John Feinstein's take on the Ancient Eight

Sorry I didn't post this yesterday, but I was reading Monday's Washington Post and came across this column by John Feinstein. He discussed two recent examples illustrating "why college athletics are such a mess."

The less important item to Buzz readers was about the John Calipari-Derrick Rose scandal. But the item he first discusses at length is a response to the Wall Street Journal article about the fall of Ivy sports.

Feinstein criticizes Ivy League administrators for their snobby attitude, such as quotes like "It's another week of being out of class. In our league, that matters" by Columbia's athletic director. (Coincidentally, commentator Ernie also called out Murphy's time away from classes excuse in response to my original post.)

The article gets a little sanctimonious in calling out pretentiousness, and of course the author of The Last Amateurs had to throw in a reference to the Patriot League. But it's still a good read on the League.

As for my opinion, as I think I've said on the blog before, I'm pro-football playoffs, anti-basketball tournament and have mixed feelings about the lack of scholarships. But it definitely can be ridiculous at times how League administrators, especially the Presidents, have a holier than thou approach to sports. On the other hand -- and sorry if you've heard me say this before -- but I strongly believe the Ivy League is the only league in America that doesn't try to maximize profitibility.