Illinois congressman says the NCAA is basically the mafia

Pictured: NCAA President Mark Emmert

ESPN- A Democratic congressman compared the NCAA to the Mafia over how it controls the lives of student athletes.

"I think they're just one of the most vicious, most ruthless organizations ever created by mankind," Illinois Rep. Bobby Rush said of the NCAA at a congressional forum on college sports Tuesday. "I think you would compare the NCAA to Al Capone and to the Mafia."

Rush made the accusations at the forum called to look at the impact of "back-room deals, payoffs and scandals" in college sports.

The NCAA declined to respond to Rush's comments.

Tell em how you really feel Bobby.  But who is this news to exactly? Bobby Rush isn't exactly making an outlandish statement or a shocking revelation. Mark Emmert aka capo di tutti capi or NCAA president has had a hit out on Joe Paterno for decades now, dating back to when JoePa was nothing but a footsoldier.

Everyone knows the athletes should be paid. This has been said countless times and I won't be the last to say it. College athletes are flat out exploited like a $5 Vietnamese whore. Trading millions of dollars in profit for an education that most prominent college athletes will hardly use, if they use it at all, is the biggest sham in sports. The NCAA is ignoring Econ 101 and the idea of the invisible hand. If there is incentive to get Dajuan Coleman to come to Syracuse to put asses in the seats, then there will be a market to provide him with as many strippers and as much blow as it will take to get him to come there. Don't ask me, that's straight out of the Wealth of Nations. You can take it up with Adam Smith if you've got a problem with giving recruits money or benefits. It's the way the college sports world works these days. I mean has no one in the NCAA seen the 30 for 30 about theU or SMU? Players have been getting paid for 30 years. Probably much longer than that so it's time to stop pretending that the kid with a 4.3 40-time isn't getting at least a free beej when he makes his official visit to Alabama.