I've always thought that the foosball players and staff ate pretty much better than most regular students, at least when I was in school. Apparently, in some places, it hasn't been the case. This unlimited snacks deal can certainly be a recruiting tool, since some schools will have better meals, kitchens and dining halls. But same goes for stadiums and facilities. I think this is a great thing. A football player--or any athlete in college--should not go to bed hungry due to lack of money for food. Maybe because of diet restrictions but not because of NCAA rules. Glad to see this.
http://www.al.com/auburnfootball/index.ssf/2014/04/auburn_athletes_relieved_by_nc.htmlAuburn players relieved by NCAA's unlimited snacks approval: 'There's a lot of times when guys don't eat'
Joel A. Erickson | jerickson@al.com By Joel A. Erickson | jerickson@al.com
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on April 24, 2014 at 10:57 AM, updated April 24, 2014 at 10:59 AM
AUBURN, Alabama -- Back in January, Auburn athletics director Jay Jacobs stopped in to check on the new Wellness Kitchen being built on Donahue, the new dining hall next to the Auburn athletics complex.
As Jacobs stepped through the facility and checked on the progress with the contractors, he couldn't help but refer to a cause he's been trumpeting since the fall.
"I don't know why we can't feed our athletes unlimited meals," Jacobs told the contractors.
Jacobs no longer has to worry. The NCAA Legislative Council approved a new rule ten days ago that allows schools to feed their athletes unlimited meals and snacks if the school can afford the cost, a sum that should be no problem for a school like Auburn.
Previously, student-athletes were allowed to have three meals a day or a food stipend, but that doesn't always cover everything, and athletes across the country -- none more prominently than Connecticut's Shabazz Napier -- have said they sometimes go to bed hungry because they can't afford food.
Auburn is no different.
"There's a lot of times when guys don't eat," Corey Grant said. "Other teammates have to help out, but with this, it'll help out a lot. It's a big decision."
Beyond the obvious reasons, a lack of food can set back an athlete's physical improvement.
Adding weight, building muscle, replenishing nutrients after workouts all require calories -- and not the fast-food kind -- to reach goals. At least one NFL agent told AL.com last year that part of the reason draft prospects often gain a lot of weight in the buildup to the NFL Combine is that they have proper nutrition for the first time.
Grant, a workout warrior who is considered one of Auburn's strongest players pound-for-pound knows how much that food matters.
"That's a big thing to help out with muscle development and energy," Grant said.
Athletes around the country have greeted the news with praise, part of a concerted push from administrators to make student-athletes the main focus of the NCAA instead of institutions, according to SEC commissioner Mike Slive.
"I don't know if I'm going to be here," Quan Bray said. "I hope that I'll be around for it, but it's good for those boys. We put in so much work, just to get a little bit of nothing. It's a blessing. They've been harping on it, and they got their place."
Bray, a senior, doesn't have to worry. If the NCAA Board of Directors approves the rule today as expected, the new rule goes into effect Aug. 1.
Not a moment too soon.
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