Did anyone see this coming? Fans of the University of Southern California were expecting a slap on the wrist. Fans of everyone else feared a slap on the wrist. There was talk of how the legal team at USC was running rings around the NCAA. After all, if the NCAA had something on the Trojans for actions taking place years ago, something would have been decided long ago.
Or so the story went. Even when head coach Pete Carroll seemed to be jumping ship by taking the Seattle Seahawks head job just a few weeks after the 2009 season ended, the apologists chalked it up to Carroll getting a situation in the pros that he could not refuse. What did he have to prove in the college ranks? And why would Lane Kiffen leave the head job at Tennessee if he thought that the sky would fall on Troy.
But now the sky seems to have fallen. And being that Kiffen was around during the glory days, there is something appropriate about his holding the bag. And for those worried about the current USC players paying for past sins, well they did sign on with a program that was under investigation and some of the signees were attracted to the glamorous life of a Trojan football player--a life built, somewhat, on lies.
Which brings us back to Carroll. In looking at some of the posts by USC fans today on various sites, Bush seems to be getting the lion's share of vitriol. but the responsibility for this problem lays at the feet of Carroll, his coaching staff, athletic director Mike Garrett, the behind scenes powers that be and multiple men who have held the job of school president. To return to glory a decade ago the school decided that they would do anything to build a winner. Included in the design was the acquisition of the best possible talent. And so Carroll and his boys rounded up some impressive recruiting classes using whatever means necessary. Along the way Carroll established a laissez faire approach to running a program reminiscent of Oklahoma in the 1980s or Miami in the '80s and '90s. But like those two programs you can only go so far before you crash and burn. I hope the Trojans brought a fire extinguisher. So if you are going to surround yourself with the type of player attracted to wine, women and song, well you really cannot complain if some of those players took care of themselves beyond what is legal.
More to follow tomorrow.
Unfortuantely, Guido, your ND colors are showing too brightly here.
ReplyDeleteIt's clear the NCAA is trying to make an example of USC. Schools have been hit with weaker sanctions for worse offenses.
I cannot deny the obvious that some rules were broken. But these infractions hardly warrant this draconian punishment. In particular, Bush's indiscretions didn't even involve the school. The parties involved there were total outsiders. Perhaps USC turned a blind eye to the situation, but turning one's back on a problem is far different than encouraging or engaging in illegal activity.
We can argue the merits of the punishment all day. But I think where you go off the rails is your insistence on painting the school as some gangsta organization.
I'm starting to wonder if the NCAA--like you--made a judgement based on the schools false reputation.
Somehow Snoop Dogg on the sidelines meant the football program was made up of dope-smoking, whoring cheaters.
That's not fair. You've made a guilty by association judgment. and So did the NCAA. you tell me what football or basketball program doesn't have athletes living the high life of celebrity?
USC sports has cultivated a Hollywood image, but how could it not being in Hollywood's back yard? And why shouldn't it?
Making USC out to be this regenegade program when it is no different than any other really illustrates how you and the NCAA are biased against the school, and glaringly highlights how the NCAA was using this case to send a message to the rest of college sports.
Actually Scottso you are missing the boat on a couple of key issues. For one thing, USC was treated as a repeat violator, and thus were treated diferently than the run-of-the-mill non repeat violator. Secondly, Reggie Bush and O.J. Mayo achieved a rather high level of professionalism while at school, levels that needed pages and pages of documentation and levels that blow away the usual pay-to-play rules that have been in college sports since the 19th century. Thirdly, USC knew all about it. The NCAA is clear that the school encouraged this sort of behavior while journalists have discussed the access these handlers have had to the inner sanctum (and off limits to journalists)of USC athletics. Lastly, the NCAA, and Youtube for that matter, make it clear that USC continued to break laws despite being under investigation. This is where the charges of arrogance have been levied. That they felt that they were bigger than the NCAA went a huge way to earning this big of a penalty. And now that they, and you a school apologist, are crying is just making it worse. No, Mike Garrett, we are not jealous of you. We just want the playing field a bit more level.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the gangsta image, why are you so defensive about that? Much like Miami in the 1980s and '90s cultivated an image of being celebrity football players to attract players, USC did the same. But as the NCAA pointed out, that established a system whereby the players felt entitled so much so that not only did being members of the student body bore them but rules took on a different meaning. As the report stated "there existed a general post-game locker room environment that made compliance efforts difficult."
So yes the NCAA did set out to make an example of USC--that is true of everyone who gets nailed--but no they did not go out of their way to punish the Trojans. The Trojans went out of their way to get punished.