Another article I read quoted Witt as saying something like "if I skip the game, I'm not the type of leader the Rhodes committee say they want." (So, Benner, you're right...)
My guess is that the Rhodes people end up making it work so he can do both. How can you not?
And extra points to Witt for studying under Prof Merriman - I had a class with him and he's the freaking best.
This is surprising to me. The Rhodes committee used to favor athletes, so 20 years ago I would have expected them to be horrified if they scheduled a conflict like this.
<span>He should play the game. It would be tough to suddenly turn your back on your teammates when you're a leader. Rhodes is all about prestige, and with the story out, now everyone knows he's a smarty pants as well as a QB - he'll be able to get any job he wants.</span>
Only he can make that decision, but I do believe in the old conventional wisdom that the two things that one can do in one's youth that will always be relevant on their resume are a Rhodes Scholarship and a Supreme Court clerkship.
<p>Witt is not the first football player to face this dilemma. You might remember former Florida State University safety Myron Rolle, who faced a similar choice in 2008. Rolle, too, was a Rhodes finalist and had to interview for the scholarship in Birmingham, Ala. during the day, and try to make it for a crucial contest against Maryland in College Park, Md. He was able to do both because the Maryland game took place at night, and FSU had a private plane pick him up in Alabama. A police escort delivered Rolle to the game in Maryland. Rolle won the scholarship and FSU won the game. </p><p>The timing this year is not in Witt's favor. The kickoff for the 128th meeting between Harvard and Yale is set for noon on Nov. 19. The Rhodes interview could take all day - that same day. Even if Witt got the first interview at 8 a.m. Saturday, he could still be called back in the afternoon for a follow-up conversation. There have been offers of private planes, but with the possibility of a callback, they wouldn't help. </p>
maybe if Harvard flew him in the wrong direction. if any school has an interest in accomodating Yale here, it's Harvard. Why not move the game to night or play it on Friday or Monday? There aren't grown human beings who actually care about a non-FBS game with zero league championship implications, are there?
Ugh. You mean, this person who actually does not have to fudge the "athletics" requirement for the Rhodes Scholarship may be barred from interviewing because of the activity he does that demonstrates that he meets that requirement? Ugh, again.
I feel like Yale and Harvard, along with the NCAA, should be able to come up with some way of accommodating him. Football games get moved for all sorts of reasons, including television. Why not move it because you actually have someone who is a scholar-athlete and has a significant conflict? With all of the bad press about college football being a business and not focused on education, you'd think that the NCAA could see that this is a good opportunity to accommodate someone who has managed to excel academically while being an athlete.
As a Yalie, I can tell you for sure that there is no way Yale or Harvard moves The Game. Absolutely no way. More likely that the Rhodes people will move the interview.
Isaac: really? I don't think I've run across any notable Rhodes scholars, and the people I always saw getting it from my school were not the people who really, really impressed me, one exception (who didn't get it!) notwithstanding.
If he skips the game, does he deserve the Rhodes? I'm pretty sure what Cecil would say -- two years at Oxford or glory forever?
ReplyDeleteOy. But...Rhodes. I'm for playing the long game. (Also, go Crimson.)
ReplyDeleteAnother article I read quoted Witt as saying something like "if I skip the game, I'm not the type of leader the Rhodes committee say they want." (So, Benner, you're right...)
ReplyDeleteMy guess is that the Rhodes people end up making it work so he can do both. How can you not?
And extra points to Witt for studying under Prof Merriman - I had a class with him and he's the freaking best.
This is surprising to me. The Rhodes committee used to favor athletes, so 20 years ago I would have expected them to be horrified if they scheduled a conflict like this.
ReplyDeleteSkip the interview. The story will be worth so much more than the scholarship would have been.
ReplyDelete<span>He should play the game. It would be tough to suddenly turn your back on your teammates when you're a leader. Rhodes is all about prestige, and with the story out, now everyone knows he's a smarty pants as well as a QB - he'll be able to get any job he wants.</span>
ReplyDeleteWorked out for Rolle. What, Harvard doesn't have a private jet to fly him back after the interview?
ReplyDeleteOnly he can make that decision, but I do believe in the old conventional wisdom that the two things that one can do in one's youth that will always be relevant on their resume are a Rhodes Scholarship and a Supreme Court clerkship.
ReplyDeleteYeah, screw those NCAA rules. What are they going to do, take away some of Harvard's football scholarships?
ReplyDeleteFrom the article:
ReplyDelete<p>Witt is not the first football player to face this dilemma. You might remember former Florida State University safety Myron Rolle, who faced a similar choice in 2008. Rolle, too, was a Rhodes finalist and had to interview for the scholarship in Birmingham, Ala. during the day, and try to make it for a crucial contest against Maryland in College Park, Md. He was able to do both because the Maryland game took place at night, and FSU had a private plane pick him up in Alabama. A police escort delivered Rolle to the game in Maryland. Rolle won the scholarship and FSU won the game.
</p><p>The timing this year is not in Witt's favor. The kickoff for the 128th meeting between Harvard and Yale is set for noon on Nov. 19. The Rhodes interview could take all day - that same day. Even if Witt got the first interview at 8 a.m. Saturday, he could still be called back in the afternoon for a follow-up conversation. There have been offers of private planes, but with the possibility of a callback, they wouldn't help.
</p>
maybe if Harvard flew him in the wrong direction. if any school has an interest in accomodating Yale here, it's Harvard. Why not move the game to night or play it on Friday or Monday? There aren't grown human beings who actually care about a non-FBS game with zero league championship implications, are there?
ReplyDeleteDo the game. Easy choice. Apply for the Rhodes next year.
ReplyDeleteYeah, whoops. You think that of all people I would know the difference between Harvard and Yale.
ReplyDeletethere's a difference?
ReplyDeleteA world of it, and if you can't see it, you should clean your glasses.
ReplyDeleteUgh. You mean, this person who actually does not have to fudge the "athletics" requirement for the Rhodes Scholarship may be barred from interviewing because of the activity he does that demonstrates that he meets that requirement? Ugh, again.
ReplyDeleteI feel like Yale and Harvard, along with the NCAA, should be able to come up with some way of accommodating him. Football games get moved for all sorts of reasons, including television. Why not move it because you actually have someone who is a scholar-athlete and has a significant conflict? With all of the bad press about college football being a business and not focused on education, you'd think that the NCAA could see that this is a good opportunity to accommodate someone who has managed to excel academically while being an athlete.
As a Yalie, I can tell you for sure that there is no way Yale or Harvard moves The Game. Absolutely no way. More likely that the Rhodes people will move the interview.
ReplyDeleteWere you thinking of Y6le?
ReplyDeleteMove the Game? That is precisely the kind of derivative-bulldog thinking I would expect.
ReplyDeletethey've already sold the tv ads, i'm sure.
ReplyDeleteIt's just adorable how y'all seem to think that this game is important.
ReplyDeleteAnd, yes, Georgia's mascot is the bulldog because its first president went to Yale. Your point?
Isaac: really? I don't think I've run across any notable Rhodes scholars, and the people I always saw getting it from my school were not the people who really, really impressed me, one exception (who didn't get it!) notwithstanding.
ReplyDeleteMove the Game??
ReplyDelete