You know, the only difference between Ohio State running back Maurice Clarett and former Syracuse basketball star Carmelo Anthony is the NFL's antiquated eligibility rule.

Clarett enrolled in college for the same reason Anthony did. They both wanted to showcase their athletic ability, win a national championship and jump to the professional ranks as quickly as possible.

Carmelo has been allowed to do just that. No one cares if he was much of a student while enrolled at 'Cuse. Hell, he really only had to pay attention to academics for a semester. By the time the second semester rolled around, it was pretty clear that the teen-aged Anthony had all the necessary ingredients to be an NBA lottery pick. By carrying the Orangemen to the national title, Anthony came close to making himself as valuable as eventual No. 1 pick LeBron James.

Anthony is viewed as a great guy. He used college athletics to get exactly what he wanted. He doesn't have to pretend that he's all that interested in a higher education.

Meanwhile, just seven months after leading the Buckeyes to the national championship, Clarett is turning into one of the most vilified athletes this side of O.J. the Golfer. Clarett, according to the New York Times, ran his mouth about OSU athletes getting improper academic help. And he's pretty much admitted that he exaggerated to the police the value of items stolen from an expensive Monte Carlo he was test-driving.

I'm not excusing Clarett's behavior. But his behavior is pretty consistent with the actions we'd expect from a pampered 19-year-old who doesn't care about a college education. Clarett has never lied to us about who he is. He started running his mouth about turning pro soon after his first 100-yard game at Ohio State.

He's not on campus for the books. It's a shame Paul Tagliabue won't let Clarett join the league. It would save Ohio State from embarrassment. I'm sure OSU's president would rather see Clarett leave than hang around campus and make a mockery of OSU's educational integrity. Ohio State got what it wanted from Clarett -- a national title. The school is reluctant to cut him loose now because OSU officials realize they will be shredded in the court of public opinion if they boot him. Coach Jim Tressel would look like a pimp.

Tagliabue and the owners should change the NFL's eligibility rules because it's the right thing to do. And if they don't, the courts eventually will define those rules for them.

	Due to his age, Ohio State's stud running back, Maurice Clarett cannot go to the NFL even if he wanted to.

Right now, Clarett isn't eligible for the draft until after the 2004 college season, which is three years after his high school class graduated. Ridiculous. At his current pace, Clarett will embarrass himself and Ohio State at least five or six more times before he leaves campus. He's also risking injury.

The solution is simple.

The NFL should negotiate an agreement with the NFLPA stipulating that no player under the age of 21 (or at least three years removed from high school graduation) can play in an NFL preseason or regular season contest, but that allows teams to draft those players and develop them in NFL Europe or on an NFL practice squad. NFL practices are pretty much non-contact affairs. A team wouldn't expose an underdeveloped 18-year-old to a Ray Lewis or Warren Sapp decleater.

You could limit each team to having no more than two players under the age of 21 (or less than three years removed from high school).

Obviously, these young players would have far less draft value than their older counterparts. Most of them probably wouldn't get drafted and would be better served by sticking around in college and elevating their $tock.

But a guy like Clarett might feel he's better off earning $250,000 a year doing an apprenticeship under Priest Holmes than a free internship under Coach Tressel. Could the immature Clarett handle all the baggage and temptation that goes along with being a pro athlete? No. Neither can Carmelo Anthony, Kobe Bryant, Bill Clinton or anybody else.

Jason Whitlock is a regular columnist for the Kansas City Star (kcstar.com) and a regular contributor on ESPN The Magazine's Sunday morning edition of The Sports Reporters. He can be reached at ballstate0@aol.com.