NCAA Coach Fined For Providing Assistance To Player Drowning In Lake

DULUTH, MN--In the latest in a series of transgressions committed by NCAA coaches, Norm Elias, an assistant coach with the University of Minnesota, has been fined by the league for providing illegal assistance to one of his players. The player in the case was freshman fullback Tom Welke, who was drowning in a lake at the time, begging for help.

According to witnesses, Elias “blatantly and knowingly” violated NCAA rules by offering and providing assistance to the drowning Welke in the form of an inner tube.

The inner tube was worth a reported $19.95.

Said Welke: “It was a hot day out, so I jumped right in even though I don’t swim too well. Then I swam out a little too far and got tired, and couldn’t swim back. I started flopping around and yelling and screaming. I really thought I was gonna die. Then Coach Elias threw me an inner tube and I was able to grab on and float to safety. Thank God for coach. He saved my life.”

Unfortunately for both Elias and Welke, he also committed a major NCAA infraction, that of offering assistance to an athlete with amateur status. For that reason he was slapped with a fine on the same day he was given a citation for bravery from the city of Duluth.

“It’s a real honor to be given this award from the city,” said Elias. “I’d do the same thing again, even though I’d probably get fired next time.”

An NCAA spokesman says that although the coach was acting to save the life of a student, it doesn’t make him exempt from the rules.

“Look, we all have to follow the rules,” said Brian Sauerbeck of the NCAA rules committee. “No matter what. I realize coach Elias was in a tough situation. If he helps the kid, he gets a fine. If he doesn’t, the kid dies. Nevertheless, these rules apply to everyone, and there is no special treatment. If we let this slip by, then how are we gonna justify punishing an agent who buys a player a new Lexus? The rules have to be enforced across the board.”

In a year that has seen Lebron James penalized for receiving a pair of retro jerseys from a sporting goods store, Maurice Clarett scrutinized for receiving favorable treatment from a teacher, and Utah coach Rick Majerus fined for buying one of his players a pizza, the Elias penalty comes as no surprise. The incident has sparked much debate on the airwaves, though, as several sports pundits offered their two cents.

“That guy should’ve known!” yelled Bob Ryan, a guest on ESPN’s Around the Horn. “The rules are very clear. No coach is allowed to provide assistance to an amateur player under any circumstances. He should not only be fined, he should be canned!”

University of Minnesota Athletic Director Barry Pierce tried to take a diplomatic approach to the issue. While he understands Elias’s desire to save a student from his drowning death, he knows that Elias broke the rules and should pay for it.

“I have the deepest respect for Coach Elias. What he did was very brave, especially when you consider saving an athlete’s life is technically an NCAA violation,” said Pierce. “The situation is very clear. He is a coach. Welke is a student. He is not supposed to assist in any way. If Welke wasn’t a football player, would Elias have thrown him that inner tube? Of course not. He would’ve let him drown, as any of us would. So in that sense, Welke received favorable treatment because of his status as a football player.”

But the incident could have ripple effects. The University of Minnesota is now said to be investigating several other instances in which coaches reportedly offered assistance to the players, including one incident where an assistant coach gave his star quarterback a nickel to scratch a lottery ticket, and another incident where head coach Bob Pratt is accused of passing the salt to one of his defensive backs during a team banquet. Head coach Pratt was unavailable for comment, but AD Pierce vowed to investigate the matters fully.

“We will accept our responsibility to police ourselves and leave no stone unturned. If we have to clean house, we’ll clean house. We can’t have coaches saving athletes lives, or giving them change, or passing them salt. These rules are here for a reason, and that is to keep everyone honest.”