USC investigation questions....

• visionquest

  So, what's the general feeling on this? I have a couple of questions, as I know the hearings started recently:
  1. Will they get in real trouble?
  2. When, if they get in trouble, will we know everything?
  
  -If this has been discussed elsewhere, I'm sorry as I have not read it.
• jordo212000

  

  It will probably be in April before you hear anything.
  
  Define "real trouble." Will they get the death penalty? Probably not. But if you ask me, they are going to get something out of this. --alot of my opinion comes from the fact that Carroll got out of dodge-- The documents Yahoo Sports has is particularly damning. The one saving grace is that as far as you can tell from the documents, nobody at USC had knowledge of the situation. Really the only thing the NCAA has is a bunch of receipts and bills worth thousands of dollars linked to Reggie Bush and the sport marketing firm that was courting him. (Frostee Rucker, also a USC guy, is named in some of the documents. So there could be more to the story)
• centralbucksfan

  jordo212000 wrote: It will probably be in April before you hear anything.
  
  Define "real trouble." Will they get the death penalty? Probably not. But if you ask me, they are going to get something out of this. --alot of my opinion comes from the fact that Carroll got out of dodge-- The documents Yahoo Sports has is particularly damning. The one saving grace is that as far as you can tell from the documents, nobody at USC had knowledge of the situation. Really the only thing the NCAA has is a bunch of receipts and bills worth thousands of dollars linked to Reggie Bush and the sport marketing firm that was courting him. (Frostee Rucker, also a USC guy, is named in some of the documents. So there could be more to the story)

  Saving grace about the knowledge? Maybe, maybe not. Remember, the Mayo/basketball thing is linked in with this investigation. So we are not just talking football. That tells me that the NCAA is looking at the sports program, period. Which could also signal the dreaded "lack of institutional control". If that happens, USC could be in some very deep trouble. Especially when you consider they basically slapped themselves on the wrist for basketball with their self induced penalties.
  I hope they get smacked BIG TIME! ITs deserving based on all that I have read!
• 3reppom

  

  centralbucksfan wrote:

  jordo212000 wrote: It will probably be in April before you hear anything.
  
  Define "real trouble." Will they get the death penalty? Probably not. But if you ask me, they are going to get something out of this. --alot of my opinion comes from the fact that Carroll got out of dodge-- The documents Yahoo Sports has is particularly damning. The one saving grace is that as far as you can tell from the documents, nobody at USC had knowledge of the situation. Really the only thing the NCAA has is a bunch of receipts and bills worth thousands of dollars linked to Reggie Bush and the sport marketing firm that was courting him. (Frostee Rucker, also a USC guy, is named in some of the documents. So there could be more to the story)

  Saving grace about the knowledge? Maybe, maybe not. Remember, the Mayo/basketball thing is linked in with this investigation. So we are not just talking football. That tells me that the NCAA is looking at the sports program, period. Which could also signal the dreaded "lack of institutional control". If that happens, USC could be in some very deep trouble. Especially when you consider they basically slapped themselves on the wrist for basketball with their self induced penalties.
  I hope they get smacked BIG TIME! ITs deserving based on all that I have read!

  For lack of institutional control they have to prove that Mike Garret and Co knew what was going on at the time and did not report it. From the preponderance of evidence that can't be conclusively proven by the NCAA. The NCAA doesn't punish anyone unless they can prove it beyond a shadow of a doubt. If the only thing that they can conclusively prove is that Bush received extra benefits independent of the athletic department and without their knowledge they will retroactively strip wins but that will be the extent of it. Maybe 5 fewer scholarships for a couple years. No one will ever get another death penalty from the NCAA, it will not happen because the NCAA didn't understand the long term ramifications when they disbanded SMU and they regretted doing it later.
• jordo212000

  

  Obviously they are still probably going to get something, I was just mainly saying that the football stuff seems like it is Reggie Bush getting alot of stuff under the table, where unless Pete Carroll was really hounding him hard, he may have not known.
  
  The basketball stuff is another story, they are probably in deep crap
• dtdtim

  At most they will have to forfeit wins in both basketball and football and lose some scholarships. It's not going to be a death penalty but I could see them with an Alabama-like punishment from the early 2000s that put the program in deep turmoil for years. But, being USC, it probably won't happen. The athletic program at USC overall is too valuable to the NCAA for anything of major circumstance to happen.
• darbypitcher22

  

  they won't get the death penalty, but the punishment should be more than a couple of lost schollys and forfeits... a post-season ban should be right up their alley
• ghosthunter

  

  darbypitcher22 wrote: they won't get the death penalty, but the punishment should be more than a couple of lost schollys and forfeits... a post-season ban should be right up their alley

  I think depending on what they can prove, the NCAA may have to come down really hard, simply because it sets the precedence if another team has similar problems.
  
  For the sake of the NCAA as a governing body, to keep their authority status what it is, they may have no choice but to smack SC pretty hard whether they like it or not.
• dtdtim

  ghosthunter wrote: For the sake of the NCAA as a governing body, to keep their authority status what it is, they may have no choice but to smack SC pretty hard whether they like it or not.

  That's what I'm hoping. But 'integrity' and 'NCAA' have about as much business being in the same sentence together as 'integrity' and 'USC', so you never know for sure. I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens.
• darbypitcher22

  

  USC deserves to be pimp slapped for this.... they've had it coming for quite a while
• Speedofsand

  

  I'm hearing good things from LA. The NCAA knows the nation is watching. The evidence is large against USC. The USC folks thought they would get off easy, but they have changed their tune since the meetings. If the hammer does not drop, what's to stop agents from buying up every player they can ?
  
  David Price, the NCAA's vice president of enforcement services, said the hearing was "the longest in my 11 years."
  
  http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/22/sports/ncaafootball/22usc.html?ref=sports
  
  http://www.latimes.com/sports/college/usc/la-sp-usc-ncaa21-2010feb21,0,758850.story
• darbypitcher22

  

  they're fucked.
  
  Unfortunately for the basketball team, those self-imposed violations shouldn't be enough
• Preacher

  Now how fair is it that this great class of incoming freshmen are going to be smacked..... These players should be allowed to be released from their LOI without punishment.....
• gamauter

  

  Preacher wrote: Now how fair is it that this great class of incoming freshmen are going to be smacked..... These players should be allowed to be released from their LOI without punishment.....

  Would they have to give their cars back?
• Preacher

  Now that is funny.lol How will this imact the economy of LA if USC is not buying all these cars for recruits and players.lol
• gamauter

  

  Maurice didn't even get a new car.
• Speedofsand

  

  8-10 weeks until we know the results of the recent hearings.
  Henderson will still go there.
• centralbucksfan

  Speedofsand wrote: 8-10 weeks until we know the results of the recent hearings.
  Henderson will still go there.

  I honestly don't think Henderson ends up at USC. I also don't believe he will end up at OSU either. Miami would be my guess.
• darbypitcher22

  

  gamauter wrote: Maurice didn't even get a new car.

  Maurice got Grey Goose.
  
  I know it will take a while, but the NCAA can't let USC talk their way out of this on
• jordo212000

  

  Preacher wrote: Now how fair is it that this great class of incoming freshmen are going to be smacked..... These players should be allowed to be released from their LOI without punishment.....

  All of the players should have been aware that USC was under investigation (unless they were living in a cave). Another hint should have been when Pete Carroll got the heck out of dodge
• ytownfootball

  

  I don't really care where Henderson goes at this point, if he ends up at OSU, fine I guess but the staff doesn't need to deal with his dad (a la Ray Small). What's funny is this appears in all likelyood to be a clear cut case of lack of institutional control, Pete knew it was coming and bolted. There is certainly enough circumstantial evidence to suggest it.
  
  Seven boxes of shit and a couple days to lay it all out should be enough to drop the hammer but I doubt it happens.
• OneBuckeye

  

  ^ One would think....
  
  http://ncaafootball.fanhouse.com/2010/02/22/usc-anxiously-awaits-ncaa-ruling/
  
  Latest article I could find.
• ytownfootball

  

  Just a thought...
  
  Were it ESPN and not Yahoosports.com that originally broke the story, these investigations and the flood of coverage that would surely have surrounded them would have the result of the NCAA being backed into a corner. That's not to say that the NCAA doesn't feel the pressure at this point, but the magnitude would have been far greater given insurmountable coverage.
  
  Should the sanctions that result not be as damning as we think it should be as a group of moderately informed fans, at least speaking for myself, I will point the crooked finger of blame squarely at ESPN.
• lhslep134

  

  ^^^ I agree. Someone should write an email to the ESPN ombudsman complaining about the lack of coverage about this. He's already blasted ESPN twice this year for mishandling things (Leach being one of them), and so far it's been very entertaining.
  
  I just can't wait til ESPN gets the hint that their viewing audience is frustrated at how story chasing they've become. There's WAY too much going on in the sports world to devote 15 minutes of sportscenter to one story.
  
  I remember back when I was about 7 or 8, which was 12 years ago, when I would turn on sportscenter and see the highlights for every baseball game from the day before. I think nowadays they might show 3 or 4 baseball highlights, and just show the score for the other games. It's fucking pathetic.
• jordo212000

  

  lhslep134 wrote: ^^^ I agree. Someone should write an email to the ESPN

  Done.