- My Forums
- Tiger Rant
- LSU Recruiting
- SEC Rant
- Saints Talk
- Pelicans Talk
- More Sports Board
- Fantasy Sports
- Golf Board
- Soccer Board
- O-T Lounge
- Tech Board
- Home/Garden Board
- Outdoor Board
- Health/Fitness Board
- Movie/TV Board
- Book Board
- Music Board
- Political Talk
- Money Talk
- Fark Board
- Gaming Board
- Travel Board
- Food/Drink Board
- Ticket Exchange
- TD Help Board
Customize My Forums- View All Forums
- Show Left Links
- Topic Sort Options
- Trending Topics
- Recent Topics
- Active Topics
Started By
Message
Ole Miss says Nkemdiche does not meet academic/other standards for Lott Trophy
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:25 am
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:25 am
Posted this on the SEC Rant, but thought I'd share here as well. Anyone read about this?
I was perusing the weekly Forde-Yard Dash column and came across his bit on Robert Nkemdiche:
LINK
As Forde mentions, if Ole Miss doesn't feel he is doing enough off the field to earn support from the school, I'd imagine his eligibility for the post season is going to be a concern.
I know players can turn their focus to the NFL pretty quickly, but it just seems a bit concerning that Ole Miss would bluntly remove Nkemdiche from consideration on their own unless things had really deteriorated between him and the school.
I was perusing the weekly Forde-Yard Dash column and came across his bit on Robert Nkemdiche:
quote:
When the Lott Impact Trophy folks sent out the lengthy ballot of quarterfinalists for the award for the nation’s top defensive player, there was a surprising footnote at the bottom: “ROBERT NKEMDICHE, DE, Ole Miss – School does not feel he meets academic standards.”
Two other players – Joey Bosa of Ohio State and Shawn Oakman of Baylor – were omitted from the quarterfinal ballot after being suspended for a game. But the exclusion of Robert Nkemdiche (31) – a potential high draft pick after this, his junior season – wasn’t tied to a specific incident or situation.
Ole Miss simply felt he wasn’t doing the job in the classroom in order to push him for an award that takes that into consideration.
The Dash asked Lott Trophy spokesman Pete Donovan for further explanation. He emailed back: “We do not have a specific academic criteria, such as a minimum grade point average. We ask the Sports Information Directors if their student-athlete is attending and passing classes. In the case of Nkemdiche, Ole Miss notified us after the season began that they felt he did not qualify academically for our award.”
The Dash sought comment from Mississippi on Monday and did not receive a response. However, the school got in touch with the Lott people Monday in response to the Yahoo inquiry, according to an email that was forwarded to The Dash. They forwarded an email chain from earlier in October that included the following between Lott Award officers, from Oct. 6:
“After several attempts, I finally connected w/ my guys at Ole Miss re; Robert Nkemdiche. They were very apologetic for not getting back to me sooner, however they stated that unfortunately they don’t feel that Robert is suitable for consideration. While stellar on the field, they don’t believe that he has the academics nor the community service that would be suitable for consideration.”
If Nkemdiche’s academics are that suspect, you wonder whether he’d be eligible for a bowl game. Those are almost universally played after fall-semester grades are in, and several players in past years have missed bowls after a bad semester.
Between that and star offensive tackle Laremy Tunsil missing seven games due to NCAA violations regarding impermissible benefits from agents, it’s clear that there can be a price to pay for recruiting players with eyes fixed on the NFL.
LINK
As Forde mentions, if Ole Miss doesn't feel he is doing enough off the field to earn support from the school, I'd imagine his eligibility for the post season is going to be a concern.
I know players can turn their focus to the NFL pretty quickly, but it just seems a bit concerning that Ole Miss would bluntly remove Nkemdiche from consideration on their own unless things had really deteriorated between him and the school.
7
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:28 am to slackster
Wow
slippery slope for Ole Miss to do this. shows they take academics seriously(lol), but it can be also be used as Ole MIss doesn't have their players backs.
Has any team ever done this before?????
slippery slope for Ole Miss to do this. shows they take academics seriously(lol), but it can be also be used as Ole MIss doesn't have their players backs.
Has any team ever done this before?????
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:34 am to stlslick
quote:
slippery slope for Ole Miss to do this. shows they take academics seriously(lol)
How serious are they taking academics if the only consequence is external awards?
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:35 am to stlslick
Is he playing this weekend, or is he still injured? If he doesn't have the academics for some award, what does that mean for his playing time?
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:37 am to slackster
I don't see how this benefits Ole Miss unless Nkemdiche is not even caring about the "student" part and it's starting to rub off on the other athletes.
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:37 am to slackster
On a side note, has he performed at a level on the field that would place him in contention to win it?
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:37 am to slackster
Might as well just sit out now if you can't win any awards or play in the postseason. Train for the NFL.
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:39 am to Jcorye1
Incredibly bizarre to say the least. Perhaps OM is sending a message to their players and maybe their HC too. If this kid is being allowed to play while not going to class is shameful and shows what's really important at OM.
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:41 am to Jcorye1
quote:Someone mentioned this on the SECr, OM knows he has issues, not just academically but some TPOS incidences and it wouldn't look good under the media scrutiny that comes with award finalists. They want to avoid the scrutiny.
I don't see how this benefits Ole Miss unless Nkemdiche is not even caring about the "student" part and it's starting to rub off on the other athletes
This post was edited on 10/27/15 at 10:42 am
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:42 am to slackster
RN is likely just sandbagging bc he knows he'll be drafted in 6 months.
Strange for Ole Miss to put this information out there willingly- seems like an unnecessary PR hit.
Strange for Ole Miss to put this information out there willingly- seems like an unnecessary PR hit.
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:44 am to Black n Gold
quote:
On a side note, has he performed at a level on the field that would place him in contention to win it?
No, he has not, which makes it even more unique that Ole Miss would remove him from consideration. If they let the award play out, he didn't have a chance to win it anyway, and it would have saved Ole Miss the potential embarrassment of him winning and then being declared ineligible for a bowl, assuming that is the next logical step in his issues.
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:44 am to bamarep
quote:
If this kid is being allowed to play while not going to class is shameful and shows what's really important at OM.
The "Student" part of student athlete is a farce anyways. I can't muster any anger over the players that are obviously going pro not caring about school. The NFL refuses to create any sort of developmental league, so the players are forced to go to college.
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:45 am to Billy Mays
quote:
seems like an unnecessary PR hit.
I don't think it's as much as negative for OM as it is for Nkemdiche.
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:45 am to Jcorye1
Jaylon Smith, come on down.
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:50 am to jacks40
quote:
How serious are they taking academics if the only consequence is external awards?
Exactly.
Punishment that doesn't hurt Ole Miss...only the kid.
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:54 am to AbuTheMonkey
quote:
Jaylon Smith, come on down.
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:54 am to slackster
Yeah, we'll fudge his grades to keep him eligible to play but not enough to be eligible for this award.
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:55 am to Jcorye1
quote:
The "Student" part of student athlete is a farce anyways. I can't muster any anger over the players that are obviously going pro not caring about school. The NFL refuses to create any sort of developmental league, so the players are forced to go to college.
No. No. No.
The vase majority of student athletes are not going pro. There are other sports to include, but even in the football side exclusively the majority won't be professional athletes.
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:57 am to fillmoregandt
Agreed, and I said as much on the SECr. For Ole Miss to make this move, they must feel they look better now than they would if Nkemdiche won the award down the road. Now Ole Miss can say they give a damn and respect the Lott trophy while avoiding any undue investigations into Nkemdiche and/or the program.
It isn't great for them by any means, but obviously they felt it was better than the alternative.
It isn't great for them by any means, but obviously they felt it was better than the alternative.
Posted on 10/27/15 at 10:57 am to Lester Earl
quote:
Lester Earl
He's probably the odds-on favorite at this point with Bosa out, Nkemdiche out, and Jack hurt. Want to take a bet on that?
It's either Smith or Garrett.
This post was edited on 10/27/15 at 10:59 am
Page 1 of 2
Popular
Back to top
Follow TigerDroppings for LSU Football News