Class Acts

Today is National Signing Day.

A day where thousands of teenage boys sign a piece of paper.

Announcing where they’ll be playing football next fall.

And sometimes attending class.

As a diehard Notre Dame fan, this is one of the most exciting days of the year.

One of the few days where we get ranked in the Top 10.

Annually, Notre Dame is on somebody’s list of best recruiting classes.

And annually these can’t miss prospects... miss.

But for a day, it’s fun to dream.

College recruiting is a game within itself.

Guys are paid big money to bring the best players to their town.

While some guys are paid even more money to come to that town.

If you’re not cheatin’, you’re not tryin’, right?

There’s no doubt that schools bend the rules as far as they can.

But some schools break those rules right in half.

I have this friend.

And this friend knows people.

And these people told him that a few years ago a school paid a basketball recruit $150,000 to come to their team.

I mean their college.

One year later that recruit was in the NBA.

Four years later that guy is making $231,000.

Per game.

Hey I get it that college sports is big business.

A multi-billion dollar business.

That’s billion, with a B.

The idea of getting the best of the best to play for your school is not only a good idea.

But it’s good business. 

After all, schools can’t live on tuition alone.

Or can they?

I was talking with a close friend of mine this morning.

And this close friend has a daughter.

Senior in high school.

For the last few years, they’ve been looking at colleges for her to attend.

And after a long search, she’s narrowed it down.

To 15.

That’s the number of schools she applied to.

And we’re talking great schools here.

Stanford to Penn.

Vanderbilt to Notre Dame.

(GO IRISH!)

This girl is one smart cookie.

And she’s got the numbers to prove it.

Numbers I didn’t even know were possible.

A 4.6 GPA and 2100 on the SAT.

With stats like that, she should be the one featured on TV today signing a letter of intent.

But instead she’s still waiting.

After all, a 4.4 in the 40 beats a 4.6 in the classroom any day.

So far she’s heard back from three of her 15 schools.

And she’s been accepted to all three.

But she’s not supposed to hear back from the others for another month.

After college football recruiting is done.

The good news is she is going to be attending a great school in the fall.

The question is what school.

And for how much.

My friend says it cost him well over $1000 just to apply to her schools.

Some applications were free.

Others were up to $120.

On top of that, he had to pay $16 per school to find out if he qualified for financial aid.

You have to pay to find out if you make too much money?

That just smells wrong.

And we haven’t even touched on tuition yet.

Just one year at one her top choices would be $65,000.

Ok, that does include a bed and some hot meals.

But still.

There’s been a long standing debate about paying college athletes.

And like John Kerry, I see both sides.

But when you really break this down to dollars and sense.

The guys that are signing today are already making quite a living.

According to a recent headline from Forbes.com:

Value of College Football Scholarship Exceeds $2 Million for College Football's Top 25

The author of this article was Dr. Patrick Rishe, a college professor who is at least 742% smarter than I will ever be.

In the article, Pat makes quite the case for teaching your kids how to bench press instead of doing math homework.

He got to the $2 Mil figure by adding up 4-year costs at the school.

Tuition, Books, Room and Board, and School Fees.

Plus the average salary of the job you get coming from that school.

Of course the variable here is actually finding a job.

But you get the point.

A scholarship from Stanford, USC and our beloved Notre Dame would cost over $210,000 over 4 years.

And that’s before you make a tackle.

Or score a touchdown.

The message here kids is perfectly simple.

Don’t go to class.

Go to the gym.

Don’t study your school books.

Memorize your playbook.

Don’t worry about homework.

Worry about home games.

Pass those three tests and you are guaranteed an A in life.