So you’re a college baseball team and you’re trying to find someone to throw out a first pitch at your upcoming game. It so happens that a onetime area high schooler is an American Idol finalist, and the show wants to do a return-to-home episode. (Yes, American Idol is still on. I checked.) But wait -- make sure you have your NCAA waiver cleared first!
American Idol Finalists Are Welcome At NCAA Baseball Games... With A Waiver
The NCAA is allowing an finalist to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at a North Carolina State baseball game -- as long as the Wolfpack don't recruit him.
Scotty McCreery was evidently a quality pitcher at nearby Garner High School during his sophomore year -- they don’t do sabermetrics at the high school level, but he had a 1.07 ERA -- so it’s not unfathomable that N.C. State might try to get McCreery to pitch for the Wolfpack. And, for most high-school students, it’s reasonable to expect that the kind of publicity that might come along with a televised opening pitch might be the kind of thing that would give a school an unfair advantage.
But, again, McCreery is appearing on America Idol this season. Forgive us if we doubt that he will be so starry-eyed from the camera’s glare that no other school would have a chance at McCreery -- assuming he doesn’t win American Idol. At which point, we doubt he would be returning anyone’s calls.
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