Washington Free Beacon contributor Robert Charette reviews assertions made by ESPN’s “Tuesday Morning Quarterback” Gregg Easterbrook in his new book, which warns that football’s very popularity risks ruining the game.

InThe King of Sports: Football’s Impact on America, Easterbrook says that hat the sport’s future is endangered by professional football being beamed into the households of amateur athletes who lack oversight.

Easterbrook also examined the role of college football in this potential future:

College football is becoming more profitable by the year for everyone connected to the sport except the players actually on the field. The call for compensating college athletes has never been louder. On top of that, the hyper-focus on football has most players neglecting their education with dreams of big NFL paydays, only to discover that 13 percent of athletes that come from the nation’s most prestigious football factories turn professional.

That doesn’t even touch the thousands of high school players who shrug off their academics for the unlikely chance of a full-ride scholarship, their parents blowing thousands of dollars on the equivalent of a lottery ticket. The high school game mimics the violence of the pro game without the sophistication of NFL safety: Mounting scientific evidence shows the dangers of playing football, with health risks beginning to show in high school students.

Easterbrook slams bowl executives who parade about as tax-exempt employees with million dollar paydays, and coaches like University of Alabama’s Nick Saban whose lavish contract rewards him despite his team’s poor graduation rate.