utes on New Year's Day 2009 and now seems to be a precursor to the onslaught of anti-agent sentiment sweeping the sport. The incident seems painfully prophetic this week as it has been revealed that the NCAA is investigating allegations of agent misconduct involving players from UNC, South Carolina and Florida. Yet, given this sudden resurgence of the issue and the growing success of the Crimson Tide football program it seems worth going back and re-examining exactly what happened in the Smith case and how the University of Alabama Athletics Department chose to deal with it. At the time, Saban only noted that Smith had been suspended for an unspecified violation of team rules. The Birmingham News later confirmed the action was linked to a family member of Smith's having contact with a sports agent. This is an important point. Smith was not suspended from the team for having contact with an agent according to the paper but rather because he refused to cooperate with the athletic department's investigation into the matter. Coach Saban acted even though it now seems likely the offense would not have been classified as a violation by the NCAA. Smith eventually netted a $42 million contract from the Bengals making it exceedingly clear why there had been an effort to represent him. When the NCAA's sanctions against USC came down earlier this month the focus on agents became critical once again. Yet the case mars the issue given the excesses of the Trojan players and the laughable lack of oversight on the part of the coaches and administration to do anything about it. The USC situation is the lowest hanging fruit and the newer ones have demonstrated the NCAA plans to climb higher into the trees where situations are a lot less clear cut. Keep in mind, unlike recruiting where there are strict regulation as to what access college coaches can have to potential players, agents have free reign. According to NCAA guidelines an agent can make unlimited contact with a player with the caveat no gifts or benefits are exchanged and there is no firm commitment made to sign. Read more:http://www.rollbamaroll.com/2010/7/20/1578199/alabama-football-and-the-sports
