IrishNaples: How friendly is the academic side of the university? Do we often have to turn away kids who would want to play for us?
SJB75: Tony Rice was a Prop 48 kid who did not qualify academically to Notre Dame, and was forced to sit out a year. Then Tony graduated in four years. Would you like to see Brian Kelly allowed 1-2 academic exceptions a year to kids who parallel Rice’s academic shortcomings, whom are vetted and deemed worthy of taking a chance on, a la Rice?
These inquiries somewhat go together.
Yes, IrishNaples, it’s no secret this is true. However, a very essential component to this is when you “want to play for us,” it is a two-way street. The university will provide the tutorial services and assistance to aid your process to graduate — but you have to want to do the work too and not just skate by. So many like to use Rice as an example — as SJB75 — does, so let me provide some background.
First, 1986 was the first year the Prop 48 in the NCAA came into effect, so it was heavily publicized that anyone with less than a 700 SAT cannot be eligible as a freshman. Rice, linebacker John Foley (that year's USA Today Defensive Player of the Year) and 6-9 basketball player Keith Robinson all had to sit out their freshmen seasons at Notre Dame — and it became a huge publicity issue about how Notre Dame was lowering its standards to accommodate Lou Holtz. (They didn’t talk about dropping it for Digger Phelps with Robinson).
