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Sports Illustrated is Overstating Claims About
College Football Crime Sports Illustrated and CBS News released their report
about arrests in college football. They ran criminal background checks on last
years Preseason Top 25 and the results are shocking, if you frame them the right
way and make sure to use THE SERIOUS FONT on the cover.Reporters looked at 2,837
players and found records of 277 criminal incidents from 204 players. Taking
those raw figures one could conclude that more than seven percent of college
football players at those 25 schools are dangerous miscreants rampaging their
way across campuses. You would think universities are fostering a criminal
element to promote success and that you soccer cleats
factory should lock your doors and fasten your chastity belts. But, take
a closer look.The report lumps all forms of crime together. Of the 277 offenses,
105 (38 percent) were drug and alcohol related. These included DUI, drug
possession and intent to distribute cocaine. I dont doubt that the offenses did
include those crimes but how many were hardened drug dealers How many were
popped for underage drinking Should I throw the stones there or at the kids
experimenting with pot Most of us did both those things. DUIs are inexcusably
reckless by individuals. A university should react appropriately when they
happen, but how does one predict themSI and CBS list players charged with or
cited for a crime, not convicted or arrested. Only 60 percent of the offenders
were guilty or paid some penalty. It's customary in domestic abuse cases to make
charges initially, then figure out what happened and throw them out. See
LaMichael James. According to the reporters 40 percent of the criminal charges
were serious, which means 60 percent were not serious.So thats 111 serious
incidents from 2,837 players, which, assuming one serious incident per player,
is 3.8 percent of players. The national average of adults, convicted for a crime
not just charged or cited, is 3.1 percent. At worst the average rate of
criminality at those 25 football programs coincides with the national
average.Even granting them the problem exists, they dont prove that theres
active neglect from schools or a tangible way to prevent it.Reporters charge the
football programs with neglect for not running background checks on juvenile
records. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement makes those records available
for a fee. Most states do not. There's a reason for that.Separate juvenile and
adult courts exist because children often dont have the same decision-making
capacity as adults. In most states those records are sealed. Courts and

law enforcement officials have access in recidivism
cases, but the general population does not. The courts believe kids who make a
mistake and reform should not face a lifelong stigma.Running those background
checks is a simple step to take in theory, but for a university its problematic.
It is the schools responsibility to accept an incoming student, not the football
program. A scholarship offer doesn't guarantee admission. Rich Rodriguez offered
Demar Dorsey a scholarship at Michigan despite a juvenile criminal past. The
University overruled him.Many schools have policies mandating prospective
students self-disclose criminal incidents beyond minor traffic violations when
applying. With the number of recruits who are quasi-public figures, it's hard to
believe schools wouldn't be aware.Universities have to be fair. They don't have
the resources to run juvenile background checks on every prospective student
from states that allow it. Is it fair to do it just for athletes Just athletes
from the high-profile sports where an incident would be embarrassing They cant
have a special face of the university clause to put scholarship football players
(often poor black kids) through a grueling, invasive admission process while
trusting everyone else.Even if you get those records, how do you interpret them
Lets say a wealthy lacrosse player and a poor football player both are arrested
for marijuana possession in high school. The lacrosse players family hires an
attorney who specializes in those cases and gets it expunged. The football
player probably doesnt have the same resources. The former gets into school. The
latter does not.Even if a university could do this, recidivism isn't a given.
Many players with a past overcome it. Many players without a past are charged
with crimes. Many crimes are impossible to predict based on a players' past. A
background check can't tell a school that Offensive Lineman A is going to be the
guy who becomes a complete asshole while drunk, pick fights mercurial vapor
super with half the bar and assaults a police officer while resisting
arrest Every school is going to have kids who get drunk and do stupid things.
That's different than actively recruiting a criminal element.Any crime occurring
is too many. There are disturbing individual cases, however, given this
reporting, its not apparent that crime is epidemic in college football or that
schools are actively or passively facilitating it through admissions.[Photo via
Getty] If Jared Sullinger Stays, Ohio State Probably Opens the 2011-2012 College
Basketball Season at No. 1 Jared Sullinger says he's returning to Ohio State for
his sophomore year. Considering Sullinger is a projected Top 10 pick

in the NBA draft, this decision seems highly
unlikely. He's just another kid who suffered a difficult, emotional, NCAA
Tournament loss and he'll change his mind in a few weeks when the dollar signs
become more real, rightHere are some basketball reasons Sullinger might return
for his sophomore season: [UPDATE: Sullinger's dad says to "etch it in stone"
his son will return to Ohio State.]Ohio State will be really, really good next
year. If Sullinger returns, they'll definitely open in the season in the Top 5.
If Sullinger and junior William Buford stay, they probably open at No. 1.First,
the losses: they'll graduate a top reserve (Lauderdale), their best wing
defender (Lighty), and their best shooter (Diebler, the best 3-point shooter in
Big Ten history).It's safe to assume freshman Deshaun Thomas, who played limited
minutes but was impressive occasionally on offense, will replace Lighty. Aaron
Craft, who could be the best defensive guard in the country, will start at
point. If Buford stays (2-for-16, worst game of the season against Kentucky),
then they only need to find one more starter.Fortunately, the incoming freshman
class is pretty strong, as it features three players 6-foot-8 or
bigger.Sullinger and all other underclassmen have until April 24 to make up
their mind about the NBA, but the guess here is that if Sullinger and Buford
stay, and all the other talented freshman in the country go to the NBA as
expected (Harrison Barnes, Brandon Knight, Terrence Jones, Perry Jones, Kyrie
Irving, Tobias Harris, Tristian Mizuno Soccer Shoes Thompson, Josh Selby, etc), Ohio
State will open the preseason rankings at No. 1.The Big Ten will be
significantly rebuilding next year, and the Buckeyes will dominate the league
again:* Michigan, a young team on the rise, is probably the 2nd best team in the
league, but how close it'll be to Ohio State depends on if Darius Morris returns
to opts for the NBA. * Illinois loses three key seniors (McCamey, Tisdale,
Davis), but has a nice young nucleus (Paul, Richardson, Richmond). McCamey's
loss could be some addition by subtraction based on the way his senior season
went. I think the Illini will be a Top 5 team in the league. * Michigan State
loses its starting backcourt (Lucas, Summers), but will still be in the top five
in the league assuming Keith Appling takes over the team and Green and Roe
provide leadership. * Wisconsin loses three pivotal seniors and will have to
rebuild around explosive guard Jordan Taylor (who struggled in his final two
games – 8-35- against K-State and Butler).

* Purdue loses its two best players (JaJuan Johnson
and ETwaun Moore) from a 26-8, 14-4 team. They won't be a Top 25 team. Cleveland
State next for Dawgs How often have we hard this expression It's hard to beat a
team three times in the same basketball season.Actually, it is not. Studies have
shown the team that wins the first two usually wins the third — because the team
that won the first two is probably better.Butler (21-9) will hope that applies
to Saturday's Horizon League Tournament semifinal against Cleveland State (26-7)
at Milwaukee. The No. 2-seeded Bulldogs previously defeated No. 3 seed Cleveland
State 79-56 and 73-61.The second semifinal matches No. 1 seed
Wisconsin-Milwaukee (18-12) vs. No. 4 seed Valparaiso (23-10).Butler's game will
not be televised live on ESPNU (6 p.m.) but will available on a webcast at
ESPN3.com.Through six games of the tournament, the higher seed has won every
time. In Friday's quarterfinal round, Cleveland State beat No. 6 Wright State
73-59 and Valparaiso ousted No. 5 Detroit 88-78.I was assigned to the Michael
Phelps swim beat in Indianapolis, so I wasn't in Milwaukee for Friday's games.
The Vikings pulled away in the second half from Wright State, which was hurt by
an illness to guard N'Gai Evans. Valparaiso set a tournament record by making 15
3-pointers — including Brandon Wood's 7-of-10 — in beating Detroit. Wood scored
30 points.The championship game is at the site of the highest remaining seed. So
it could be played at Hinkle Fieldhouse if Butler and Valparaiso both
win.Amateur and professional bracketologists have suggested Butler can secure a
spot in the 68-team NCAA Tournament by reaching the Horizon title game. Beating
an RPI Top 50 team like Cleveland State again would certainly enhance the
Bulldogs' resume.On the other hand, a loss might relegate them to the NIT.It is
not something the Bulldogs have been obsessing over all week.“We've lived this
enough to know where our focus should be,” coach Brad Stevens said.Because they
didn't know the opponent until Friday, he said, the Bulldogs have been working
on themselves rather than on a specific opponent.Stevens said his vision
impairment was “scary” last week but that it was a freak occurrence. He plans to
wear glasses for the rest of the season, abandoning contact lenses.Cleveland
State coach Gary Waters is sure to remind his Vikings that they lost to Butler
twice before winning the 2009 league tournament at Hinkle Fieldhouse. Stevens
probably has reminded the Bulldogs of the same thing.Follow me on Twitter at
DavidWoods007 for the

latest Butler basketball news.