In the NFL's supplemental draft, we're hardly going out on the limb to declare that the Ravens came out winners. And we can all agree that Jared Gaither, the Ravens' fifth-round selection, came out a winner, as well.
So why then does it feel like we all lost a little something?
If you have trouble following NFL draft news unless you're under the hypnotic trance imposed by Mel Kiper Jr.'s hair, here's the brief recap from last week: Gaither, a 6-foot-9, 324-pound offensive lineman, looks like he was drafted out of Stonehenge, but he was actually an academically troubled Maryland Terrapin before the Ravens selected him Thursday.
It has been an interesting few months for Gaither, who tested the NFL waters before the regular draft and decided he wanted to remain in school for his junior year, only to learn last month that he wouldn't be academically eligible to compete next fall.
So what was his punishment for essentially flunking out of college football? An NFL contract.
Gaither is an amazing talent who comes to the Ravens after a series of missteps. He didn't academically qualify for Maryland out of high school and attended a prep school. After an impressive freshman campaign with the Terps, Gaither was suspended for two weeks before last season and missed Maryland's opener. Academic problems kept him out of spring practices this year, too, and he was ruled academically ineligible just a couple of weeks ago.
One of sports' redeeming qualities is that it offers second and third chances for young athletes who tend to learn life lessons through trial and error. But it's still disheartening to see a college football program treated as little more than a bus stop for a young talent who's simply waiting for something better to come along.
I can't help but wonder what kind of message was sent to future Terps, to young Ravens fans or to prep athletes in White Plains, where Gaither was a standout basketball player even before taking up football his senior year. College football - let's just say "college" - should be viewed as something more than a waiting room.
Young student-athletes should look at a college program and have no question about priorities, about the sporting world's cause-effect relationships. Hit the books and find success. Work hard and enjoy the fruits. Listen to your coaches and bask in victory.
There's no warm and fuzzy Aesopian moral here. Put simply, a young man did the opposite of everything that your parents preach and your coaches teach. And he still found his rewards.
It's not really an indictment of the pro game - a for-profit business charged with finding the most talented athletes available. And it's not an indictment of a college program like Maryland's, where at least a couple of coaches lost plenty of sleep trying to help a young player achieve his full potential.
But it is a damning reflection on a system in which, under the biggest of cracks, a reinforced safety net is waiting to catch any lug of muscle who'd rather curl a book than open one. It reminds us that for all of the great success stories produced from college athletic programs, there are plenty of others who wouldn't read the athletic department mission statement even if accompanied by Dr. Seuss illustrations.
You have to think that the Ravens wouldn't have drafted Gaither unless they were reasonably satisfied he had learned something from the college stumbling blocks. A pro team tends to be forgiving - and by extension, unfortunately, so do the fans of a pro team. They can overlook past indiscretions. They can dismiss grades and homework and progress reports. All that matters is what a young man is capable of doing on the field of play.
For Gaither, that has never been a question. He's quick, athletic and agile. And that's exactly what makes him so frustrating.
Maryland coaches, who played a big role in helping Gaither even after it became clear he wouldn't be able to play for the Terps until 2008, would be the first to tell you that Gaither never came close to achieving his potential in a Maryland jersey. His effort - on the field and off - was always in question, and before the Terps' bowl game last December, he was bumped to No. 2 on the depth chart.
Athletically, Gaither might have the talent of an NFL player. But to become an impact player on the Ravens' roster, he'll have to show that he has learned more from his college failures than his modest successes, which is a pretty familiar theme for supplemental draft picks.
The Ravens drafted a massive block of potential Thursday, one that could fill a hole on the offensive line. With some mentoring from someone like Jonathan Ogden, that's a reasonable hope.
But even if things work out perfectly for the parties involved, supplemental picks like this one are still a black mark for scholastic sports, where we prefer to think books-before-balls is a maxim, not a myth.
rick.maese@baltsun.com
Points after -- Rick Maese
True story: On July 14, 1934 - 73 years ago yesterday - the following appeared in The New York Times: "A record that promises to endure for all time was attained on Navin Field today when Babe Ruth smashed his seven-hundredth home run in a lifetime career. It promises to live, first, because few players of history have enjoyed the longevity on the diamond of the immortal Bambino, and, second, because only two other players in the history of baseball have hit more than 300 home runs." Elsewhere in that day's edition, the Times declared that man would never visit space, that moving pictures were a passing fad and that a rookie ballplayer named Julio Franco wouldn't last long as a major leaguer.
But seriously: Anyone else wish Gary Sheffield would finally open up a bit and tell us what he really thinks?
Soccer succor: David Beckham's arrival is slightly disconcerting, but I think American sports fans are up to the challenge. It might be harder to snub soccer, but we've overcome bigger obstacles in the past. With the NFL training camps opening up soon, we'll be able to once again comfortably ignore the world's most popular sport.