By James Kratch | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

CHICAGO — Jim Harbaugh gave it away.

When the Michigan coach - a guy who a year ago wouldn't produce a roster - begrudgingly said he would be "fine" with the institution of player injury reports during his press conference at Big Ten Media Days, it was a clear signal the league office and athletic directors have told coaches it's happening following the legalization of sports betting, and they have to get on board in order to try to insulate the sport from gambling-related scandals.

Harbaugh wasn't alone. No league coach did anything but support the idea at the two-day event. But they did make one thing clear: If an injury report is necessary, the specifics must be drawn for them, and everyone has to play along.

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Annie Rice | AP Photo

"I really wish college football would end up being like the NFL," Rutgers coach Chris Ash said. "There would be a standard procedure of how injuries are dealt with and reported. But there's not. Until that happens, I think everyone's going to operate on what's best for their programs. What's best for the program isn't necessarily worrying about sports gambling."

That is why this is a good idea that, upon further review, is likely to be quite difficult to put into action. Some thoughts:

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It has to be a national system:

Some coaches mentioned the idea of a conference-run injury report, but that would be no different than the SEC playing eight conference games while the Big Ten plays nine. If there are going to be several different reporting practices of varying degrees of accuracy and transparency across the major leagues, it becomes a worthless endeavor bound to cause chaos when it comes to non-conference matchups and bowl games. College football needs a uniform system for every team in every conference.

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David J. Phillip | AP Photo

But does anyone trust the NCAA to do it right?

There are 130 FBS teams and 125 FCS teams in 2018. That means at least 255 injury reports (and thousands of players) the NCAA has to monitor and keep honest on a weekly basis, depending on whether injury reports are also established for Divisions 2 and 3.

Even if one is willing to give the NCAA the benefit of the doubt on competency, it would still be a herculean task to keep tabs on everyone and make sure all procedures are being followed. The NFL only has 32 teams of 53 players to review, and it still has situations where issues arise and need to be investigated.

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Injuries and availability:

If the idea is to maintain the integrity of the game, coaches have to be made to list players who are academically eligible, suspended or subject to discipline in addition to the injured players. That has to be non-negotiable, even though there will likely be plenty of pushback.

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Privacy concerns and HIPAA:

This likely wouldn't be the major issue some have suggested. Specific injuries, many of which will be obvious when they happen in a game, or non-injury issues don't necessarily have to be officially explained or recorded on reports. The old Kyle Flood system could be used - upper body and lower body - or schools could simply grade a player's availability status as out, doubtful, game-time decision, will play, et cetera.

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Are schools going to allow media access to every practice?

A period of every NFL practice is open to local reporters, who then report on player attendance and activity level prior to the release of the day's injury report. Gamblers don't just bet on Thursday when the game status report would come out (based on the NFL's model of reporting statuses on Fridays before Sunday) through kickoff on Saturday, so colleges would need to have post-practice reports during the week.

Are coaches going to let the media into practice each day to take attendance and observe which players are doing what? If the reporting system is going to work, and be transparent, the answer has to be yes.

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How deep into the weeds?

Every injured player on an NFL roster is theoretically on the report, but there are only 53. Many FBS programs have over 100 players. If the walk-on long snapper has a twisted ankle, is he making the list? Or are injury reports reserved for the two-deep? It likely has to be everyone, because coaches would inevitably try to game the system by fudging depth charts.

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Our suggestion:

This is how a smart, efficient college football injury reporting system would work:

• While the public does not receive specific reasons for a player's inclusion on the injury report unless directly revealed by a coach or player, the NCAA or the overseeing body must receive detailed explanations from the schools in order to properly monitor reporting practices.

• Schools have to release a report after each midweek practice that lists each player on the team that was limited or did not practice. Reporters must be allowed to observe each practice for a set period of time in order to observe. Schools should note whether a listed player's appearance was due to an injury or a non-injury matter.

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John Munson | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

• On Thursdays (or two days before game day), schools have to give each player who appeared on the injury report a game status - out, game-time decision, will play - as well as indicate whether it is due to injury or a non-injury matter. Schools will be required to convey any changes following that report to the public in a timely manner.

• On game day, schools must announce if a player on the report will or will not dress 90 minutes before kickoff.

• Any dramatic changes (i.e. an out player is suddenly upgraded to will play, or a player not on the injury report is a late scratch) or unexpected personnel decisions (such as a key player dressing but not playing) will be subject to investigation. If a school is found to have broken reporting guidelines or skirted the system, coaches and schools are subject to fines, suspensions and potential sanctions, including scholarship and bowl eligibility losses.

• The bottom line: College football injury reports have to be honest - a concept the sport often struggles mightily with. It's a good idea, but the road to it will be a bumpy one.

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James Kratch may be reached at jkratch@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JamesKratch. Find NJ.com Rutgers Football on Facebook.