The NCAA did an admirable, exemplary thing at the Final Four this weekend. But, lest anyone get the wrong idea, the NCAA denies doing it.
Marc Isenberg, author of the book "Money Players," and a consistent critic of the NCAA, reported on his blog yesterday that the NCAA, or its member conferences, allowed schools to pay for the hotel rooms of the parents of basketball players competing in the Final Four.
Citing first-hand accounts from parents and administrators, Isenberg writes that approval for comping the hotel expenses "came from the conference office with the understanding that all four schools were doing the same."
But when Isenberg queried NCAA official Ronnie Ramos, Ramos denied the story: "Schools can reserve rooms at discounted rates, but not pay," Ramos said.
It would be tough for any self-respecting parents to stay home while their son or daughter competed in an NCAA championship event, so by outlawing schools from footing the bill for travel and lodging expenses, the NCAA is essentially handing NCAA athlete's families a bill for a couple thousand dollars.
In order to comply with its own Title IX regulations, the NCAA would have to allow schools to comp travel expenses for families in all sports of both genders, if it adopted such a policy. NCAA member schools, of course, would say that there is no money in budgets for such an expense -- but that is simply a matter of skewed priorities in Athletic budgets. Schools find a way to pay far more money for inflated coaches' salaries and recruiting budgets, but deem it less important to support athletes and their families once they are already a part of a program.
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