Is the NCAA ever going to enforce the knee pads/pants covering the knee rule?
I doubt it. The problem is there is no real punishment for the players or the coaches. I had a game several years ago when the NCAA said they wanted us to really crack down on knee pads, etc. They said we were supposed to send the player off the field for one play or until they got it corrected. In our first game of the year, we decided we were going to make the teams toe the line. In the first 20 or so plays of the game, we sent players off the field in probably half of them. After that, we realized the players didn't really care and the coaches weren't going to make them wear the proper equipment (other than their 2-3 star players). So, we stopped worrying with it.
For NCAA games (especially Power 5), there are plenty of eyes watching. We have people in the replay booth. We have film graders watching every play to grade us. The conferences have other people watching the games. Why can't they make a note of any players not wearing proper equipment and send a bill to each head coach and AD for $XXX for each player seen with improper equipment in the game?
