Jay Bilas sounds off on biggest NCAA issues

As ESPN’s College GameDay prepared for two Final Four games on Saturday night, former Duke star and college basketball analyst Jay Bilas sounded off on the multitude of issues facing the NCAA. After president Mark Emmert faced criticism and a line of questions from outgoing head coach and Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski, the world of college athletics again caught fire.

As Jay Bilas broke down his biggest complaints about the current structure of the NCAA and college athletics, he pointed to a misuse of high-ranking leaders in positions they do not hold expertise.

“The NCAA isn’t about education, the NCAA has never educated a single student,” said Bilas. “Education is up to each individual institution to take care of, that’s their purview. One of the big problems is the college presidents claim that they’re in charge. And they’re not. They don’t know what they’re doing with regard to running these sports.

“I’ll give you an example, the college presidents aren’t in charge of university hospitals. That wouldn’t go particularly well. What makes them think they can run a multi-billion-dollar entertainment industry? You have to put professionals who understand that in charge so they can make decisions in the best interest of that entity. And right now – this gigantic bureaucracy we have, it’s intentional – they don’t want accountability in this. But it makes so much money and bring so much to them.”

With harsh criticism for the current make-up of the NCAA and his belief that a separate body of industry experts belongs in charge of the well-being of athletics, Bilas creates an interesting call for new leaders.

Jay Bilas on NCAA issues

Jay Bilas further spoke about the NCAA’s biggest issues, but first identified where the organization has gotten things right and wrong over its long tenure in charge.

“The NCAA does a really good job in a number of different areas, especially running a basketball tournament,” said Bilas. “The other areas in which they’re involved, they should not be involved, and the litigation. Talking about all the issues they’re facing, the fact they couldn’t be held in lower esteem on Capitol Hill. And right now the NCAA is a serial anti-trust violator who is lobbying congress for an anti-trust exemption to keep doing what they’ve been doing for the last 100 years. And they’re not going to get it.

“It’s really an extraordinary position they’re in because of the actions and inactions we’ve seen from the leadership in the last 100 years. It’s been abysmal.”

While a wholesale change of the NCAA direction seems unlikely in the short-term, it is not the first call against the organization’s actions as they stand. As Bilas notes, continued battles in the courtroom and with the United States government have not gone their way in recent years and could force change.