I heartily co-sign on the Senator's post suggesting that Mike Slive needs to get SEC coaches together and deliver a Stop Snitchin' rant. What a classic good ol' boy response from Barnhart. Let's not worry about the fact that #2 ranked Auburn may have paid $200K for its star quarterback. (If I were Mississippi State's coaches, I'd be livid. There's a very good chance that Mississippi State would be unbeaten if not for the alleged payments by Auburn.) Let's not worry about the fact that the SEC is extremely successful on the field, but that success can be tarnished if the media narrative changes to "they're cheating again!" Let's instead worry about the fact that coaches are running their mouths to the press. (And it's interesting that Barnhart assumes that a coach is the the source for the allegation that Newton was accused of cheating at Florida. There are any one of a number of potential Deep Throats in Gainesville who could have leaked the information, most of whom would not be in the room when Slive reads the riot act that Barnhart recommends.)
Here's a better idea: Mike Slive convenes a meeting of SEC program decision-makers and tells them that paying players is a bad idea.
1 comment:
Can't the conversation be about both the leaking and the paying? It's a violation of federal education privacy law, no less, to leak the kind of information that came out Gainesville, assuming it's true. If it's not true, it's slanderous. Sure, we want to promote full investigations of wrongdoing, but we don't have to do it on the front pages of newspapers. The problem here is the NCAA, whose slow-footed investigatory process has led coaches to think that the only way to protect themselves competitively is to play fast and loose with the law.
If Auburn paid the Newtons, they should be punished severely. If someone in Gainesville told tales (true or not) on Newton's academic past, they should be punished, too. It's not an either-or situation.
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