Investigation Focus on Tubbs

[couch 'em]

It amazes me that people will get angry at Stallion no matter what he says. If anyone else had posted "If major cheating is occuring I hope the cheaters are gone" then nobody would say anything.

[SMULLET]

Who gives a flip if a meal was paid for?

The NCAA cares, thats who... Its a violation.

[WildBillPony]

O. K....so....Stallion's use of "slush fund" and your use of "major cheating" is inflamatory. Tool city.

If the NCAA cares about meals being paid for then they might just as well shut down div. I athletics. That is what is so rediculous .

[jtstang]

hey I'm not going to rush to judgment and I agree that it could be a technicality, but if evidence comes out this this was a substantial coordinated "slush fund" I hope he gets his [deleted] kicked out the side door by sundown.

i bet you do, but we all know there is no substantial slush fund going on. Give me a frickin break.

Man, if we're spending slush fund money on these guys, we need a coach with an MBA.

[Pony_Fan]

Probably not even worth discussing until we know something. I bet meals are paid for all the time in other programs...one way or another.

[couch 'em]

O. K....so....Stallion's use of "slush fund" and your use of "major cheating" is inflamatory. Tool city.

If the NCAA cares about meals being paid for then they might just as well shut down div. I athletics. That is what is so rediculous .

What is inflamatory is you. Re-read Stallion's post - he did not claim that there was a slush fund, only that we should boot Tubbs if there was something major.

I'm sure it was something major. Hopefully this minor violation is a just a smokescreen to cover up major cheating to get Arthur and start trying to win again.

[WildHorse]

If the situation is as reported -- that a player's family gave money to pay for meals -- how is that even a violation? It's not a coach paying for meals, it's not the school paying for meals. Why would this be any different than, say, a player's mom has a birthday party and BBQs some burgers for the team?

I agree, we are not a school that can afford any indescretions, but this seems trivial, at best.

[WildHorse]

.... Hopefully this minor violation is a just a smokescreen to cover up major cheating to get Arthur and start trying to win again.

I hope there's no violation here at all. A star recruit, no matter how high profile, doesn't always ensure success (see: "Mosley, Marcus")

[McClown27]

What is inflamatory is you. Re-read Stallion's post - he did not claim that there was a slush fund, only that we should boot Tubbs if there was something major.

I'm sure it was something major. Hopefully this minor violation is a just a smokescreen to cover up major cheating to get Arthur and start trying to win again.

The reaction to Stallion is always funny on this board. He says things as simple that we should be in on more local athletes, and some folks jump on him for not being supportive of the coaches. But, to be honest, it is one of the best things about this board.

[couch 'em]

A star recruit, no matter how high profile, doesn't always ensure success (see: "Mosley, Marcus")

Nope. But it sure makes your odds alot better.

[SoCal_Pony]

A star recruit, no matter how high profile, doesn't always ensure success (see: "Mosley, Marcus")

True, a individual recruit does not guarantee success (you can include BHop in your example) but a class filled predominately with 'Diamonds-in-the-Rough' does guarantee failure (see:SMU FB 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005...and counting)

[EastStang]

This sort of sounds like the Rick Majerus incident at Utah where he bought the players a breakfast (we all know it would have to involve food). If a guy like Majerus has this type of incident once in awhile, I'm sure Tubbs could slip up too. In this case, probably one of the player's parents sent Tubbs some money so that junior could go buy an extra snack, or sent money so that Tubbs could take them someplace nice to eat, because the last place they went gave junior the trots. How do you say "no" to a player's momma. We report even minor stuff because what got us the death penalty was not the paying of players it was the refusal to cooperate in the NCAA investigation. I suspect we'll get a Utah type punishment. A reprimand.

[The XtC]

I'm glad this article came out, because when I first heard this story from a friend, I thought it was too ridiculous to be true, and the allegations had to involve something else. Now that its in print, and there doesnt seem to be anything more to this farce than I originally heard, I'm breathing a bit easier.

Here it is: A relative of one of the players went to Copeland and told him that earlier in the year he gave money to Tubbs to give to the players. But he suddenly had a crisis of conscience and came to Jim to turn himself in and demand that Tubbs be investigated. Thats the way I heard it. Now, there are 2 basic problems with this scenario:

#1) Giving money to Tubbs isnt an NCAA violation. Its only against the rules if that money is then given to the players in an illicit or improper manner. If the allegation were that Tubbs solicited the donation specifically for the purpose of making illegal payments, that might be a problem, but its nearly impossible to prove. Its one mans word against another. Coaches at every school raise money and accept donations every year for specific projects, and its all legal. Over the years I've given money for dozens of things, ranging from steam cleaning the carpet in Mike Dements office, to helping pay for the womens basketball awards banquet. Its all within the rules.

#2) There is nothing wrong with giving the players meal money when they are on a road trip, as long as the money is carefully accounted for. The rule is basically interpreted this way: A players scholarship includes meals in the cafeteria. Since they cannot eat in the cafeteria when they are traveling for competition, the school is allowed to spend the same amount of money feeding them on the road, as the cafeteria meals would have cost. Most schools handle this by giving the players a set amount of money as "per diem" and letting them order and pay for whatever they want in a restaraunt. Thats the way it was when I played, and thats the way it still is at schools across the country. I am presuming SMU does something similar. As long as accounting records are kept, there is no problem.

So, what is the problem? I can only give my own opinion here, but I think the problem is that there is no accounting for the money the accuser says he gave to Tubbs. Mainly because there was never any money to begin with. You cant keep records of how you spent dollars that you never had. I think this is a total farce, the fantasy of someone with a different agenda. Some people are going to get hurt over this, for foolish reasons, none of which have anything to do with actual NCAA violations.

Admittedly, this is just my opinion, but until I hear something solid to the contrary, this is the way I see it.

[Phil Fan]

Thanks for the clarification, XTC. Good post.
And if it really came down the way you describe, it sounds to me like someone has a petty grudge against Coach Tubbs. This is sounding more and more like a non-story.

[McClown27]

It will hurt recruiting.