Leading off today: Sportsline.com senior writer Gary Parrish says basketball coaches have already
found a way around tough new rules created by the NCAA to put so-called "diploma mills" out of business.
The NCAA had cracked down on prep schools this year with legislation stopping prospects from earning more than one core-course credit that can count toward college eligibility after their four-year high school graduation date.
But sources tell Parrish that coaches will start getting recruits classified as "learning disabled," which will make them exept from the core-credit rule. Players will be able to take multiple courses while spending an extra year in prep school -- adding credits to their transcripts while also probably raising their grade-point average.
As Parrish notes, doctors with close ties to a college program can easily find a disorder to attach to a student-athlete, such as dyslexia, A.D.D. (Attention Deficit Disorder) or A.D.H.D. (Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder). Once that's done, the Americans with Disabilities Act kicks in.
"There are some creative folks out there," said NCAA vice president Kevin Lennon. "But at some point we just have to rely on individual integrity, that the diagnosis will be legitimate."
