When kids are growing up they often have dreams of playing a professional sport. Some even have the lucky chance of making that dream a reality. This was true of Maurice Clarrett. In the year 2002 Maurice enrolled at Ohio State University on a full-ride football scholarship.In the Buckeyes season opener in 2002, Clarrett was the first true freshman to start for them since 1943. In that season Maurice ran for One thousand Three hundred and twenty-seven yards, and seventeen touchdowns while leading the Buckeyes to the national championship (UPI 1). This would traditionally lead to a player entering the NFL draft with a good chance of being a high draft pick. Not for Maurice Clarrett. The NFL requires that a player must be out of high school for three years before they can declare for the NFL draft. Maurice challenged this rule and was at first ruled by a judge to be eligible to enter the draft on the basis that the league violated anti-trust laws; however, a federal appeals court later overturned the lower courts ruling (UPI 1). When Clarrett was first allowed to enter the draft, another underclassmen, Mike Williams of U.S.C., also declared for the draft. So, where are these players now? Are they back at thier respected universities earning a college degree and waiting their time while risking injury to declare for the draft? The answer is no. Once a player declares for the NFL draft, NCAA regulations state that a player forfeits their college eligibility. Now both of these players find themselves out of college football without a college degree, hoping that in a couple years they will be able to once again re-enter the NFL draft. Why should college athletes like Clarrett and Williams have to
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wait to enter the NFL, when they are obviously ready? They shouldn't, and that is why the NFL should change its draft age requirement law.
The main reason college athletes declar...