When the going gets tough, the tough should pack their bags for the Canadian Football League (CFL).
The CFL is the ideal setting for former Ohio State running back Maurice Clarett to get back into shape and rehabilitate an image that has taken a beating over the past two years.
The only thing better than heading to the CFL to verify his worth would be if the Denver Broncos selected him in a late round of the 2005 NFL Draft.
They have displayed a knack for finding diamond running backs in the late round rough of past drafts.
Unofficial 40-yard dash times of 4.82 and 4.72 at the NFL Scouting Combine in February and the fact that he didn’t play the past two seasons will make it hard for Clarett to be a viable draft pick.
Knowing that offensive linemen weighing over 300 pounds completed the same sprint in a little less than five seconds, Clarett improved his time to 4.67 on a turf field during a workout for NFL scouts in late March.
The tragedy is that Clarett can play and proved it in 2002 by rushing for 1,237 yards and scoring 16 touchdowns.
Not to mention he scored the game-winning touchdown for the Buckeyes in the 2002 national championship game.
He sued the NFL in September 2003 on grounds that it denied athletes the opportunity to earn a living. Lower courts ruled in favor of the NFL.
The NFL is the only major professional sport with a rule that states a player is not eligible for the draft until he is three years out of high school.
His cause culminated last week in the U.S. Supreme Court refusing to consider an appeal to overturn the lower court rulings.
However, Clarett is a gutsy individual who risked glory by squaring off with the NFL and he doesn’t have a promising skiing career in full Bloom to fall back on like the former CU standout.
The NFL should update its eligibility rule to allow an athlete to enter the draft after one year of college or even set up a minor league system.
This would be best because players would have one year to compete at the next level and reevaluate their thoughts about college, the NFL and a career after professional football.
Of course the NFL will not change the rule because college is developing players for free and in return Division I universities are raking in over one billion dollars of sports revenue per year.
There is always the chance of a career-ending injury, but if a player elects to leave college early for the NFL, he better be sure that he will be something special.
There is no doubt Clarett was in that position. Therefore nobody should fault him for wanting to showcase his talent in the NFL and create a better life for his family at such an early age.
Forget the two years of college he did not play. He paid his dues with 18 years of dodging bullets on the drug-saturated streets of Youngstown, Ohio, while living in a house with 11 cousins, two brothers, grandmother and mother.
The clash between Clarett and the NFL appears lopsided, but so did the battle between Spencer Haywood and the NBA in 1970. Haywood confronted the NBA’s eligibility rule that a player could not enter the draft until the graduation of his college class.
He schooled the NBA in court with the claim he was the only source of income for his family and had the rule changed to where it stands today. You are welcome, Kobe, K.G., Amare, Carmelo and LeBron.
Like it or not, the surge of high school and young international talent energized the NBA into a hot spot of enjoyment.
The NFL is by no means hurting for ratings, but changing the rule would give the league the same benefits. Players today are built stronger, smarter and should be able to make their own decision after one year of college and accept the consequences.
Clarett took one for the team by boldly challenging the NFL and it will make a difference down the road. But he needs to play one season in the CFL to give his image and confidence a lift.
Until that happens, reading about Clarett dressed as the Hamburglar and raiding fast food establishments for patties is more probable than first-year success in the NFL.
