It isn’t a matter of need. It’s a matter of want (via Dave Barry).

Yes, this is rampant consumerism. So what’s your point?

So the NCAA has finally decided on its approach with regards to the unaccredited schools that seem like diploma mills for kids — especially regarding basketball. The approach is, some of you are under the gun.

Early next week, the National Collegiate Athletic Association is expected to release its first list of high schools lacking proper academic rigor, which means those schools’ transcripts will no longer be accepted by the N.C.A.A. The Southeastern Conference is expected to pass legislation today that will give the commissioner’s office final authority on questionable transcripts, Vanderbilt Chancellor Gordon Gee said.

The N.C.A.A. vice president Kevin Lennon said in a telephone interview yesterday that the N.C.A.A. had been making unannounced visits to schools to research their legitimacy.

Lennon said that the N.C.A.A. sent out a questionnaire to about 50 schools requesting more information on their academics. He said that the schools that did not respond would be removed from the N.C.A.A.’s list of approved schools, which would essentially mean that students who attend those schools could not qualify for athletic scholarships.

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“We’ve identified those schools that we need to make contact with immediately,” Lennon said. “We know that kids are waiting for decisions, and schools are waiting for decisions. We’re trying to put some priority and order to this.”

The list of high schools lacking proper academic rigor is expected to affect college basketball the most, as many of the questionable schools were set up around basketball teams.

This is arguably fair and unfair. It’s fair since there are private prep schools and high schools that are completely legit and have never had questions about them even if they lack accreditation from a state, while other states accreditation procedures are so meaningless that they are of practically no value. So you can’t simply go by accreditation, and given the large volume of schools in the country, you need to start somewhere. The NCAA and the member institutions are ostensibly about education first (try not to laugh). Let’s face it, there aren’t going to be many people able to articulate a good reason to oppose the NCAA at least asking some of these places to simply provide some documentation and proof that they are more than diploma mills.

It’s unfair since they are picking and choosing which schools to prove they are legit without explaining why they were targeted. It could be because certain coaches whining about a player going to a conference foe or losing out on the player, and looking for a way to make things more difficult. It could be from evaluating academic results in the NCAA schools and picking out the students from certain schools on the list that seem to struggle. Maybe simply because they received negative press *cough* Philadelphia Lutheran Academy *cough*.

Some of the targeted or potentially targeted schools are looking into options.

Don Jackson, a lawyer based in Montgomery, Ala., who said he had handled more than 20 N.C.A.A. cases the past four years, said that he had already been contacted by 10 high schools to seek his legal advice.

“I fully expect a wave of lawsuits,” Jackson said. “The N.C.A.A. is not an accrediting agency and not the state department of education. They have no legal authority to make value judgments on the quality of education in a school.”

But will anyone actually sue? A lawsuit would still cause an examination of their academics and operations.

What is a big potential danger for a lot of programs is that this policy will affect kids coming in this season. So if, say Lutheran Christian Academy gets tagged, that is going to matter to kids who will be going to George Washington and Texas A&M among others. Suddenly, they are not academically eligible and therefore there goes that scholarship. The basketball program just wasted a scholarship and the kid is back to trying to get to legit standards for admission.

At least they caught the problem.

Pitt kicker David Abdul will have open-heart surgery June 12 to correct a congenital and potentially life-threatening abnormality.

Doctors at the Cleveland Clinic diagnosed Abdul with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy on Tuesday. The wall in Abdul’s heart is three times larger than normal, which can cause the valve to malfunction and restrict the flow of blood to his body.

“Most of the time, the doctors don’t find it,” Abdul said from his home in Hartville, Ohio. “You just drop dead.”

Three weeks ago, Abdul’s twin brother, Jonathan, underwent emergency surgery after collapsing on a golf course. When doctors determined that hypertrophic cardiomyopathy caused Jonathan Abdul’s blackout, the entire family was tested for the condition.

“My brother is back home, and he’s fine,” David Abdul said. “As of right now, I’m thinking I’ll be playing this season.”

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However, doctors at the Cleveland Clinic discovered that David Abdul has a leaky valve and an unusually thick heart wall. Pitt team doctors did not run tests on Abdul, but they were sent a copy of his test results.

“My surgery is on the 12th, but they’re going to try to get me in sooner if they can,” Abdul said.

Surgeons will shave some of the thickened muscle from Abdul’s septum to widen the outflow tract. After being hospitalized for four or five days, he will begin a rehabilitation that should last two or three months.

Abdul, who hopes to take a class this summer, is enrolled for the fall semester.

“I want to be back playing football this fall,” Abdul said. “I’m planning on it, but we’ll have to see how it goes.”

Seriously, what did David Abdul do in a past life to deserve all that has been happening to him in the last couple of years? Did he torture puppies? What?

Good luck David. Things have to start going right sooner or later.

Ah, the offseason of a college basketball coach. Today Coach Dixon goes to the Laurel Valley Golf Club in Ligonier to play in a Coaches vs. Cancer Golf Invitational.

Penn State men’s basketball coach Ed DeChellis has been named the Coaches vs. Cancer Man of the Year by the national organization.
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“It is tremendous honor for Ed and great for Penn State to have our basketball coach recognized and represent the University in this way,” Penn State Director of Athletics Tim Curley said. “Ed has made a terrific impact not only on our basketball program but in the community and this is a testament to his perseverance and hard work.” DeChellis will be honored on Sunday evening, June 3 at the Seventh Annual Coaches vs. Cancer Golf Invitational hosted by the Laurel Valley Golf Club in Ligonier, Pa. The tournament will be played June 4-5. Among the other coaches expected to attend the event are: Jim Boeheim (Syracuse), Jim Calhoun (Connecticut), Fran Dunphy (Temple), Phil Martelli (St. Joseph’s), Jay Wright (Villanova), Kelvin Sampson (Indiana), Jeff Capel (Oklahoma), Mark Gottfried (Alabama), Jamie Dixon (Pittsburgh) and Gary Williams (Maryland).

DeChellis has survived a bout of cancer himself. Still, someone should heckle him for cowardly backing away from playing Pitt any longer. Maybe Dixon can start talking to one or two of the coaches listed about setting up and home-and-home.

Does it ever get awkward for coaches after one coach poaches another member of their staff? Do you think Martelli and Dixon will end up in the same foursome?

After that, I think this could, maybe be stretched to be considered a “working” vacation for tax purposes.

Former University of Hawaii and current Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Carter and former assistant and current University of Pittsburgh head coach Jaime Dixon will serve as guest speakers at this summer’s Rainbow Boys and Girls Basketball Camp.
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Dixon completed his third season at Pitt, where he guided the Panthers to a 25-8 record and second round appearance in the NCAA Tournament. Dixon spent five seasons as an assistant to head coach Riley Wallace in two separate stints (1992-94; ’98-99) at UH.

The camp features two three-day sessions. The first session runs June 9-11 while session two is June 12-14.

Spend a week in Hawaii, give a couple speeches at the session. Spend the rest of the time on the beach and hitting the links. Nice. Almost like being a member of Congress.

Then, he has to get back to Pitt for the first of his summer basketball camps.

Busy June.

Looks like Mike Rice, Jr. has all but officially taken the assistant coaching job with Pitt.

New Kensington native Mike Rice, Jr. is coming home to be on Jamie Dixon’s staff at Pitt. A source close to the men’s basketball program confirmed yesterday that Rice has accepted Dixon’s offer to be the top assistant. An official announcement is expected from Pitt Monday.
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Rice’s hiring almost completes Dixon’s staff. Dixon had to replace Barry Rohrssen and Joe Lombardi, who left for head coaching positions in April. Orlando Antigua was promoted from director of basketball operations to an assistant coach last month. The only vacancy remaining is the director of operations. Former Pitt star Brandin Knight is expected to get that job.

Wonder if they’ll make it one big press release or just the Rice hiring.

UPDATE: It was pointed out to me that once Knight gets officially named to the staff, he is heavily restricted/regulated with regards to his contacts with high schoolers. So if Knight is helping out with say the AAU Pittsburgh JOTS or just visiting some games back in NJ, he can actually have contact with them. Makes sense then, to wait to make the hiring official.