Sky Diver

I'm really impressed with JK Scott. He is a great punter, and more importantly a great human being.

Have you ever been to the south? I am sensing a bias?

You think UGA is a bad school too, lol? I think you have really bought into branding.

If you are going to spout ratings as gospel, you should at least have some idea how they are derived. https://www.liberalartscolleges.com/us-news-college-rankings-meaningless/ Anyway, I am a value shopper anyway. If I had a choice between Harvard and Alabama and they were the same price, I would probably choose Harvard. If I got the Presidential Scholarship at Alabama and 4 yrs cost me $60K versus $250K for Harvard, I would choose Alabama. Alabama's 75th percentile ACT score is 32, UGA's is 31. Both have about an equal number of elite students (Alabama slightly more). Let's assume that you are using the standard definition: Stupid and loutish. So you are saying most college football players are stupid and loutish? And how do you define most? 51%, 60%, 70%, 80%, 90%? More? So maybe 90% or more are stupid and loutish?

I'm guessing the that you have no absolutely no clue what methodologies US News and Forbes use. Top students from all over the country disagree with you about the academics at Alabama. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-met-illinois-students-brain-drain-20180405-story.html http://www.businessinsider.com/ronald-nelson-turned-down-every-ivy-league-school-for-university-of-alabama-2015-5 https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/06/education/edlife/survival-strategies-for-public-universities.html

In addition to proving that Alabama is an excellent academic institution that serves both elite students (75th percentile ACT of 32, 40% of students having a ACT greater than 30) and non-elite students, I have been quite clear about Rosen: He has no clue what he is talking about, and if he wasn't good at throwing a ball, no one would care what he had to say. I think the greatest college coach of all time has it right: "We've had 23, 29, and 22 guys (over the last three years) play in their last game here - which is a playoff game or a championship game - with a college degree," Saban told ESPN. "Now regardless of what those guys' ACT score was, or SAT score, they had an opportunity that they took advantage of that's going to be a great deposit or investment for their future. They're going to have a better life because they had an opportunity to go to college." Can you please explain what you mean by "knuckle dragger"? I am very curious.

You assume 925 - 950? Come back to me when you actually have facts and data. What is ridiculous about my question? You made a bold claim that most college football players are "knuckle draggers". I asked you to prove it by making a list of knuckle draggers from the football program at Alabama and all you can come up with is Rueben Foster and Marcel Dareus, who graduated in 2011? There were quite a few players between 2011 and present. So really, about less than 1% of Alabama players were knuckle draggers over that time period, assuming that the designation actually fits Foster and Dareus? In your mind, does less than 1% qualify as "most"?

I'll patiently wait for the list of knuckle draggers in the Alabama football rooster. Since it is most of them, it should be easy to compile.

I think Dave McBride largely summarized Rosen's point: Most college football players are knuckle draggers, and it's even worse if they attend Alabama or Clemson. Let's say "most' is greater than 50%. So who are they on Alabama's roster? I'd like to the see list. http://www.rolltide.com/roster.aspx?path=football

I get it. Rosen's comments are stupid and indefensible. I don't blame you for giving up.

Interesting. So you are an expert on Alabama because???? Where is your list of "knuckle draggers" on the Alabama roster? I'm curious to see it. http://www.rolltide.com/roster.aspx?path=football

"Universities in general, including Alabama, care more about player eligibility than player education." Bold statement with no proof. Alabama graduated about 84% of it's football players. Most football players are "knuckle draggers"? Wow! Alabama graduates about 84% of it's football players. 100% earned their degrees over 7 years. Some graduate in less than 4 years and some graduate with their Master's degrees. Can you make a list for me of the knuckle draggers on the Alabama roster? http://www.rolltide.com/roster.aspx?path=football

Okay, so let's all give Rosen a round of applause for saying that it's is difficult to manage college football and academics. I didn't see that he offered any insightful solutions or provide any alternatives to the status quo, did you? I might actually find that interesting. The only we know is that he is bolting from college without earning a degree.

We don't know what the admission standards are at UCLA, Alabama and Clemson for football players, and neither does Rosen, which makes this comment stupid. We do know that UCLA has lower admission standards for athletes. "OK, raise the SAT requirement at Alabama and see what kind of team they have." Stanford does not relax it's academic standards for athletes, so if Rosen is right, they should have a really bad football team, and obviously they don't. Rosen is a mixed up kid and if he couldn't throw a ball, no one would care what his opinion was on anything of substance.

I thought my argument was obvious. Rosen was implying that there is a correlation between admission standards and the quality of a football team. I used Stanford as an example of a school that has much higher academic standards than UCLA and has a much better football team. UCLA's record pre-Rosen was 10 - 3. During Rosen's tenure UCLA was 8 - 5, 4 - 8 and 6 - 7. He didn't lift the team; the team became worse.

Academics are probably a lot less challenging now than they used to be. https://www.thecollegefix.com/post/43767/ Stanford has an elite football program and it's academic standards are a lot higher than UCLA. UCLA is just a crappy football team that got worse on Rosen's watch. Rosen is a whiner who can't take any personal responsibility for his team's poor performance and his academic failings.

Did you need Rosen to tell you that playing football and getting a degree is difficult? Rosen demeaned Alabama (and Clemson as well as players who earned degrees that he doesn't think are worthy) and I have simply pointed out the facts about the academics at Alabama. That he went there with his comments says a lot about his personality and why there are so many questions about him.

Does Alabama have lower admission standards than UCLA? Obviously. 25th to 75th percentile is 23 - 32 for Alabama and 27 - 33 for UCLA. The two schools serve a different demographic. I don't have any idea what the numbers are for football players, do you? It's well documented that UCLA has lower standards for athletes vs non-athletes. Anyway, at the end of the day, it matters more about where you end up than where you start.

Rosen contends that college football and academics don't mix. Well, ten of thousands of football players before him have played football and earned degrees, many in very demanding majors. Is it easy? Obviously not. Is mixing college football and academics more difficult in the last 3 years since Rosen has been at UCLA? I hardly think so.

Are you agreeing with Rosen because his comments are based on facts and data, or are your reacting with emotion based on your gut feeling. As an engineer, I would expect that you analyze arguments based on facts and data. I guess you just take Rosen's bold assertions regarding sports and academics at face value because he's good at tossing a football.

Given the cost of tuition and room/board, scholarship players are getting $160,000 over 4 years.

So you troll 10 year olds? Impressive. You are allegedly an engineer with a degree from an Ivy League school and you rely on emotion rather than facts and data? Interesting.

$160K in scholarship money is “pennies” to you, lol? Nick Saban: Former players pay tribute to 10 years of his impact https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.seccountry.com/alabama/nick-saban-10-years-anniversary-alabama-football-players-tribute-crimson-tide/amp

Why Alabama's Nick Saban Is One of the World's Greatest Leaders https://www.google.com/amp/amp.timeinc.net/fortune/2016/03/24/university-alabama-football-nick-saban-great-leaders According to Fortune Magazine. This never gets tiring. “Alabama coach Nick Saban and his wife Terry continue to make a difference in the Tuscaloosa community with their Nick’s Kids Foundation. The foundation donated a record $500,000 to 150 charities on Wednesday during its annual luncheon, pushing its total to $7 million during their time in Tuscaloosa.” https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.seccountry.com/alabama/alabama-football-nick-saban-donation/amp

The revenue generated by the football program supports other sports programs and the rest goes into the general budget. The success of the football program has also provided national exposure and has helped recruiting.