re: So Alabama seems to lead for UT LB Henry To’oto’o

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However, I do think instead of eliminating loopholes and locking everything down (because some of that would be almost as unfair to other players in reality), since LSU think the way such loopholes are being used by teams like Bama is unethical we should damn well be publicizing it. There are outlets out there that provide an avenue that don't suck Saban's dick that would love to pursue that. The problem is, glass houses and all. We obviously aren't squeaky clean and if it resulted in an all out media war between SEC schools, the SEC would step in to shut down the initiating school... and that would be us. Not the Gumps.

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That’s why I think lobbying for rules changes is the better path. It takes away some of Saban’s advantages in a way that also affects you and every other P5 school equally, but doesn’t really hurt you as much. If you aren’t already using the tactics you are attacking, then you are less open to retaliation in the court of public opinion. It’s easy to take the high ground and hold it using this approach. Any mud slinging by a Bama and others would just look like an attempt at deflection from the issue.

It’s a position of convenience, like Apple championing data privacy. Using personal data isn’t core to their business, but it is for some of their competitors. So now they use that position to attack their competition and hurt them using a positive campaign for something with some public appeal. It applies to them equally, but doesn’t hurt them since data harvesting isn’t core to their business the way it does Amazon, Google or Facebook.

Like you said, if you just go on a media assault over these tactics without a goal for changing them, you open yourself up for counterattack on anything negative that can be thrown back at you. When you lead negative, negative retaliation will be expected. As for the SEC, going to the NCAA directly leaves them with little recourse for retaliation. And what can they say? Recruiting reform wouldn’t be a good thing?

As for the real ethics of it all, I’m not as concerned about that. Most of these kids are getting paid or given all kinds of gifts and advantages. It’s all part of the game. I just see this as a way to attack Bama’s recruiting advantages. If LSU can’t make the same use of them that Bama can (and let’s face it, no one can right now), then they should do anything in their power to neutralize them. Championing reform lets you do that from a positive angle, rather than making it look like a direct attack on your target.