CBS: NCAA overstepped in USC case

[dcpony]

The NCAA's chief adjudicative body overstepped its boundaries and was improperly influenced by prejudicial statements in finding USC guilty of major violations, plaintiffs for a former Trojans assistant coach say in documents unsealed Tuesday and obtained by CBSSports.com.

The NCAA had aggressively sought to seal the documents in which lawyers for Todd McNair, who worked on the Trojans staff from 2004-09, say at least three persons improperly tried to influence the powerful NCAA Committee on Infractions. The nearly 500 pages of documents were unsealed amid continuance in McNair's defamation suit against the NCAA filed in 2011.

McNair's lawyers cited numerous examples of what they said was bias in revealing emails between NCAA staffers. Specifically, the documents show:

•Two non-voting members of the infractions committee made disparaging statements about McNair -- his lawyers contend -- against proper NCAA procedure. One of those non-voting members, Roscoe Howard, a former U.S. attorney, said, "I don't think this committee should be chained to a (enforcement) staff that has seemed to have fallen short with this investigation or an Institution that has no intention of having us find out what actually happened here. I was insulted by arguments made by (the) institution and embarrassed by the reaction of the staff."

The plaintiffs' brief quotes committee liaison Shep Cooper telling the committee that McNair was "a lying morally bankrupt criminal, in my view, and a hypocrite of the highest order."

•In correspondence to the infractions committee, Rodney Uphoff, the NCAA coordinator of appeals, calls into question USC's hiring of Lane Kiffin. Uphoff had no voting rights with the infraction committee.

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootbal ... em-to-show

[ojaipony]

[deleted] the NCAA.

Bunch of obsolete, hypocritical, power hungry morons.

[blackoutpony]

USC is a private school who beating the [deleted] out of everyone. What do you expect?

I realize they're a traditional national power, but still a private. NCAA is just a bunch of crooks.

[Digetydog]

USC is a private school who beating the [deleted] out of everyone. What do you expect?

I realize they're a traditional national power, but still a private. NCAA is just a bunch of crooks.

Yep. After reading how they treated USC for hiring Kiffin, how are they going to treat SMU for hiring Larry Brown?

[Stallion]

The title of the thread is deceptive. CBS is not saying that. CBS is reporting on plaintiffs' attorney representing a disgruntled assistant coach who has pled that

[EastStang]

Still the NCAA is about as corrupt as any organization. We cheated, got caught and deserved our punishment. But you will never convince me that the T-sippers were pure as angels. SMU got the death penalty. TCU got the living death penalty. The Aggies lost a gazillion scholarships over the years. But the Whorns never caught doing anything wrong. Darell Royal was a saint. Yeah right. The Whorns had a speed dial to the infractions committee and a rep on the Committee.

[NavyCrimson]

Doesn't really matter until the college presidents stand up & clean it up - which will never happen. It'll be talk & more talk, posturing & more posturing, & finally nothing. College presidents in general or weak-knee wimps until it's flying the banner of the politcal left & all that BS. The split with the NCAA is coming & we better damn well be prepared.

[Puckhead48E]

Yeah...this does not read like an actual article but instead the point of view of one of the key protagonists in the entire scandal that started this. Otherwise, you don't get people offended by the concept of ensuring the penalties are harsh when the offending party doubles down and hires a replacement who was already under NCAA scrutiny. The only story here is another link to the Miami fiasco...the real case for NCAA ineptitude.

[Ponymon]

Still the NCAA is about as corrupt as any organization. We cheated, got caught and deserved our punishment. But you will never convince me that the T-sippers were pure as angels. SMU got the death penalty. TCU got the living death penalty. The Aggies lost a gazillion scholarships over the years. But the Whorns never caught doing anything wrong. Darell Royal was a saint. Yeah right. The Whorns had a speed dial to the infractions committee and a rep on the Committee.

Well, the head of the NCAA infractions committee drove an orange Cadillac with horns on the front. Amazing that we were put on probation so many times during those years including my last 2 years ('75 and '76) on campus.

Here is his bio:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Alan_Wright

[Digetydog]

Still the NCAA is about as corrupt as any organization. We cheated, got caught and deserved our punishment. But you will never convince me that the T-sippers were pure as angels. SMU got the death penalty. TCU got the living death penalty. The Aggies lost a gazillion scholarships over the years. But the Whorns never caught doing anything wrong. Darell Royal was a saint. Yeah right. The Whorns had a speed dial to the infractions committee and a rep on the Committee.

Well, the head of the NCAA infractions committee drove an orange Cadillac with horns on the front. Amazing that we were put on probation so many times during those years including my last 2 years ('75 and '76) on campus.

Here is his bio:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Alan_Wright

Professor Wright gave me an A in Federal Courts > I liked him.