Ivy League Coaches -- NCAA Rules Crazy

When Ivy League coaches say the NCAA rules are crazy, you know there is something amiss! (more below)

These coaches were among the scouts on hand for the semis and finals of last week's Triple S Harley Davidson Charlie Weber Invitational at West Virginia University.

Phil Wall, the 6-0, 170 pound guard from Roanoke, VA, played his usual steady game for the Waynesboro Jayhawks who were unable to knock off the East Coast Eagles in the American Division finals.

Wall, who has a 3.4 GPA and a 1230 SAT score (plans to retake the test), is heading to Fork Union Military Academy in the fall. He said that he's looking at the Ivies for his future school. Wall was recruited by Richmond, Davidson, Princeton, Clemson, and St. Joseph's this past season.

Wall, who this past season teamed in the backcourt with Virginia-recruit J.R. Reynolds at Roanoke Catholic, helped the school to its third consecutive Virginia Independent School State Championship and their second consecutive Virginia State Catholic title.

This traditional lead guard is looking to major in media production. "I've been editing and producing videos, including highlights for our team," he added.

Wall said he's looking to raise his game. "I want to make sure I see the floor well," he said. "Coaches are helping me keep focused so that I'm playing within myself and do things that help the team. That's what they do at Fork Union."

Over the last two years, Wall had 273 assists versus 85 turnovers for a 3.2 assist to turnover ratio. At the same time, he scored 166 career three-pointers, hitting 3 or more in 22 games. He is the son of Roanoke Catholic's head coach, Dick Wall.

Now back to the NCAA rules. More than one Ivy League assistant mentioned that it's great to see good players during the evaluation period but the rules make their job much harder. For instance, these schools are looking for kids whose academic standing is at the top of the class. They can't talk to the coaches to find out where the player stands in that regard.

And they get the same limited information that all coaches get in the tournament packets. The shoe camps have the most complete data but other events are not as fortunate. Club teams don't always provide an accurate roster and, in some cases, no pre-event roster at all.

Some information may be missing. Some coaches put school year information as the completed year, some as the upcoming (rising) season. And perhaps because this was the first year for a Weber event at Morgantown, WV, a number of players opted out of this tournament. The word about the excellent facities, including a seven-court recreation center on WVU's campus, should eliminate the "go to West Virginia?" question next year.

To repeat, when schools that are academically outstanding and don't give athletic scholarship ((IVY and some Patriot teams) have trouble with the NCAA guidelines, there's something rotten in Danmark.