Recruiting and Blame

http://collegefootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2010/02/04/kiffin-offers-13-year-old-qb-scholarship/

The above link is a story regarding the 13-year old named David Sills whom Lane Kiffin has offered a college football scholarship.

Lane Kiffin is the head coach of the football team at the University of Southern California.

Take a step back for a second. Does this seem just…wrong to you?

We’re talking about a child here who has not come close to figuring out what he really wants to do with his life; and now he’s being badgered and promised a scholarship for something 5 years down the road!

Five years in teenage years is an eternity. So much can change. What if this kid gets hurt?

What if he never develops how Kiffin envisioned he might?

His heart stands the very real possibility of being broken here.

What does this have to do with journalism ethics, you may ask?

I submit that Kiffin is the not the only one to blame for this situation.

I’d argue that the ever-increasing coverage of high school athletics has placed additional pressure on young athletes and will continue to push recruiting ages lower and lower because the notion is that America loves young phenoms.

I implore the field and journalists to think about the implications this stance could have on kids like David Sills.

Notice I didn’t say “young adult.”