Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/377020
FAN FORUM policy. Otherwise, treat the students involved in the "academic fraud" with the same leniency you apply to yourself. 3. What do these events have to do with abandoning wins from the past? Were any of the students in school illegally? Had any of them already used their years of athletic eligibility? Were their high school records valid? Many universities with top-rated football teams have courses designed for the athletes that are not in the least consistent with col- lege-level performance (North Caro- lina is the not the only culprit in this fraud). Their players and coaches must be looking at Notre Dame, scratching their heads in disbelief. Ed LaNeve East Liverpool, Ohio THE WAITING GAME The situation surrounding the sus- pension of five football players, and possibly others in other sports, is dis- appointing but not tragic. A handful of cheaters out of more than 10,000 students is no big surprise to anyone with a realistic view of the world. If these kids cheated they should be dis- missed, but no one has actually said that they did and that ineptitude on the part of the administration is unac- ceptable. Father John Jenkins and Jack Swarbrick tell us that inappropriate tests and homework were reported to them on July 29 and they reported that to the NCAA on Aug. 15. The players were suspended sometime during that pe- riod. The administration has had a month to find out if a couple of kids were cheating on their tests and homework, but no decision has been made. Why? How long does it take to inter- view a teacher and a couple of kids? Jenkins says in an inter- view that there is no im- mediate timetable for the investigation. That would be fine if there were no other consider- ations, but there are. These kids have a limited time frame in which to display their talents and those talents could lead to lucrative careers after college. If they are guilty, it doesn't mat- ter, they should be dismissed. But if they're not, it matters a lot, and they will be punished for the administra- tion's inability to get off its butt and function. This is not a complicated murder case, although anything that involves football at this university seems to attract at least that much attention. They've had a month to find out if a couple of kids cheated on their tests. If they can't function well enough to do that, then they should step out of the way, reinstate the kids and let the world get back on its axis. Bill DeSeta '58 Via the Internet Some Irish fans are not pleased with how uni- versity president Father John Jenkins has handled the academic fraud inves- tigation at Notre Dame. PHOTO BY JOE RAYMOND