Ok, if you’ve missed what’s going on here, ESPN worked with a booking agency that didn’t do its due diligence and allowed ESPN to broadcast a “high school” game this weekend between IMG Academy, one of the top athletic showcase programs/high schools in the country, and something called Bishop Sycamore, which is many things, evidently none of which are a high school. Turns out, it’s a big scam, and it involves kids being put in some dangerous situations, with things happening like two games being played in three days and reports from former players of having to steal groceries in order to eat. Remarkable stuff, and arguably the most remarkable part is that the scammers said, “You know what would help our scam? Getting on national television and playing the best high school football players this nation has to offer.” Admirable self-confidence there.
Anyway, beyond the whole make-sure-the-kids-are-ok thing, which is hopefully being covered by someone qualified to make sure kids are ok, the second priority here is clearly learning from Bishop Sycamore’s successes, which include getting former junior college athletes on a high school field against good high schoolers, and on national television no less.
If the NCAA’s demise is teaching us anything, or if the one-and-done stuff has taught us anything, or if UNC having that “academic program” that was neither academic nor a program taught us anything, it’s that student-athletes don’t need to be students. Similarly, high school athletes don’t need to be high schoolers. Really. What? Are you going to stop me? Are you going to stop me from pulling together an outlaw team of junior college alumni and calling up ESPN saying, “Hey boss, I’ve got an IMG challenger for you,” then proceeding to unleash 55 of the largest gentlemen I can find upon the next crop of great SEC talent? This would be way better television than actual high schoolers playing actual high schoolers. People love football games between different classes of humanity. They also love crime. That’s why The Longest Yard got a remake.
As long as we can pull this off in a way where no one dies and the players are fed and housed, I don’t see a problem with making IMG Academy play a schedule full of world-weary 20-year-olds.
ESPN, lean into this.
