If you've been following along, you've seen some of the activity and quotes surrounding the recent Presidential Retreat.
The attendees focused on three key areas--financial sustainability, academic success of student-athletes, and accountability and integrity--and offered up a slew of reforms from higher academic standards and stiffer penalties for violations to simplified rules.
And you've probably seen some of the quotes:
“The presidents all came together with a very clear, strong consensus that status quo and continued order of the day is insufficient and that we need to have change in a number of key areas and we need to have it quickly,” said NCAA President Mark Emmert.
Penn State’s Graham Spanier stated rules violators “should be afraid now, if they are going to go out and break any rules – because people have had enough of that."
Fire up your favorite search engine and you'll have no problem finding many similar ideas and quotes from both the recent and distant past.
But at this point, it doesn't matter much who said what way back when. Or whose idea something was so that credit, like a patent, can be properly bestowed.
What matters is that something happens for the good of the order.
And from here, it really is starting to look like something is going to happen.
The devil, of course, will be found in his customary location. Whatever ends up happening will not please everyone. No one will get everything they want. Such is the nature of reform and deregulation.
A friend of mine had a manager once who, when it came time to implement new policies or procedures, used to tell his staff, "You're either on the train or on the track."
I'm ready to ride the rails.