Categories
Sports Law

The Oklahomian Wants My Words

I have not posted on the Andy Oliver topic in a while, but that does not mean that all parties in the lawsuit are now enjoying barbecues at the pool on Sundays.  The lawsuit remains in place and Andy has still not re-gained the right to pitch for Oklahoma State.  There are still six months before the beginning of the season, though.  Andrea Cohen of The Oklahomian has continued her coverage of the Andy Oliver affair, and quoted me in her article, OSU’s Oliver continues to wait for reinstatement.

Darren Heitner, who runs sportsagentblog.com and has followed the affair closely, said that in the scheme of things any possible violations are minor.

“The problem here is that while the NCAA tries its best to distinguish advisers from agents, often times there’s a gray area,” Heitner said. “I’m not trying to draw any conclusions, but compared to a lot of the infractions you have going on this Andy Oliver affair is very small. They have a lot bigger fish to fry.”

I am all for weeding out those who violate the rules and regulations that bind our profession; however, I believe that the NCAA is appropriating way too much attention to this story when there are many larger issues that it must confront.  Do you agree?

By Darren Heitner

Darren Heitner created Sports Agent Blog as a New Year's Resolution on December 31, 2005. Originally titled, "I Want To Be A Sports Agent," the website was founded with the intention of causing Heitner to learn more about the profession that he wanted to join, meet reputable individuals in the space and force himself to stay on top of the latest news and trends.

Heitner now runs Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., which is a law firm with many practice areas, including sports law and contract law. Heitner has represented numerous athletes and sports agents as legal counsel. He has also served as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington from 2011-2014, where he created and taught a course titled, Sport Agency Management, which included subjects ranging from NCAA regulations to athlete agent certification and the rules governing the profession. Heitner serves as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Florida Levin College of Law, where he teaches a Sports Law class that includes case law surrounding athlete agents and the NCAA rules.