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It's sad to see how low things can go. And maybe I'm just cynical, but I can't help buy thing stuff like this goes on at a lot of other schools.

I'd say it goes on to some level at all D-1 schools. I really thought some schools might be resistant to it, but when I attended Tech (Georgia Tech) back in the mid-90's and I walked by the "student athlete" parking lot next to the Athletic Associaton building every day on the way to class my freshman year, it was then that I suspected that even we "cheated". When every car you see in there is less than 3 years old, and the "cheapest" thing you see in there are fully loaded Chevy Tahoes, and range all the way up to Lexus SUV's, I knew all the athlete's families weren't capable of buying their kids those cars. And now that I live near Athens, GA (home of UGA) and am in the golf business, we hear all the time of a certain area car dealership owned/co-owned by a UGA alum who played golf for UGA who allows any current UGA golf team member (men's and women's team) to "lease" a car for $1 a month for as long as they are on the team. And this is a widely known "rumor" in the golf business around here. So I'd say that it does go on to some extent at every school. They almost have to, just to keep decent athletes coming in.
 
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iSaint said:
Not to harp on the Newton thing, but there is a good reason why everybody who is not an Auburn fan thinks they are guilty as hell in the whole Newton thing. Check out this article discussing Bobby Lowder, former CEO of Colonial Bank and chairman of the Auburn Finance Committee and a major athletic booster. Oh yeah, he is also a long-time member of the Board of Trustees. It's a long article, but worth the read.

This is an amazing article. I sincerely hope that college football isn't dragged down to a corrupt disarray of total dishonesty. Maybe it already has been!

Big-time college athletics has always been corrupt to the core. Bear Bryant paid recruits with fists full of cash. So did Adolph Rupp. John Wooden probably did, too.
 
It's sad to see how low things can go. And maybe I'm just cynical, but I can't help buy thing stuff like this goes on at a lot of other schools.

All more reason in my book for NCAA to come down hard and yes hand out the DP to these schools one at a time. After a few get hit they will clean up knowing that the DP is a real threat.
 
Big-time college athletics has always been corrupt to the core. Bear Bryant paid recruits with fists full of cash. So did Adolph Rupp. John Wooden probably did, too.

Oh, I'm not naive enough to think it doesn't happen. But if you read that article, it goes a lot deeper. Auburn is really bad, and has been on NCAA probation an NCAA record 6 or 7 times. They have Bama envy in a serious way.

One of the things that drives me nuts, though, is the completely random investigations and punishments from the NCAA. I really find it hard to believe that schools that never go on probation like Notre Dame, Penn State, etc, don't do this kind of stuff. Yet it always seems to be the same schools getting hammered. And last time we got on probation it was crap like "introduced an recruit to an MSU alum who was in the NFL at a restaurant". Yet we got a similar punishment to what USC got. Two year bowl ban, boatload of scholarships lost, etc. I still believe that one was nothing more than a Jackie Sherrill witch hunt.


I'd say it goes on to some level at all D-1 schools. I really thought some schools might be resistant to it, but when I attended Tech (Georgia Tech) back in the mid-90's and I walked by the "student athlete" parking lot next to the Athletic Associaton building every day on the way to class my freshman year, it was then that I suspected that even we "cheated". When every car you see in there is less than 3 years old, and the "cheapest" thing you see in there are fully loaded Chevy Tahoes, and range all the way up to Lexus SUV's, I knew all the athlete's families weren't capable of buying their kids those cars. And now that I live near Athens, GA (home of UGA) and am in the golf business, we hear all the time of a certain area car dealership owned/co-owned by a UGA alum who played golf for UGA who allows any current UGA golf team member (men's and women's team) to "lease" a car for $1 a month for as long as they are on the team. And this is a widely known "rumor" in the golf business around here. So I'd say that it does go on to some extent at every school. They almost have to, just to keep decent athletes coming in.

When I was in school, one of the pre-game shows ran an interview with one of our football players before the game. They talked about how he had grown up poor, was the first one in his family to go to college, etc. I found it all very amusing, since I had seen this player about two days earlier driving around campus in an Escalade. What really made it amusing was that he had a personalized tag that said "MSU #(his jersey #)". Not very smart.
 
Oh, I'm not naive enough to think it doesn't happen. But if you read that article, it goes a lot deeper. Auburn is really bad, and has been on NCAA probation an NCAA record 6 or 7 times. They have Bama envy in a serious way.

One of the things that drives me nuts, though, is the completely random investigations and punishments from the NCAA. I really find it hard to believe that schools that never go on probation like Notre Dame, Penn State, etc, don't do this kind of stuff. Yet it always seems to be the same schools getting hammered. And last time we got on probation it was crap like "introduced an recruit to an MSU alum who was in the NFL at a restaurant". Yet we got a similar punishment to what USC got. Two year bowl ban, boatload of scholarships lost, etc. I still believe that one was nothing more than a Jackie Sherrill witch hunt.




When I was in school, one of the pre-game shows ran an interview with one of our football players before the game. They talked about how he had grown up poor, was the first one in his family to go to college, etc. I found it all very amusing, since I had seen this player about two days earlier driving around campus in an Escalade. What really made it amusing was that he had a personalized tag that said "MSU #(his jersey #)". Not very smart.

Yeah, anyone who's been around a D1 college and is into sports can see that the "cheating" is right in front of our (and the NCAA's) faces. And honestly, I don't think they care. These top programs (and even lesser programs, like us...we're not that great in football!) make them (the NCAA) a boatload of money, so why would they really want to "crack down" on anyone? And like you said, I find it funny that they never really go after the "historic" schools (USC being a bit of an exception). I really think the ones they go after are either programs that get on their "sh** list" (I could see Sherrill on that list!), or schools who's violations get out into the public eye (the NCAA would rather contain them themselves) like this Auburn thing...I really don't think we'd have ever seen it if the FBI hadn't been investigating Lowder and bank down there, and just happen to find evidence of "pay for play" schemes coming from bank officials. And even if the NCAA did want to clean this crap up...how do they do it? If it's as rampant as it seems, who do they pick to make examples of? Smaller schools? Or do they go after the Nebraskas, Oklahomas, Alabamas, Notre Dames, etc and face cutting off some of your biggest revenue streams? It'd be like trying to clean up the corruption in politics...where on earth would you start? You really can't go after the big "power players", because...well...they have all the power!
 
Yeah, anyone who's been around a D1 college and is into sports can see that the "cheating" is right in front of our (and the NCAA's) faces. And honestly, I don't think they care. These top programs (and even lesser programs, like us...we're not that great in football!) make them (the NCAA) a boatload of money, so why would they really want to "crack down" on anyone? And like you said, I find it funny that they never really go after the "historic" schools (USC being a bit of an exception). I really think the ones they go after are either programs that get on their "sh** list" (I could see Sherrill on that list!), or schools who's violations get out into the public eye (the NCAA would rather contain them themselves) like this Auburn thing...I really don't think we'd have ever seen it if the FBI hadn't been investigating Lowder and bank down there, and just happen to find evidence of "pay for play" schemes coming from bank officials. And even if the NCAA did want to clean this crap up...how do they do it? If it's as rampant as it seems, who do they pick to make examples of? Smaller schools? Or do they go after the Nebraskas, Oklahomas, Alabamas, Notre Dames, etc and face cutting off some of your biggest revenue streams? It'd be like trying to clean up the corruption in politics...where on earth would you start? You really can't go after the big "power players", because...well...they have all the power!

Yeah, it's a huge problem and I have no idea where to start. I think one place is to pay the players. No, not NFL type money, but give them a stipend. Even grad assistants get free tuition and a stipend. Yeah, they already get free tuition, books, etc, but they don't get spending money and aren't allowed to work. As far as rogue boosters: ban 'em. Get a restraining order against the worst offenders forbidding them to have any contact with the university.

The sad part is even if you aren't trying to break the rules, you will end up doing just that. The NCAA regs are so complex, it's very easy to accidentally break them. When I joined our booster club, I got this brochure with a huge list of stuff I couldn't do.

One thing that drives me crazy about the NCAA is how inconsistent they are. Guys go play minor league baseball and later go to school and play football all the time. Supposedly this is ok because they are playing a different sport. Yet, a few years ago, a football player at Colorado was declared ineligible because he was a professional snowboarder.
 
I don't think paying the players helps with the violations though. Say the NCAA says you can pay each player "x" amount of dollars per year. You'll just have all of these meddling boosters pay above and beyond that to top recruits to come to their school. So you'll be right back to where we started. Its the boosters/alumni/athletic association contributors that are the cause of the problems. Sometimes even good intention coaches don't even know this crap is going on. If you read about the Auburn situation, the head coach supposedly was unaware of anything going on. That's a real problem if you ask me.

Yeah, it's a huge problem and I have no idea where to start. I think one place is to pay the players. No, not NFL type money, but give them a stipend. Even grad assistants get free tuition and a stipend. Yeah, they already get free tuition, books, etc, but they don't get spending money and aren't allowed to work. As far as rogue boosters: ban 'em. Get a restraining order against the worst offenders forbidding them to have any contact with the university.

The sad part is even if you aren't trying to break the rules, you will end up doing just that. The NCAA regs are so complex, it's very easy to accidentally break them. When I joined our booster club, I got this brochure with a huge list of stuff I couldn't do.

One thing that drives me crazy about the NCAA is how inconsistent they are. Guys go play minor league baseball and later go to school and play football all the time. Supposedly this is ok because they are playing a different sport. Yet, a few years ago, a football player at Colorado was declared ineligible because he was a professional snowboarder.
 
Yeah, it's a huge problem and I have no idea where to start. I think one place is to pay the players. No, not NFL type money, but give them a stipend. Even grad assistants get free tuition and a stipend. Yeah, they already get free tuition, books, etc, but they don't get spending money and aren't allowed to work. As far as rogue boosters: ban 'em. Get a restraining order against the worst offenders forbidding them to have any contact with the university.

The sad part is even if you aren't trying to break the rules, you will end up doing just that. The NCAA regs are so complex, it's very easy to accidentally break them. When I joined our booster club, I got this brochure with a huge list of stuff I couldn't do.

One thing that drives me crazy about the NCAA is how inconsistent they are. Guys go play minor league baseball and later go to school and play football all the time. Supposedly this is ok because they are playing a different sport. Yet, a few years ago, a football player at Colorado was declared ineligible because he was a professional snowboarder.

Figure I would point out to you that they do get a Stipend. My sister gets like $500-700 a month (or something like that) from the school every month. Now they only get that if they live off campus as basically the school is allowed to give them money for room and board. As for a job that depends on the school and normally the school does not have an issue with them working in the off season. My sister works at camps during the off season.

Mind you 700 a month does not go very far when you have to pay bills, food and what not.
 
I am here......

What say you?
Give us your take...

1. Good for him, he should take care of his family
2. We have been betrayed!! What a wishy-washy disappointment
3. Thanks for the memories from a great coach
4. Time to move on
5. All of the above
6. None of the above

And who do want to see as a replacement?
 
What say you?
Give us your take...

1. Good for him, he should take care of his family
2. We have been betrayed!! What a wishy-washy disappointment
3. Thanks for the memories from a great coach
4. Time to move on
5. All of the above
6. None of the above

And who do want to see as a replacement?

Exactly! I want to see Florida fans react like USC fans did last year.
 
Well, this is interesting. The Sporting News is saying that Bobby Petrino may be at the top of Florida's list. According to that article, he was the AD's #2 choice in 2004, and #1 choice had Meyer stayed retired last year. Petrino has a no-compete clause that prevents him from going to another SEC West team, but not an East team. I just wonder if SEC commissioner Mike Slive would intervene and block such a move. He has said he doesn't want SEC teams hiring coaches from other SEC teams.

I just want to say I completely endorse this idea. They really need to hire Petrino. :)
 
Well, this is interesting. The Sporting News is saying that Bobby Petrino may be at the top of Florida's list. According to that article, he was the AD's #2 choice in 2004, and #1 choice had Meyer stayed retired last year. Petrino has a no-compete clause that prevents him from going to another SEC West team, but not an East team. I just wonder if SEC commissioner Mike Slive would intervene and block such a move. He has said he doesn't want SEC teams hiring coaches from other SEC teams.

I just want to say I completely endorse this idea. They really need to hire Petrino. :)

Petrino is a snake. When he was hired, I told a few Arkansas people I know that they shouldn't get too used to having him as coach because, if he had any success there at all (and we all knew he would), he would start sniffing around for "better" jobs.

They chose not to believe me, of course, because there isn't any better job than Arkansas :rolleyes:
 
I just want to say I completely endorse this idea. They really need to hire Petrino. :)

I wonder why :rolleyes:

I have a strong dislike for Petrino for how he crapped on the Falcons
Although, I have to say, I like the end results with Mike Smith far better

His part in the botched Tuberville coup at Auburn is also a puke point

I wish he would lose every game
 
I wonder why :rolleyes:

I have a strong dislike for Petrino for how he crapped on the Falcons
Although, I have to say, I like the end results with Mike Smith far better

His part in the botched Tuberville coup at Auburn is also a puke point

I wish he would lose every game

LOL. Tell us how you really feel! :D I agree that he's a snake. However, with you being a UGA man, would you also say the same things about Van Gorder, who many people hold in similar regard to Petrino, calling Van Gorder "no-class" and "gutless" for his lack of loyalty, particularly in regard to the way he left the GA Southern program high and dry after a single season and jumps teams regularly? Or are they just "career moves"?
 
LOL. Tell us how you really feel! :D I agree that he's a snake. However, with you being a UGA man, would you also say the same things about Van Gorder, who many people hold in similar regard to Petrino, calling Van Gorder "no-class" and "gutless" for his lack of loyalty, particularly in regard to the way he left the GA Southern program high and dry after a single season and jumps teams regularly? Or are they just "career moves"?

I think it's the way you handle it. As Dawg mentioned, Petrino participated in JetGate (or whatever the bozos in Auburn called it), which doesn't speak too well to how he treats his coaching colleagues, and then he split from the Falcons midseason (a couple hours after a game, if I remember correctly), which again just reeks of low class.
 
LOL. Tell us how you really feel! :D I agree that he's a snake. However, with you being a UGA man, would you also say the same things about Van Gorder, who many people hold in similar regard to Petrino, calling Van Gorder "no-class" and "gutless" for his lack of loyalty, particularly in regard to the way he left the GA Southern program high and dry after a single season and jumps teams regularly? Or are they just "career moves"?

I was extremely disappointed in Van Gorder's ship jumping at Ga Southern and his bailing on South Carolina. He has settled with the Falcons (for now) apparently, but "yes", I think what he did was classless. I understand career moves, and people have to do what they deem is best, but there needs to be a little class involved.

However, what Van Gorder did pales in comparison to the shenanigans Petrino pulled by crapping on the Falcons during the season and running off to "call the hogs" in Fayetteville during the night.

Speaking of classless... Nick Fairley won the Lombardi Award for the nation's top collegiate lineman

Good news if you are a MSU fan ;)

Ivan Maisel's take on Mullen

It’s logical to assume that Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley would look to replace Urban Meyer with his former offensive coordinator, Dan Mullen, who led Mississippi State to an 8-4 record and a Gator Bowl bid in his second season in Starkville. Miami also has been interested in Mullen. From what I hear, however, Mullen and his family like Starkville and aren’t in a hurry to leave. Mississippi State athletic director Scott Stricklin has his wallet open. The guess is Mullen gets a raise and stays.
 
Petrino is a snake. When he was hired, I told a few Arkansas people I know that they shouldn't get too used to having him as coach because, if he had any success there at all (and we all knew he would), he would start sniffing around for "better" jobs.

They chose not to believe me, of course, because there isn't any better job than Arkansas :rolleyes:

Arkansas fans are delusional. They think they are on par with the likes of Texas, Florida, and Alabama. They were calling for Nutt's head during the middle of their most successful run in decades. Yeah, he did a lot of stuff off-field that probably deserved firing, but it was hard to argue with his on-field results.

As far as Petrino: Look, I know the era of Bobby Bowden and Joe Paterno is over. No coach is going to stay at a school 20+ years anymore. Coaches leaving is a part of the modern game. But what Petrino did goes far beyond that. Flirting with every open job when at Louisville, and leaving the Falcons in the middle of the night (literally) was just classless.

Speaking of classless... Nick Fairley won the Lombardi Award for the nation's top collegiate lineman

Good news if you are a MSU fan ;)

Ivan Maisel's take on Mullen

Yeah, there is talk of a huge pay raise coming. They have been working on a contact extension for a while. This contract should move him from near the bottom of the SEC pay scale to at least in the top 5 or so. Is he worth it? Probably. Our attendance has increased by 10k per game since Mullen got here. 10,000 x $40 x 7 home games = a lot of money he has brought in. Our AD has gone on record as saying "If he leaves, it will not be because of money".

BIG MONEY, BIG MONEY, NO WHAMMIES...aaaand STOP!
 
Not to harp on the Newton thing, but there is a good reason why everybody who is not an Auburn fan thinks they are guilty as hell in the whole Newton thing. Check out this article discussing Bobby Lowder, former CEO of Colonial Bank and chairman of the Auburn Finance Committee and a major athletic booster. Oh yeah, he is also a long-time member of the Board of Trustees. It's a long article, but worth the read.

As an Auburn graduate, and the son of a retired Auburn professor and department head, let me implore you not to miss out on some key points in this story, namely this:

[Bobby Lowder] apparently has his defenders, but they can meet in a phone booth.

and this:

At various times Lowder has been at war with Auburn's faculty, its student newspaper, its alumni association, and some of his fellow trustees -- developing a reputation along the way as a tyrant with a vindictive nature. It has been alleged that Lowder made a death threat to one board member he clashed with.

Bobby Lowder is not, by any stretch of the imagination, a popular guy at Auburn University. It's the governor who appoints people to the Board of Trustees, and the fact that Lowder's had such a long tenure on Auburn's Board of Trustees is a testament to how "supportive" he's been of Auburn's governors through the years, and nothing more than that. (The article addresses this somewhat as well.)
 
What say you?
Give us your take...

1. Good for him, he should take care of his family
2. We have been betrayed!! What a wishy-washy disappointment
3. Thanks for the memories from a great coach
4. Time to move on
5. All of the above
6. None of the above

And who do want to see as a replacement?

I feel #1 and #3 are the best representations of how I feel. I am very thankful Urban came, made UF great again, and added so much to the program. He added some phenemonal renovations to the stadium also.
 
Well, this is interesting. The Sporting News is saying that Bobby Petrino may be at the top of Florida's list. According to that article, he was the AD's #2 choice in 2004, and #1 choice had Meyer stayed retired last year. Petrino has a no-compete clause that prevents him from going to another SEC West team, but not an East team. I just wonder if SEC commissioner Mike Slive would intervene and block such a move. He has said he doesn't want SEC teams hiring coaches from other SEC teams.

I just want to say I completely endorse this idea. They really need to hire Petrino. :)

Petrino better not even get a call. Guy is a Grade A douche and really isn't wanted by any Gator fans.
 
Listening to Jeremy Foley last night, he just wouldn't give a time line like 2.5 weeks if something isn't already going on. I know what he said, but you don't pigeon hole yourself like that.

My guess is it will happen sooner rather than later as Foley is really into recruiting and getting the best players and he wants to get the best coach available.

I hear there are a couple of coaches that have been told to hold on, a couple on the list. If true, that means there is at least some sort of pecking order going on already.


Tebow's reponse to Meyer retiring was classy as usual

“It was the opportunity of a lifetime to play for a man who will be remembered as one of the greatest football coaches of all time. But Coach Meyer was more than just a coach to me—He was a father figure who cared about me as a person and taught me valuable lessons that I will never forget.


“I respect that Coach Meyer had the courage to make the decision that was right for himself and his family. He will be blessed and better off for it. I am truly glad that he’s happy and no matter what, we both will be Gators for the rest of our lives.

“While change is never easy, the University of Florida will find the right head coach to continue its proud football tradition and will have the full support of Gator Nation. I wish Coach Meyer and his family all the best going forward, and they will always be a big part of my life.”
 
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As an Auburn graduate, and the son of a retired Auburn professor and department head, let me implore you not to miss out on some key points in this story, namely this:



and this:



Bobby Lowder is not, by any stretch of the imagination, a popular guy at Auburn University. It's the governor who appoints people to the Board of Trustees, and the fact that Lowder's had such a long tenure on Auburn's Board of Trustees is a testament to how "supportive" he's been of Auburn's governors through the years, and nothing more than that. (The article addresses this somewhat as well.)

Yeah, I read that but I wondered how accurate it was. I also wonder how many supporters he had before the bank collapse and the feds started investigating. The sad fact is that he is still there and in power and may be dragging Auburn down with him.

Colin Cowherd said something about the Florida job on his show this morning. He said his same source that broke the Kiffin to USC story last year has given him info on the Florida job. He said it was a "big boy" of college coaching and he gave the hint "Stab", whatever that means. One of our boards is having a field day with that one.
 
Colin Cowherd said something about the Florida job on his show this morning. He said his same source that broke the Kiffin to USC story last year has given him info on the Florida job. He said it was a "big boy" of college coaching and he gave the hint "Stab", whatever that means. One of our boards is having a field day with that one.

I have no idea what "stab" refers to, but I've seen several rumors now that say Florida may be talking to Bo Pelini of Nebraska. He's also being talked about for the Miami job too. He is considered a "big boy" of college coaching?
 
I have no idea what "stab" refers to, but I've seen several rumors now that say Florida may be talking to Bo Pelini of Nebraska. He's also being talked about for the Miami job too. He is considered a "big boy" of college coaching?

Cowherd is an idiot and has zero connections at UF.

Stab meaning Gruden though maybe? Chuckie stabbed people..Gruden lives in Tampa I believe and is close friend with Urban
 
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