Following the example of former Nebraska/Arizona State quarterback Sam Keller, former Rutgers quarterback Ryan Hart and former California quarterback Troy Taylor have filed suit against video game developer and publish EA Sports, part of Electronic Arts. The players say that EA Sports used their likenesses without permission for the popular NCAA Football game they publish annually.

In the lawsuit, which was filed by attorney Keith McKenna, accuses EA Sports of "unjust enrichment." They say that the use of their names and images without permission in an invasion of privacy for commercial purposes.

A spokesperson for EA Sports has said that the company, NCAA, and Collegiate Licensing Company have all reviewed the case and don’t believe that their claims have merit. The company says it has not violated any NCAA bylaws or athlete rights laws.

Do you think it’s fair for a video game to include a real person without that person’s permission?

Image: Amazon

Since being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in January, NCAA president Myles Brand hasn’t made many public appearences. This past Sunday, however, Brand came out for the Pathfinder Award Ceremony, where he was honored along with Jack and Barbara Nicklaus and the WNBA’s Tamika Catchings.

Myles Brand, Image: Newscom

Brand’s acceptance speech was less than five minutes long, but it’s more than most expected. He didn’t come to the NCAA’s annual Washington, D.C. convention, nor did he make trips to San Antonio or Orland to pick up other awards he won.

Although he was noticably thinner and appeared weak, Brand’s spirits were good, and sources close to the family say he’s doing as well as can be expected. Said Brand that night,

“It’s been my great pleasure to help lead the work of the NCAA these past seven years. I believe it’s a great mission, and we are now harvesting the benefits of our hard work.”

On Monday, the Associated Press and a number of other Florida media outlets banded together to sue the NCAA and Florida State. Recently, FSU received a response about their academic cheating scandal, and the school chose to keep these documents private while responding themselves. However, the press says that this is a blatant violation of Florida’s open government laws.

Everyone wants to know what’s in those documents. The NCAA had previous annonced that they’d strip coach Bobby Bowden of a number of wins, and this documnt is in response to an appeal of that decision. Bowden’s in the running to become the most winningest major football coach of all time, trailing Penn State’s Joe Paterno by just one win.

President T.K. Wetherell, Image: Newscom

FSU President T.K. Wetherell, who recently announced that he was ready to retire, is named as a defendent in the lawsuit. He says that its his job to protect the school and he’s bound to get sued occasionally.

About a month ago, I wrote a post about USC’s Tim Floyd and how there were rumors circulating that he “bought” OJ Mayo. An investigation by the NCAA ensued and is still underway. Yet, Tim Floyd took matters into his own hands and recently resigned as head coach.

Tim Floyd resigned on Tuesday, perhaps due to speculation about NCAA recruiting violations concerning former player, OJ Mayo.

I know that you are innocent until proven guilty, but when you bow out like this it only makes everyone think that you are guilty. According to Rivals.com, “Floyd didn’t address the allegation in his letter to USC athletic director Mike Garrett, which was obtained by the Clarion-Ledger and also released by USC in a statement.”

In the letter, Floyd said he was resigning due to lack of enthusiasm. I find that hard to believe. He has only been USC’s head coach for four seasons. Maybe he was forced to resign, or maybe he felt that the Yahoo! Sports report about the alleged allegations had tainted his career at USC. Whatever the real reason is doesn’t matter. Floyd’s coaching career will be tainted no matter where he goes.

USC, meanwhile, is now dealing with two separate investigations into the school’s football and basketball programs.

“The University is cooperating fully in the continuing investigation with the NCAA and Pac-10 into all allegations of NCAA and Pac-10 rules violations at USC,” USC vice president Todd Dickey said in a statement Tuesday. “The university, the NCAA and Pac-10 have jointly conducted interviews of approximately 50 witnesses. No conclusions have yet been reached. … At this point, it would be both inappropriate and premature to comment further.”

Unfortunately, I have to disagree with Dickey. Conclusions by the media and the general public have already been reached. And they aren’t good.

Photo: Zuma

Derrick Rose quickly went from the NBA’s 2009 Rookie of the Year (and the Chicago Bulls’ savior) to the center of an NCAA investigation into allegations that he had someone take the SAT test for him so that he could play at Memphis.

Derrick Rose is currently at the center of NCAA investigation into his academic eligibilty at Memphis.

According to the Chicago-Sun Times, his high school grades were even altered to help him stay academically eligible.

The investigation has once again brought attention to the NBA’s age regulation rule, in which players have to be at least 19 years old in order to play professional basketball.

Dan Wetzel, Yahoo! Sports, asks: “Why the heck did he have to take [the SAT test]  in the first place?”

He makes a good point. Rose could have avoided this scandal altogether if he had simply been able to jump directly to the NBA from high school instead.

As Wetzel argues effectively:

“No one cared when Danica Patrick went pro as a race car driver at 16. No one tried to prevent Shawn Johnson from winning an Olympic gold at the same age or Miley Cyrus from making millions singing and acting with her dad even younger than that. And no one ever required them to recognize analogies before doing so. So why do we make Derrick Rose?”

Why, indeed.

Image: Zuma

And not the kind you spread on a turkey sandwich, either.

According to Yahoo! Sports, Tim Floyd paid a man named Rodney Guillory,who helped deliver O.J. Mayo to the Trojans program.

Tim Floyd is under investigation for reportedly paying someone to bring O.J. Mayo to USC.

This information was given by a former friend of Mayo’s, Louis Johnson, who told NCAA officials (as well as the FBI, IRS and U.S. Attorney’s Office) that Floyd gave at least $1,000 in cash to Guillory so that he could continue to ply Mayo with star treatment and numerous gifts.

Didn’t USC learn anything from the Reggie Bush scandal? The college is already under a three-year investigation for violating NCAA regulations in both the football and men’s basketball programs.

But beyond all of that, I have one important question.  Was O.J. Mayo even worth it?

Image: Newscom

We’ve been saying it for years - the Bowl Championship Series isn’t fair. The NCAA might not be ready to admit that, but now (finally) the government is getting involved. Congress is examining antitrust issues involving the BCS that could change the system for good. Yay.

Senator Orrin Hatch, Image: Newscom

The push for hearings came from Republican Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah, which isn’t surprising give last year’s BCS outcome. Hatch also happens to be on the Senate’s Judiciary subcommittee on antitrust, competition policy, and consumer rights. The subcommittee says that Hatch plans to offer an alternative to the current BCS system, and while no details have yet been announced, everyone is suspecting a playoff system.

President Barack Obama and a number of senators and representatives have already spoken out about the unfair nature of the BCS. I don’t have to explain the issues to you, but the most common point cited was that some conferences get automatic BCS bids while others don’t. That leaves half of all schools at a major disadvantage for qualifying for the millions up for grabs in the series.

Other legislation being considered right now, introduced by Representative Joe Barton, would require any NCAA game called a “nation championship” to be the culmination of a playoff system.

In ten games of Candace Wiggins’ professional career with the Minnesota Lynx, she’s already lost the same amount of games that she lost all of last season with the Stanford Cardinal.

She’s doing well so far, averaging more than 17 points per game and leading the league with just under 4 assists per game, but she talks about the transition in this AP article via USA Today.

Photo from Newscom.

When prompted at a recent autograph session, your favorite WNBA rookie Candace Parker belted out “Rocky Top.” Courtesy of WBIR.com.

Dawn Staley is expected to be introduced as the next head coach at the University of South Carolina this weekend, according to a report in The State. (Hat tip to She’s Got Game for the find).

Staley, highly recognized as one of the best women’s basketball players ever, was the winningest head coach in Temple’s history. According to The State, she will make a base salary of $250,000 with a chance to earn about $650,000.

(Photo love goes to Newscom)