Blog Games

Tip from Little Professor:

Can you find five searches on Google in which your blog comes up #1?

Here are five for PROFANE, which were actual searches done by others:

2008 Bowl Lineup
FBS vs FCS record
Graduation Grats
Salary Inflation History
Simeon Castille Saga

Arkansas Penalized Again; Must Vacate 2 National Titles

The hammer has been laid down on the University of Arkansas for its latest bout of cheating, this time in the Men's Track & Field program:

INDIANAPOLIS---The NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions has penalized University of Arkansas, Fayetteville for major violations in its men’s track and field program. This case involved several violations of NCAA recruiting rules committed by one former assistant coach and one prospective student-athlete, including unethical conduct by the former coach and an admitted failure to monitor by the university.

Penalties for the violations involve vacating the men’s track and field records including two national championships; placing the university on probation for three years; accepting the reduction of the number of men’s track and field scholarships; and placing the former coach on a two-year show-cause order. . . .

In reviewing this case, the committee was particularly concerned that the university has had three appearances before the committee in the past 10 years, making the university a rare ‘double repeat-violator.’”

Of further concern to the committee was that this case is another in a long string of major infractions cases involving, at least in part, violations associated with prospective student-athletes arriving on campus prior to full-time enrollment. . . .

On 10 to 15 occasions, the former coach made arrangements through his wife for his sister-in-law to tutor the prospective student-athlete. For each tutoring session, the prospective student-athlete was provided transportation between his apartment and the sister-in-law’s home. Further, the correspondence course required online submission of the answers to 17 unit lessons.

Either the former assistant coach’s wife or his sister-in-law obtained the answer sheets from the prospect for the unit lessons and entered them online. . . .

The committee found that the former coach’s actions were deliberate and in violation of fundamental recruiting rules and that his knowing involvement in arranging or providing recruiting inducements to the prospective student-athlete collectively rose to the level of unethical conduct.

The committee also found that the scope and nature of the violations demonstrated an institutional failure to monitor. The committee stated that the university’s major violation case in 1997 involved issues very similar to those in the current case and should have heightened the university’s attention to monitoring. . . .

The penalties in the case are as follows, with the university’s self-imposed penalties so noted: . . .

The university will vacate all NCAA, school and conference individual records as well as all individual meet results attained by the prospect (then a student-athlete) during the time he attended the institution and competed on the track team. Further, all team results from any competitions in which the student-athlete participated during the same time frame, as well as the record of the head coach, will be reconfigured to reflect the vacated records/results. This includes the 2004 and 2005 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships won by the institution. . . .

John A. White, the Chancellor of the University of Arkansas, is none too pleased, and is whining about the decision:

As we previously acknowledged, the violations in this case primarily involved a rogue former assistant coach and one student-athlete over a short period of time. We are disappointed with the penalties imposed by the infractions committee and believe they are disproportionate to the violations. The university vigorously investigated and self-reported the violations, and then implemented corrective measures and self-imposed penalties, including a reduction of scholarships and a period of probation. The university intends to file an appeal.

Perhaps making sure Arkansas does not hire rogue coaches in the future is the better response? Especially ones who do not get tossed in jail for committing multiple felonies?

Update:

Head coach John McDonnell reacts; history of vacated championships:

Arkansas Coach John Mc-Donnell grimly declined comment when reached by telephone in Kentucky, where the Razorbacks will attempt to win their 34 th consecutive conference cross country championship Saturday.

“I can’t even comment on it because we’re appealing it,” Mc-Donnell said. “We’ll see with the appeal what will happen with that. We have 30 days.”

McDonnell reacted briefly to the idea of losing two of the 42 national championships he has won in track and field and cross country.

“Oh yeah, I would say it was [a heavy blow ],” McDonnell said. “I can’t comment on it. I’m sorry. I would if I could.”

Arkansas is not the first track program to vacate a national championship, but it is not a common occurrence. Texas El-Paso lost its 1983 Outdoor title because of recruiting violations, but there have not been many other high-profile dockings. UCLA vacated its 1995 women’s softball championship, Hawaii lost its 2002 men’s volleyball title and Syracuse lost the 1990 lacrosse championship.

Will the USC football program be next?

SEC: End of the Enforcement Bad Old Days?

Columnist Gentry Estes at the Press Register in Alabama seems to think so:

University handling textbook probe correct way

Thursday, October 25, 2007

TUSCALOOSA -- Cloudy skies and chilly temperatures have settled over the University of Alabama's campus since Saturday's emphatic 41-17 football victory over Tennessee.

Maybe it's just another coincidence.

Maybe it's also a coincidence that Ball State was punished by the NCAA for textbook violations two days before Alabama's discovery that five football players violated institutional policy in the receipt of textbooks.

And maybe, like Alabama has insisted, it's only a coincidence that NCAA officials were in town on routine business last week when it occurred. . . .

Alabama now approaches the possibility of more NCAA trouble (who would have thought textbooks could have been a cause?), but don't overlook a reason for optimism for the future in all this.

The school's handling of the textbook situation to this point has been notably improved from situations in the recent past.

A quick, decisive internal investigation was called to examine every athlete to see who may have violated NCAA rules by receiving extra benefits. The president's office has been involved from the start. The media have been informed at each step.

Football coach Nick Saban uttered words Tuesday that reporters here have never heard him say: "You'll probably know about it as soon as I do." That line explains best who is calling the shots, and it is not anyone in the football program. . . .

No, this is not your father's Alabama. Or even your older brother's.

Suspending five football players, including two offensive line starters (on the eve of the Tennessee game, of all weeks) proved that the university is now serious about rule enforcement.

In many ways, this is the new reality of Commissioner Mike Slive's Southeastern Conference. There are to be no secrets, and it has almost become unwise for compliance offices not to report regular secondary violations.

"When we have seen compliance departments that we don't believe are up to standard," Slive said this summer, "we are not bashful about letting that institution know at the highest levels."

The SEC likes to boast of the decline in NCAA trouble during the past few years. Slive added that his office is in "constant communication" with the compliance departments in each of its 12 athletics departments.

This particular situation at Alabama may get worse before it gets better. The school headed into this sweeping probe without knowing exactly what it would find, which paints administrators into a corner. If more misdeeds are discovered, they must be dealt with swiftly and openly.

It remains to be seen whether Alabama is ahead of the curve where enforcement is concerned compared to its competitors in the SEC, where rule-breaking has been endemic. Is this the beginning of a trend? Or will Alabama, and the SEC as a whole revert to type?

University of Alabama Suspends 5 in New Textbook Scandal

Coming in the wake of the recent penalties against Ball State, the University of Alabama made the following announcement minutes before yesterdays game against Tennessee:

TUSCALOOSA – The University of Alabama has suspended five football student-athletes – Antoine Caldwell, Glen Coffee, Marlon Davis, Marquis Johnson, and Chris Rogers – for today’s game with the University of Tennessee for a violation of institutional policy involving impermissible receipt of textbooks. The infraction was discovered on Thursday, and the school immediately initiated an inquiry that is ongoing. The student-athletes were informed of the suspensions on Friday upon the initial results of the inquiry. The University is still in a fact-finding phase and will release further details when it is completed. “This is a situation that developed late this week and we are actively investigating,” said Director of Athletics Mal Moore. “These suspensions are a measure aimed at dealing with the facts as we know them at this time. While I cannot discuss the situation in great detail, I can assure you we will address it fully when we have completed this inquiry."

Coach Nick Saban commented:

Obviously, there were some players who did not use good judgment in what they did. I don't know all the circumstances surrounding it. There's also a system in place that shouldn't allow this to happen that obviously didn't work. . . . It's poor judgment on the players' part. You've heard me say this before. We can't tolerate poor judgment. You need to do what's right, and when you don't do what's right, most of the time there's serious consequences for it. . . . We're going to support those players and help those guys be successful. It ain't a problem.

Move along. Move along. Nothing to see hear. . .

College Football News: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

The Good:

Harvard fullback Noah Van Niel has an interesting career ahead of him. Whats next? Blogging medieval historian skiing alumni? Nah. Way too outlandish. In any case, enjoy the whole article:

Practice isn't over until the fullback sings

Harvard player eyes opera career

By John Powers, Globe Staff | October 18, 2007

So, people ask Harvard's fullback/tenor, is there any connection between football and opera? "Incredibly so," nods Noah Van Niel, who handles defensive linemen and Donizetti with equal aplomb. "It's rehearsing a set of skills and then going out and performing. There's pressure and there's an audience and there's nerves: Can I do this?" . . .

And later this fall, when Van Niel is auditioning for postgraduate programs in vocal performance, he'll have to know Dies Bildnis from Mozart's Magic Flute and four other arias by heart. "It's just like football," Van Niel says. "When they call a play for you on the goal line, you can't say, 'I don't know that one.' "

So after football practice at the Stadium, the curly-haired, barrel-chested Newton native walks back across the Larz Anderson Bridge to Dunster House, his riverside dorm with the crimson dome, locks himself inside a practice room, and has at Signor Donizetti for an hour.

The Bad:

The run-up to the rape trial of Penn State running back Austin Scott is beginning, in a sadly predictable manner, with an assault on the alleged victim:

Similar rape claim made at Moravian by Scott's accuser

Student in 2003 case was acquitted by a jury

By Brian Callaway |Of The Morning Call

October 19, 2007

The woman accusing Penn State running back Austin Scott of sexual assault leveled similar charges in 2003 against a Moravian College student, who was later acquitted of rape.

In both cases, the woman said the attacks happened after she spent the night drinking. And in both cases, she said she woke up to find the men forcing themselves on her, court records show.

Scott's attorney, John P. Karoly Jr. of South Whitehall Township, said the Moravian case shows the woman is ''pathological'' and has a history of falsely accusing men of rape.

'This girl has made similar allegations before that were not believed by a jury,'' he said. ''… If they insist on going forward with this case, we are going to petition the court to have her examined by a psychiatrist.'' . . .

Scott, one of the top high school football players in Lehigh Valley history, was charged with raping the woman, now 22, in his apartment on Penn State's campus in the early morning hours of Oct. 5.

He was suspended from the Nittany Lions during his last year of eligibility after the woman accused him of rape. He remains enrolled at the university, and is free under $50,000 unsecured bail.

The woman testified at a preliminary hearing Wednesday that she went out drinking with friends on Oct. 4 before meeting up with Scott and going to his room. She testified that Scott, 22, began forcing himself on her, and she initially tried to resist but he hit her in the back, so she let him have sex with her because she was afraid. . . .

The Ugly:

Baylor offensive line coach Eric Schnupp had, errrr, an 'accident':

WACO, Texas -- The Baylor assistant football coach cited for public urination resigned Thursday.

Offensive line coach Eric Schnupp was suspended indefinitely by the university this week after being cited for urinating on the bar at a tavern. His resignation was effective immediately. . . .

Schnupp wasn't arrested but issued a citation early Sunday for disorderly conduct-reckless exposure at Scruffy Murphy's, police said. The citation is a Class C misdemeanor carrying a $258 fine, according to Waco Municipal Court.

Bartender Danny Severe said an employee saw Schnupp urinating on the bar, and a manager told police officers who were there on an unrelated matter, the Waco Tribune-Herald reported Tuesday.

WHOOPS.

Blog Gifts: Paying it Forward

There is a 'pay it forward' sort of game going around the blogosphere at the moment:

By the end of the calendar year, I will send a tangible, physical gift to each of the first five people to comment here. The catch? Each person must make the same offer on her/his blog.

I took up Dr. Virago's offer at Quod She, so the game is now in play here. The gifts from me will be some sort of small athletic memorabilia. If you have any specific requests, I will consider them!

Kelvin Sampson Cheats Again

The whole sorry story is here. Naturally, we should not be surprised, given his history of rule-breaking, although the looming sanctions were not, of course, brought up when Sampson was hired. What is remarkable about this story, however, is the extent to which University of Indiana alumni and press have turned on Sampson and Athletic Director Rick Greenspan, despite success in the first season and a number of recruiting coups. This editorial in the Bloomington Pantagraph captures sentiments well:

Rick Greenspan got his man. Now, he’s getting what he deserves.

Greenspan’s 2006 national search for Indiana University’s head basketball coach ended in the hiring of Kelvin Sampson, a curious choice given the number of available candidates who were not under NCAA investigation. . . .

Thus, in May 2006, two months after being hired at Indiana, Sampson was banned from recruiting off campus for one year and, among other things, prohibited from participating in three-way calls with recruits.

At the time, he said he’d “learned an invaluable lesson.”

Turns out he learned nothing, unless you count knowing how and when to throw an assistant coach under the bus.

On Sunday, a red-faced Indiana announced self-imposed penalties against Sampson, which include not giving him a $500,000 raise he was due and stripping his team of a scholarship for next season. An internal probe found he had taken part in 10 three-way calls between May 25, 2006, and May 25, 2007, a direct violation of his NCAA sanctions.

His excuse?

He said he only knew of one of them (one too many?), and that assistant coach Rob Senderoff was responsible for patching through the three-way hookups.

Indiana punished Senderoff, freezing his salary and banning him from recruiting off-campus or making recruiting calls through July 2008. Yet, the responsibility rests with Sampson, leaving Greenspan, the former Illinois State athletic director, to wait nervously as the NCAA conducts its own investigation and mulls further sanctions.

That puts Greenspan right back where he was when he hired Sampson, so yes, he had this coming. A change of address has not changed Sampson, and perhaps only Greenspan believed it would. . . .

Why did Greenspan bring in a coach with dirty laundry, particularly at a school the volatile Knight kept squeaky clean for so long? Knight’s downfall was his inability to control his temper. But when it came to NCAA rules, he never lost his grip.

Clearly, Greenspan looked at Sampson’s 12-year record at Oklahoma — 279-109, three NCAA Sweet 16s, two Elite Eights, one Final Four — and felt he was worth the risk. There was pressure to win following the forced resignation of embattled Hoosiers’ coach Mike Davis, and Sampson provided hope for a quick fix.

Greenspan got what he wanted.

Now, he has to live with it.

We will have to see whether all will be forgiven, as is the pattern, should Sampson remain successful on the court.

Series:
1. Kelvin Sampson Cheats Again
2. More on the Kelvin Sampson Imbroglio
3. Indiana University's Spin Control. . .
4. The Kelvin Sampson Bomb is Set to Blow
5. Kelvin Sampson: "Time to Cleanse the Slime"
6. In June: Sampson versus Senderoff?
7. Source: Sampson Out, Dakich in at Indiana
8. Commentary on Sampson's Departure