Former college stars lend support for O’Bannon lawsuit plaintiffs

A number of former college football standouts have signed their support for the plaintiffs in the Ed O’Bannon lawsuit against the NCAA. Among the names signing a statement of support are SMU legend Eric Dickerson, Houston Texans running back Arian Foster and ESPN college football analyst and former Heisman Trophy winner Desmond Howard. The lawsuit, which targets the NCAA’s use of player likenesses, is scheduled to go to trial later this summer, although a judge has encouraged both sides to negotiate some sort of agreement.

The statement of support was obtained by Jeremy Fowler of CBSSports.com. The statement came through the law office of Michael Hausfield, the lead attorney representing O’Bannon, a former UCLA basketball player, and the growing list of defendants added over the course of the potentially groundbreaking lawsuit’s lifespan. It reads as follows;

“We, athletes who competed in NCAA sponsored collegiate sporting events, express our full support of and agreement with the lawsuit brought by Ed O’Bannon on behalf of current and former collegiate athletes against the National Collegiate Athletic Association. Further, we wish to call attention to the compelling need for dramatic change in the relationship between college athletes and the NCAA and respect for athlete rights.”

In addition to Dickerson, Foster and Howard, some of the other more notable names from the football world to sign the statement are Lendale White, Thurman Thomas, and Gino Marchetti. You can see the full list of football and basketball players to have signed the document in Fowler’s report.

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