Faulk Faces a Legal Fight to Enter NFL

Oh, my. Uh-oh. Oh, no.

Those were a few of the reactions heard from NFL scouts who turned on their TV sets last week to watch San Diego State running back Marshall Faulk rush for 299 yards in a 45-38 victory over Brigham Young.

Oh, my . . . because Faulk appears to be the second coming of Barry Sanders.

Uh, oh . . . because scouts realize what’s on the horizon.

Oh, no . . . because what’s on the horizon is the first full-scale battle over the NFL’s rule that players must be three years removed from high school before they can petition the league for entry.

Faulk is a true sophomore. If he attempts to take the seemingly inevitable course of turning pro after the 1992 season, NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue is on record as saying the league would defend its three-year rule.

It probably was foolish for Tagliabue to promise college coaches he would defend that rule in court.

Tagliabue has no chance of winning. If Faulk or any other freshman or sophomore challenges the NFL rule in court, the league will waste a lot of money and energy.

But it’s what the NFL has to do to convince college coaches that fighting the underclassmen issue is, in fact, a losing cause.

The crazy thing about it is that NCAA Executive Director Dick Schultz has informed Tagliabue that Schultz would have to testify against the league if it bars underclassmen.

This isn’t an endorsement of freshmen and sophomores playing in the NFL. But when a Marshall Faulk comes along, as we knew he would, who is to tell him he can’t choose to pursue the riches that await him?