2010-2011 College Football Thread

[Lyle]

NCAA rules Auburn's Cam Newton is eligible to compete

The NCAA has cleared Auburn in its recruitment of quarterback Cam Newton and has ruled him eligible to compete...

The NCAA's statement said:

"Auburn University football student-athlete Cam Newton is immediately eligible to compete, according to a decision today by the NCAA student-athlete reinstatement staff. The NCAA concluded on Monday that a violation of amateurism rules occurred, therefore Auburn University declared the student-athlete ineligible yesterday for violations of NCAA amateurism rules."

There are no penalties against Auburn or Newton, and no wins are in jeopardy.

Link

I get the gist of it, obviously, but can someone translate what that second-to-last sentence means?

"The NCAA concluded on Monday that a violation of amateurism rules occurred, therefore Auburn University declared the student-athlete ineligible yesterday for violations of NCAA amateurism rules."

Update: From another story:

The NCAA concluded on Monday that a violation of amateurism rules occurred, therefore Auburn University declared the student-athlete ineligible yesterday for violations of NCAA amateurism rules.

When a school discovers an NCAA rules violation has occurred, it must declare the student-athlete ineligible and may request the student-athlete's eligibility be reinstated. Reinstatement decisions are made by the NCAA national office staff and can include conditions such as withholding from competition and repayment of extra benefits. Newton was reinstated without any conditions.

and this:

"Our members have established rules for a fair and equal recruitment of student-athletes, as well as to promote integrity in the recruiting process," said Kevin Lennon, NCAA vice president for academic and membership affairs. "In determining how a violation impacts a student-athlete's eligibility, we must consider the young person's responsibility. Based on the information available to the reinstatement staff at this time, we do not have sufficient evidence that Cam Newton or anyone from Auburn was aware of this activity, which led to his reinstatement. From a student-athlete reinstatement perspective, Auburn University met its obligation under NCAA bylaw 14.11.1. Under this threshold, the student-athlete has not participated while ineligible."

 

[steve2112]

I actually think Mullen would be a better hire than Chuckie
He wouldn't have the star power and hype, but I think his results would be better



I don't think we really needed that to show us the BCS is screwed up
I mean, didn't we all already know that?

No, Mullen would be a terrible fit for Miami. They want a pro style offense, not the spread. (I saw that on one of their message boards) He only has two years experience, and only one winning season. Nope, Mullen should be the LAST coach they consider. Listen to Donald Trump and hire Mike Leach.

We all knew the BCS was screwed up, but it's just another example.

 

[The.316]

No, Mullen would be a terrible fit for Miami. They want a pro style offense, not the spread. (I saw that on one of their message boards) He only has two years experience, and only one winning season. Nope, Mullen should be the LAST coach they consider. Listen to Donald Trump and hire Mike Leach.

We all knew the BCS was screwed up, but it's just another example.

Mike Leach will NEVER be the head coach of the Hurricanes, never! He lost out four years ago when he walked into his interview in Coral Gables with shorts and flip flops on. The guys character is not what Hocutt or Shalala are looking for.

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

I actually think Mullen would be a better hire than Chuckie
He wouldn't have the star power and hype, but I think his results would be better

I agree 100%. If Miami can steal Mullen away (and I'm not sure they would be able to), they should go for it immediately.

No, Mullen would be a terrible fit for Miami. They want a pro style offense, not the spread. (I saw that on one of their message boards)

Fans don't hire coaches. What type of offense/defense the fans want almost never plays into the hiring decision, unless you are talking about the individual "fans" with millions of dollars hanging over the ADs'/Univ. Presidents' heads.

Mike Leach will NEVER be the head coach of the Hurricanes, never!

I think Leach is as close to unhireable as you can possibly get right now, but I wouldn't rule him completely out, either. Someone (be it Miami, or more likely a smaller program) will get desperate and bring him in with the (unfounded) hope that he won't be a total douche and sue the school every time they make a move he doesn't like. What Miami should really do is look at Dennis Franchione. Very few coaches have made the Canes look better in recent years than he did (when he was at A&M).

 

[steve2112]

I agree 100%. If Miami can steal Mullen away (and I'm not sure they would be able to), they should go for it immediately.



Fans don't hire coaches. What type of offense/defense the fans want almost never plays into the hiring decision, unless you are talking about the individual "fans" with millions of dollars hanging over the ADs'/Univ. Presidents' heads.



I think Leach is as close to unhireable as you can possibly get right now, but I wouldn't rule him completely out, either. Someone (be it Miami, or more likely a smaller program) will get desperate and bring him in with the (unfounded) hope that he won't be a total douche and sue the school every time they make a move he doesn't like. What Miami should really do is look at Dennis Franchione. Very few coaches have made the Canes look better in recent years than he did (when he was at A&M).

Look, I don't care who they hire as long as it isn't Dan Mullen.

Here is the official NCAA statement on the Cam Newton thing. I suppose this about wraps things up, with Newton and Auburn getting out free and clear. The moral of the story? It's perfectly ok to pimp out your kid as long as the kid isn't aware of it and you don't get anything for it.

I find it very hard to believe Cam Newton didn't know what his dad was doing. I also think they couldn't find any concrete proof that Auburn boosters did actually cough up the money.

 

[Lyle]

I also think they couldn't find any concrete proof that Auburn boosters did actually cough up the money.

Yes. It's a shame that you have to have evidence for those sorts of things.

 

[steve2112]

Yes. It's a shame that you have to have evidence for those sorts of things.

Look, this proves that Cecil Newton solicited money for Cam to play at MSU. Are we to believe that he suddenly saw the error of his ways, repented, and decided NOT to solicit Auburn for money after we refused? He was shopping Cam's services, pure and simple, and I find it hard to believe he stopped after one failed attempt.

Plus, this opens the door for all kinds of violations. Shop the recruit around until you get an taker, then claim the recruit didn't know. The worst than can happen is you get limited contact with the school.

The other thing that ticks me off about this is that we had a similar circumstance with one of our basketball players, Renardo Sidney. His parents were accused to getting benefits while he was in high school, including shoes and other goodies. The NCAA started its investigation in spring of 2009, and didn't hand down its ruling until halfway through the 2009/2010 basketball season. Then it ruled him ineligible for that season, and ruled he has to sit out the first 9 games of this season for much lesser offenses.

Also, if I were North Carolina, I would be very upset. They lost several good players to lesser offenses this year.

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

This isn't the end of the Cam Newton thing. There is going to be a long, drawn-out investigation just like there was with Reggie Bush, and in the end Auburn will be vacating all its wins from this season (and any championships it wins) and Auburn will get hit with some (likely minor) sanctions. Meanwhile, just like Bush, Cam Newton and family will be rolling in the NFL dough and won't care one bit about what they did.

 

[nobunaga209]

^^sad but very true. This whole mess is a joke. Hey NCAA word to the wise, "Where there's smoke...there's fire!"

 

[MacDawg]

Hmmmmm
AJ Green sells his jersey for a couple of bucks for Spring Break, and actually gives the money back
And he has to sit for 4 games

*shakes head*

 

[steve2112]

Hmmmmm
AJ Green sells his jersey for a couple of bucks for Spring Break, and actually gives the money back
And he has to sit for 4 games

*shakes head*

Well, if his parents had sold the jersey and he didn't know about it, everything would be just fine.

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

Yeah Green should have been smart enough to use a middle man.

 

[dmr727]

The NCAA doesn't want Cam to have to sit for the title game - it's bad for business. They'll wait for him to head to the pros before sticking it to Auburn.

 

[MacDawg]

The NCAA doesn't want Cam to have to sit for the title game - it's bad for business. They'll wait for him to head to the pros before sticking it to Auburn.

And to TCU or whoever

Source: 'Zero chance' Gruden to Miami

If Gruden takes himself out of the mix, Miami might look to Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen.

Mullen, a former Florida assistant, is coming off a successful second season in Starkville. In addition to going 8-4 and getting the Bulldogs to their second bowl game in the past nine seasons, part of Mullen's attractiveness to Miami is his defensive coordinator, Manny Diaz. He's a Miami native whose father is a former two-term mayor of the city.

There is a chance Mullen and Diaz would not be a package deal to Miami, however. If Mullen were to leave, Diaz would be considered one of the top candidates to replace him at Mississippi State.

 

[The.316]

And to TCU or whoever

Source: 'Zero chance' Gruden to Miami

It has to be a packaged deal. Diaz would be a great D coordinator for us, and while Im not a fan of the spread offense, this is a very good tandem to bring in here. I think they would recruit very well, and why they arent the sexy Gruden pick, I think they would suit the team better than Gruden would, long term. Im just glad that this drama is done with.

 

[CorvusCamenarum]

This isn't the end of the Cam Newton thing. There is going to be a long, drawn-out investigation just like there was with Reggie Bush, and in the end Auburn will be vacating all its wins from this season (and any championships it wins) and Auburn will get hit with some (likely minor) sanctions. Meanwhile, just like Bush, Cam Newton and family will be rolling in the NFL dough and won't care one bit about what they did.

You also left out that some poor kid who played it straight and didn't have his pappy pimping him out is probably going to get screwed out of a Heisman.

But you're absolutely correct in that by the time it's all over, it won't matter.

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

Get ready for a miserable few days (or weeks), steve2112. Having your coach be the target of other, "better" (at least some people think so) jobs is miserable. We had to go through it in basketball when Arkansas (didn't get our coach) and Kentucky (did get him) came after Billy Gillispie a few years ago, then again last year when Oregon came hard after Mark Turgeon. They didn't get him, but it was a miserable couple of weeks as the rumors flew.

It is being reported that Alabama offensive coordinator Jim McElwain has interviewed for the Colorado job.

Looks like Colorado is now focusing on Alabama's OC after striking out with Air Force coach Troy Calhoun. In case any of you felt a breeze coming from Texas, that was all of Aggieland letting out a sigh of relief (for now) that our DC won't be headed back to Colorado Springs to be the head coach at his alma mater.

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

The fallout in Austin from the suckfest known as the Longhorns' 2010 football season appears to be underway...

Multiple sources have confirmed to Orangebloods.com that Texas will replace offensive coordinator Greg Davis.

My two cents: Greg Davis is not the problem and firing him won't fix anything.

 

[dmr727]

My two cents: Greg Davis is not the problem and firing him won't fix anything.

I'll admit that I haven't liked him for a long time - even when we were winning. But I'm not a fan of the coaching carousel either. What do you suppose the solution is? I'm willing to do nothing and see what they can do next season - perhaps it was just a freak season where the staff lost the team.

 

[MacDawg]

Ohio St. president: Football not my arena

Ohio State president E. Gordon Gee says in the future, he will stick to running the university and leave comments about college football to the experts.

"What do I know about college football? I look like Orville Redenbacher. I have no business talking about college football," he said Wednesday, according to The Columbus Dispatch.

More than a week ago, Gee said teams in the major conferences such as the Big Ten and SEC are more deserving to play for the BCS national championship because they play tougher competition every week. "We do not play the Little Sisters of the Poor," he said.

That didn't go over very well at TCU and Boise State, both of which at the time were hoping to turn undefeated seasons into a case for inclusion in the Tostitos BCS National Championship Game.

Boise State (10-1) lost to Nevada (No. 17 BCS, No. AP) last weekend, and is No. 11 BCS, No. 9 AP.

TCU is 12-0, and No. 3 in both standings.

Observers said Gee's comments fueled the perception that the so-called power conferences suffer from arrogance. It also was noted that according to Jeff Sagarin's computer ratings, Ohio State's strength of schedule, rated No. 64 in college football's top level, was comparable to Boise State (62) and TCU (76).

Gee told the Dispatch he has since decided, "I need to keep my mouth closed."

"I'm very blessed to have the best athletic director and best football coach in the country," Gee said, the newspaper reported. "They run the athletic program and I run the university, and I should have stayed out of there. What I should do is go over to the surgical suites and get my foot extricated from my mouth."

Well said

 

[chris975d]

Ohio St. president: Football not my arena



Well said

Wow...that's actually impressive that he even made a statement regarding it. Especially considering how most, if not all Ohio State fans/alums I know are arrogant pr**ks! (but then again, the I've heard the same about us Techies too!).

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

What do you suppose the solution is?

I don't think he's the greatest coach in the world, but he has had a lot of success crafting offenses to suit the talents of QBs (VY and Colt) that don't have conventional skill sets.

I could be wrong, but it seemed at the time (preseason) like it was Mack's idea to try to institute a power running offense despite the fact the the team had OL issues and lacked a big time RB. I'd let Davis do his thing with Gilbert (or Colt Jr.) and see what happens before I tore up the blueprint that led to tremendous success over the previous 12 years.

Besides that, if you are going to start pointing fingers at coaches, you've got to take a look at Muschamp, too. His unit failed miserably in all seven losses this year. Strength and Conditioning looked to be a big issue, too (and how can you respect a "conditioning" coach who looks like this anyway?).

 

[dmr727]

Besides that, if you are going to start pointing fingers at coaches, you've got to take a look at Muschamp, too.

I agree with you. Every unit this season has failed - offense, defense, and special teams. The coaches have all demonstrated success in the past, so I dunno what the hell the solution is. Of course, if I had all the answers, I'd be the AD.

The best I can figure is that we lack the usual talent and playmakers (although I figure we should always have talent for at least seven wins), the team bought into their preseason hype, and when they started getting beat they pointed fingers instead of working harder. When the losses piled on, the coaches lost the team for good.

I just hope they can fix the disease over the offseason.

 

[IgnatiusTheKing]

I just hope they can fix the disease over the offseason.

Eh, I wouldn't mind seeing it fester for a while

 

[dmr727]

Eh, I wouldn't mind seeing it fester for a while

Ha! I bet! I'm not naive enough to think we can always have a team that'll beat OU and A&M, but we should be able to at least beat the ISUs and Baylors of the world. Who would've thought we wouldn't even be in a bowl game this year? Holy crap!