There are unintended consequences for just about every rule, and the graduate transfer rule -- put in place by the NCAA five years ago to reward student-athletes -- is no different.Its forcing our hands to do something thats not good for education, one mid-major mens basketball coach said.So many of these mid-majors are getting crushed, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski told ESPN. The fifth-year transfer is the one. I hate what it does for our profession.Another mid-major head coach, who lost one of his best players to a BCS school this past offseason, told ESPN he would be slowing down the graduating process for his players in order to ensure that he doesnt lose another to the high-major ranks.When asked to elaborate specifically on what slowing down the graduating process would entail, he said instead of enrolling a player into a pair of summer school classes in two sessions, they might not have that particular player take summer school at all -- or take just one class per session. Another prevailing thought is to put players in just the minimum 12 hours of classes each semester.What kid is going to argue and want to take more classes? one mid-major coach said. There arent many.Mid-majors have been penalized for doing their jobs well due to the grad transfer rule, which allows players who earn their degrees before completing their athletic eligibility to transfer elsewhere and play immediately.Some high-major schools admitted to ESPN that they are already compiling lengthy lists before the season of those who will be eligible to leave mid-majors and play their final season elsewhere.Many admittedly will call the high school or AAU coach of a player to make their interest clear, should that player have any desire to leave. Some coaches believe that players are being contacted directly by their peers.If thats the case, thats not good for our profession, Krzyzewski said.Sure, the intention of the rule was pure -- to reward academics. College of Charleston transfer Canyon Barry will take his 4.0 GPA to Florida this season, play for the Gators and major in nuclear engineering, which wasnt offered at Charleston.But lets face it: Barry is the minority here. The vast majority of the 125 or so mens basketball grad transfers this past year will be making the move primarily for athletic reasons. There are certainly some who wind up getting their graduate degree, but many remain in school for just one year in what is almost always a two-year program to earn a graduate degree.A year ago, Cleveland State head coach Gary Waters could have trotted out a starting lineup that included Trey Lewis and Anton Grady. Instead, Lewis spent the season at Louisville. Grady took a grad transfer year at Wichita State and Waters went just 9-23 and will have some pressure on him this season instead of working on a contract extension. Both Lewis and Grady are playing professionally overseas this season.Former Drexel coach Bruiser Flint got fired after going 6-25 this past season, something that wouldnt have happened if he hadnt lost star Damion Lee, who wound up leading Rick Pitinos Louisville Cardinals in scoring a season ago.This isnt a university issue, or a student-athlete issue. Its blatantly an NCAA issue, Southern Illinois coach Barry Hinson told ESPN.Hinson just lost his starting big man, Bola Olaniyan, to Alabama.You cant blame a student-athlete for looking at their options, and you cant blame coaches for doing whats in the guidelines of the rules, Hinson added. But the NCAA needs to do something about this -- and the reason they arent is because they are running scared of a lawsuit.Kent State coach Rob Senderoff lost one of his players, Kellon Thomas, to IUPUI as a grad transfer. He nearly lost his top player, Jimmy Hall.The rule is the rule. I get that, Senderoff said. But when you have guys getting recruited off a list thats passed around to coaches on who are potential fifth-year guys, thats just wrong to me. Theres no reason a list should be going around.Jimmy ultimately decided to stay, but he and his family were being called directly by coaches. Theres no gray area on whether or not that happened. To me, thats a problem. It shouldnt be happening.According to numerous coaches -- including current National Association of Basketball Coaches chairman Jeff Jones -- the prevailing thought is that the grad transfer rule isnt going anywhere, largely due to the legal implications.My impression and what I believe is that the ship has sailed and I dont see this rule as changing, said Jones, the coach at Old Dominion.Theres a strong opinion among school presidents and higher-ups who feel that if a kid comes to school and graduates, hes done his part, St. Joes coach Phil Martelli told ESPN. I just dont see the rule going anywhere. I get it and accept it.Kentucky coach John Calipari watched his good friend, Flint, be fired months ago and said he feels as though there should be more of a commitment for the coach who is taking the grad transfer.If the kid gets his grad degree in one year, fine, Calipari said. If he doesnt, youve got to use the scholarship for two years.I think that would penalize the kid, North Carolinas Roy Williams said. Lets face it: This is a great rule for the kids and a terrible one for the coaches that lose these kids. In principle, its OK. But its not very good for college basketball.Thats the overriding thought about the rule from the college coaching fraternity. The mid-majors dont like it because their top players get plucked, and the high-majors are almost forced to utilize because their competitors are doing so. Then theres the tampering issue.There may be no ideal solution, but Caliparis suggestion would temper the rising rate in grad transfers. 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COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Texas A&Ms defense should be fine with Myles Garrett and Daeshon Hall teaming up to form perhaps the best defensive end duo in the country.Things are much less sure on offense where graduate transfer Trevor Knight takes over at quarterback after both Kyler Murray and Kyle Allen transferred in December.Knight started 10 games and threw for 2,300 yards and 15 touchdowns for Oklahoma in 2014 before being benched in favor of Texas Tech transfer Baker Mayfield before last season.But coach Kevin Sumlin saw enough from him this spring to name him starter and is confident hes the right guy to lead his high-powered offense.He filled a void for us as a quarterback who was not just a transfer quarterback but a guy who had real game experience and had some success, Sumlin said. So, for us, it was a great match.Knight had a reputation as a risk-taker at Oklahoma and his gun-slinging ways often led to turnovers. It was those miscues which contributed to his being benched last year.However, Sumlin is quick to point out that hes matured since then and he believes that losing his job helped Knight become a better player because it gave him time to evaluate his strengths and weaknesses.His ability since he came into the first team meeting and sitting there in the front row with his beard, and all of the 17- (and) 18-year-old guys are going: `Who is that old man? Didnt I see him on TV playing for Oklahoma, Sumlin said. And his ability to be humble and still be able to share his experiences and talk to our guys, its been fabulous.Some things to know about the Aggies:BIG TEST EARLYThe Aggies dont get a warm-up against a small school as many teams do. They start by hosting UCLA on Sept. 3. The Bruins were picked to win the Pac-12 South in a preseason media poll.dddddddddddd UCLA had the best pass defense in the Pac-12 last season, which will be a good test to see where Knight is at in his first game as an Aggie.ABOUT THOSE DEFENSIVE ENDSGarrett was a Lombardi Award finalist last season after leading the SEC with 12 1/2 sacks, 19 1/2 tackles for loss and five forced fumbles. Hall added seven sacks and 14 1/2 tackles for losses. Though Garrett is the bigger name of the two, both agree that a large part of their success comes from working together.If hes doing really well and starts sliding the line over to him, that would make openings for me so I could make some plays in the game or make a sack on the quarterback or get inside and make the tackle for loss, Garrett said. Hes just as effective as me.KEY GAMESAfter the UCLA game, the Aggies have just one game before they jump into Southeastern Conference play with a trip to Auburn followed by their annual Arlington, Texas meeting against Arkansas. They have a tough stretch in October where they host East division favorite Tennessee followed by a trip to Alabama, the West division favorite. Theyll close out the regular season by hosting LSU on Thanksgiving, a game that will by tough with the Tigers expected to contend with Alabama for the SEC title.PREDICTIONThe Aggies will likely be in the middle of the pack in the SEC. They arent one of the leagues bottom feeders, but probably wont be able to keep pace with the elite teams in the league. If Knight is solid and the defense does whats expected they could win nine games, but its unlikely they could do much better than that.---AP college football website: apcollegefootball.ap.org ' ' '