College athletes can unionize, federal agency says

[MadBurgerMaker]

I hear you, but I just don't think even AD would have been able to hold up right after high school. Now, if the argument really is *only* 'can he contribute' well then sure. A whole shit load of HS and college athletes could contribute in some way. This doesn't mean they're ready to be a regular NFL player on a regular NFL roster though. There aren't enough slots to hand them out to guys who can play 5 games a season, no matter what the dumbshit Texans front office has done in the past. 

Amobi only played for Houston that long because his contract made it hard to get rid of him iirc. He was pretty ineffective most of the time. Nice guy by all accounts though.

[Neil]

AP was getting all those carries against creampuff NCAA 'defences', not powerful NFL defences.

Okoye had the advantage of playing a low-impact position.  He was ineffective and constantly defeated, so I'm not sure if that helps your case at all.  A guy playing RB and getting teed off on by defenders would have a much rougher ride than a guy who is just getting manhandled by offensive guards.

[Valmy]

Wait what is this about Christian Okoye?

[Neil]

No, the Nigerian Nightmare was like 26 when he got drafted.  Amobi Akoye was the was the youngest first-round pick ever, and he was a bust.

[dps]

Fuck MBM, this is football. The average NFL career is between 3.5 and 6 years, depending whether you listen to the league or players association. It is a brutal sport that beats people down.

Careers aren't short because of the brutality of the sport--they're short because after 3 years or so, if you're not a star, they can replace you with a younger player who is just as good but cheaper.  I've never seen comparable stats for the NBA or MLB, but I bet the average career there (and in the NHL and MLS as well) is about the same length as in the NFL.

[grumbler]

I just want college football to be like it was in the 80s

Yeah, back in the 80s players didn't have to spend 60 hours a week on football.  Hell, if guys like Schembechler or Dooley had known that players today would be spending 80 hours a week on football, they'd spin in their graves, and they'd be right.  There is no reason why someone who is a college student should be spending 100 hours a week on football.  Now that players can form unions, at least at private schools, they can negotiate their 120-hours-a-week football requirements down to something more reasonable; the current 140 hours a week just isn't reasonable by any standard.