Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Cam Newton Investigation Getting Interesting

The pay to play scheme was reported almost a year ago to the SEC, before Cam ever signed with Auburn. The NCAA investigation started before the season started, before anyone knew how well Auburn would be this year. This has been about Cam and not Auburn, although Auburn may have a problem if they paid him or knew he was soliciting money to play and had an obligation to report.

The academic info probably was leaked by someone tired of hearing how great he is. Funny that would be Florida, as I think everyone was tired of hearing about Tebow. Difference was there was never any dirt to tell on Tebow. Does the academic problem have any bearing on the pay to play? No. But it does go toward credibility. Who leaked the info? Maybe the student who had his paper stolen or someone in the class that knew about it or someone close to Cam while at Florida who knew about it. I really doubt Meyer, or any head coach in the SEC, would stoop to that level.

You can be sure that the Auburn officials already knew of any academic problem at Florida. Instead of any denial, there has been outrage that this info was supposed to be protected by law and not made public.

I wonder how often the FBI gets involved with NCAA investigations. I wouldn't think they would if there wasn't something here.

Whatever happens, it is a sad state of affairs that we care more about winning games than any thing else. I'm sure most of those defending him would hate to see him as their future son in law, unless his future earnings outways his negatives.

I agree with most of what you said ... and find the FBI thing interesting as well.

it appears that "new" information is coming out now, even if it is currently just people talking to the media that didn't do so before. I have to think that if the FBI is getting involved now, they are doing it because they think there is definitely something to the allegations.

Not saying the FBI never wastes time or resources ... but it does seem curious that they are now getting involved.

Again, I am very interested to see how this all turns out. I don't really care what the result is, but the entire situation is very interesting to me a an SEC and CFB fan ...

You boy's are forgetting about LSU @ ARK...their defense may be good...but they haven't seen an offense yet.

You just ranked yourself up there with the biggest idiots on this board...you and TRH sleep well together tonight...

Good grief,Baker. Do you really think Jim was being serious?

We'll see. I believe that Oklahoma put up about 50 points a game in 08 until they played Florida In the BCSCG. That game didn't go to well for them, now did it?

Bob,

It was me taking this all way too personally.

I figured it out a couple of posts later...but putting all his posts together...he still needed the TRH comparison...

Here is the deal, Auburn better be one hundred percent sure that NONE of its boosters gave Cecil Newton money. And yes, if they continue to play the guy after all this has come out it will go much harder on them if it is found that someone gave Cam money.

Here is what they are betting the next decade of their program on:

1) A student athlete who very likely cheated at one university;

2) A student athlete stole a laptap at another university; and

3) A student athlete and his father who according to four witnesses right now, asked for nearly $200K to secure his signature.

With the FBI involved, if any Auburn booster paid any money, it will unravel soon enough. Boosters and the Newtons are prepared to lie to the NCAA all day, they will not be so eager to lie to the FBI.

Oh BOY!!! Gettin interesting now!!! The War Buzzards are getting to go down in a pile of black feathers!! YEAH!!!!!!!

My Team will benifit from this mess so I say off with his head!!!

Looks like his Dad is being discussed on the radio today!!!!!

That's why I said if LSU wins out, not when they win out.

And one could also say that Arkansas hasn't seen a defense yet, at least not one like they're going to see from LSU.

You know, the penalty for infractions like this discovered and ruled upon during the season is to forfeit games. If that were to happen, then assuming Arkansas beats MSU (I know a big assumption), then the game in Little Rock could be for the SEC West.

Probably a slim chances of anything happening in time to really make a difference, but it is a nice thought. Especially since but for Auburn playing an ineligible player, they would have beaten neither LSU nor Arkansas.

If Cam is found to be ineligible, it will be that, and only that. Auburn will vacate the wins, and it ends there. Sad, but that's it. If it's discovered Auburn paid...I doubt it could get much worse.



#2 First. A student who admits he purchased a laptop on the cheap, admits he used poor judgment and should have known it was stolen, and entered a pre-trial diversion, completed it and has no felony conviction on his record. Agree, that from now on, anything that ever comes up with him, he'll always be looked at more suspiciously than someone with a pristine record.

As to #1...as I said, he has a history, BUT, the reports from Gainsville on this are conflicting, and both stories cite sources within the Student Honor Court. One report said he had sources that he was facing charges from the student honor court...not just reported that he cheated...but that he was facing charges of cheating by the University. The second report denies that. You may still choose to believe he cheated.

As to #3...This allegation of shopping Cam or someone representing themselves as representing Cam asking for money has been out there since January, INCLUDING the alleged phone calls with the coaches. It was reported that there were tapes of these conversations...the SEC denies any knowledge of these tapes. As of now, you have Kenny Rogers (man who if you're going to veiw Cam suspiciously, you HAVE to view this sleazeball with the same jaundiced eye) now completely changing his story. This is only a new twist on old information that Cam's dad was shopping him. As stated, it was already known by the SEC and Auburn of the allegations by the coaches, and tapes have yet to be produced.

That said, if because of the laptop, you also choose to include in Cam's "body of work" all subsequent, unproven, and contradicted allegations against him, then you are free to do so. I don't consider anything but the stolen laptop, and the traffic tickets I know about, part of Cam's "body of work".




Here's the thing. Auburn's compliance Dept. has a former NCAA guy as its Head of Compliance, a retired FBI on staff as an investigator, and a team of pretty damned good lawyers our of Birmingham with Lightfoot, Franklin, and White LLC.

I happen to KNOW that Auburn did more due diligence on Cam than simply trusting he'd turned things around after the dastardly laptop incident. I happen to KNOW that they were well aware of the swirling accusations of "pay for play" before he ever played a down for Auburn, knew about it since January, and had conferred with the SEC on it all. And I know that they went to great measures to make sure he was eligible to play in light of all the known information at the time, AND there's no new information. NONE. I've heard lawyers who specialize in NCAA work, who are NOT representing anybody in this matter claim that Auburn, with what is known now, has no problems, and that it's not even very likely that Cam's eligibility is in great danger simply on unfounded allegations of someone seeking money on his behalf.

Worst case...absolute worst case is Cam is declared ineligible down the road...well after this season. Auburn has no NCAA probs here. NONE...there's no allegations out there against Auburn in any way, shape, or form. Never has been. The only connection to Auburn is that Cam is playing for Auburn now. The supposition is that due to contradicted accounts through known liars and people who themselves admit that they were willing to participate in paying Cam to play for MSU, and for which there is no evidence other than the "good word" of these "upstanding folks. These upstanding and good folks also, by the way, say Auburn had nothing to do with anything at MSU and that Auburn was never mentioned in anything. Still, since Cam now plays for Auburn, Cam must have then received money to play for Auburn.

That's it, in not so tight a nutshell.

Auburn is not, and has not been implicated in paying anybody. Not one report of it. None, zero.

Believe what you want.

Coss...seems the shoe fits differently when someone is disparaging your team's star QB huh?

You know better than that. All it takes is one booster. And yes, the NCAA holds schools accountable for their boosters. And you KNOW the history of Auburn boosters.

Do you want to bet the next ten years of Auburn football that no Auburn booster paid Cam Newton anything?

I'm not disparaging him based on nothing. His daddy is the one who according to four witnesses, shopped him around. He is the one who stole a laptop (and I would refer you to the police report on the incident available on the Smoking Gun).

FWIW,

Kenny Rogers says Cam Newton's father asked Mississippi State for money; no mention of Auburn
Published: Friday, November 12, 2010, 7:20 AM

By Charles Goldberg and Kevin Scarbinsky
AUBURN -- As Auburn quarterback Cam Newton practiced Thursday with intentions to play Saturday against Georgia, sports agent Kenny Rogers claimed he witnessed Newton's father telling two Mississippi State football coaches that the school would have to pay to sign the player.

Rogers identified Mississippi State booster Bill Bell, a former teammate of Rogers', as someone who might pay.

Bell told ESPN.com Thursday night that Newton's father, Cecil Newton Sr., did ask for money in exchange for a signing. Bell said he spoke with an NCAA investigator earlier this week.

"That's all I want to say about it at this point," Bell said.

Rogers, the agent who found himself in the middle of a story last week that said he tried to solicit money from Mississippi State on behalf of the Newton family, said Thursday on ESPN Radio in Dallas that the person responsible for the demand was Newton's father.

John Bond, the person who originally went on record to say Newton was being offered to State for money and that Rogers will involved, told the Jackson Clarion-Ledger on Thursday that the story "has nothing to do with Auburn, absolutely nothing to do with Auburn." Bond said he will provide information to the FBI next Tuesday.

Rogers, like Bond, said he was not aware if anyone asked Auburn for money.

The interview with Rogers on Thursday included contradictions on his role in the matter. Rogers said he was not "involved in anything concerning that, period." But he later said he called Bell on Cecil Newton's behalf to see if Bell was willing to pay for the quarterback.

Rogers said in the radio interview that at a meeting he attended in November 2009 in Starkville, Cecil Newton didn't tell two Mississippi State coaches how much he wanted, but the implication was clear that he wanted to be paid.

"I can't really remember how Mr. Newton stated this, but however he said it, one of the coaches was like, 'No, no, I don't want to hear that. No, no, don't hear that' as if money was brought up or it was going to take money to get him. I can't really remember, so I'm not going to sit here and say I remember what was said."

Rogers later said Newton told him the amount was between $100,000 and $180,000.

The Birmingham News reported Wednesday that Auburn officials have been talking with the NCAA, including a meeting this week, and that nothing has changed the quarterback's status. Thursday's practice indicated Auburn expects its star to play as the Tigers try to win the SEC West against Georgia.

Auburn officials declined to comment Thursday.

NCAA spokeswoman Stacey Osburn said by email Thursday that "the solicitation of cash or benefits by a prospective student-athlete or another individual on his or her behalf is not allowed under NCAA rules."

Donald Jackson, an attorney in Montgomery who has faced off with the NCAA many times, said Thursday that the NCAA is apparently comfortable with Newton's eligibility.

"The NCAA never hesitates to strong-arm schools into taking athletes off the field if they have evidence of violations," Jackson said.

On the latest round of charges, Jackson said that in his opinion, "the statements from Kenny Rogers and John Bond don't add up to anything that would justify taking him off the field."

Jackson said, "a solicitation without the acceptance or provision of an extra benefit is not a violation. It may be circumstantial evidence that someone gave you something.''

Jackson said Auburn should "absolutely'' play Newton.

The involvement of Bell came to public light Thursday. Though Rogers said he did not ask for money, he said he called Bell to see if a deal was arranged for Cam Newton's services.

Rogers said Cecil Newton asked him as they were leaving Starkville following a football game, "'What are you thinking? What are you thinking is going to happen? Is it going to go through?' I said, well, I can't answer that, 'I'll just call Bill Bell.' So I called Bill, and Bill didn't answer, and I left Bill a message saying, 'I'm with Mr. Newton and he just wants to know if the deal is going to go through.'"

Ian Fitzsimmons, who conducted the radio interview, asked Rogers if the "deal" meant Mississippi State was going to pay for Newton.

"Yes," Rogers said.

Rogers said he didn't have "any knowledge" whether Mississippi State would pay for the quarterback.

"I was asked a question, and I passed it on. I have no knowledge on what they were going to do and what they weren't going to do," he said.

An ESPN.com story this week said Mississippi State told the SEC that two recruiters were told by Cecil Newton in phone conversations that he wanted money. In a written statement, Mississippi said it informed the SEC of concerns in January, then supplied more information to the SEC in July. But SEC associate commissioner Charles Bloom said Wednesday that Mississippi State did not report such phone conversations to the SEC in January or in July.

Mississippi State officials on Thursday declined comment on Bloom's statement.

The NCAA requires coaches and schools to report solicitations.



I wrote wrong in the above post. The SEC denies reports of the phone conversations at all, not just the tapes.

We shall see. You'll be crying in the end.

But how are they jumping TCU and Boise without the benefit of the SECCG? That's the biggest obstacle for LSU getting in. When 2007 LSU and 2006 UF leapfrogged at the end of the season, it was because of the benefit of the SECCG.

LSU's schedule is pretty much a wash with Boise the rest of the way, and although better than TCU's schedule, TCU is two spots ahead in both human polls.

The version of that article I got on a BR TV station this website had a few more quotes in it. One of them was that Rogers said he never received money from any University. I guess I'm skeptical and the first thing It hought was - of course not. You got the cut on the back end from the athlete and the money most likely never originated from a University to begin with, but rather athletic backer programs/individuals.

Ok, he took the laptop, now what? He's got a history without a conviction.

As to the current pay for play accusations...Two of the 4 are coaches that continued to recruit him, supposedly after is was known he was being shopped, and LOST out on him, and two of which are already on record in this situation as having outright lied as to material facts.