Kent Graham is 100 percent right that his son, quarterback Taylor Graham, should have his eligibility restored and be allowed to play for the University of Hawaii this football season.

His contention that Taylor’s departure from Ohio State was precipitated by a coaching change is valid and should be grounds for the NCAA waiving its mandatory redshirt year for Division I transfers.

It is a well-reasoned and just argument which is why, of course, the NCAA hasn’t implemented it before and will summarily reject it now.

Let’s put it this way: UH might have a better chance of upsetting Southern California Sept. 1 than us seeing Taylor throw a pass against the Trojans in the Coliseum that day.

If coaches can change schools at will — and they can, as demonstrated by the particularly egregious moves by John L. Smith and Todd Graham this year — then the athletes should be afforded no less of an opportunity.

Especially when circumstances have changed though no fault of their own.

When the Buckeyes bounced head coach Jim Tressel for playing hide-and-seek with responsibility and truth and then passed on interim coach Luke Fickell, the pro-style passing offense that Graham had been recruited to run went with them. The spread option offense that new head coach Urban Meyer brought with him was not what Graham had signed up to run or been suited for.

Graham had no role in the scandal that brought down Tressel, he was collateral damage. So, why punish him or force Ohio State to keep somebody who doesn’t want to be there?

The reason is that, for all the high-minded talk about student-athletes, scholarship athletes are viewed more as chattel than equal partners in the college athletics equation. Football coaches can bolt overnight — or at 4 1/2 months without having coached a game, in Smith’s case, with near impunity. They might have a buy-out clause in their contract, but rarely anything that will deter a move.

But if a player who has yet to graduate wants to make a move, it means sitting out a season. And, depending upon the circumstances, maybe doing it without a scholarship. Never mind that the coaches who recruited him and sold him on a particular set of circumstances are long gone or that his skill-set no longer suits the job.

Colleges, especially the marquee ones, spend fortunes recruiting players and they want to protect their investments. They put big bucks into hiring coaches — as well as athletic directors, chancellors and presidents — but that merry-go-round is considered free market and part of doing business.

Graham’s request is a reminder of where the NCAA needs to move. And one of these days, the NCAA might come around to understanding and better dealing with the plight of players such as Graham.

Unfortunately, don’t bet on it happening in time for him to line up against USC in this season opener.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.