NCAA right to end investigation into Cam Newton, Auburn
Cam Newton can celebrate another victory. The NCAA has closed the book on its investigation.
The conspiracy theories won’t end. But the NCAA says its investigation into Cam Newton’s recruitment by Auburn is over.
College’s football’s relative governing body announced Wednesday it was closing the book on Newton and Auburn after conducting “more than 80 interviews,” apparently none of whom claimed — and could verify — that they were offered money, took money or had a cash register receipt for somebody who did.
Go ahead and whine. But I’m not sure how you can fault the NCAA on this. There is little question the NCAA, for all of the criticism it has received over the past several months on how it has handled this, would have nailed Auburn and/or Newton if it could have. The NCAA is not above wanting to make a big show of things.
The problem: There’s simply no evidence of wrongdoing.
Here’s a copy of the NCAA’s statement:
After conducting more than 80 interviews, the NCAA has concluded its investigation into Auburn University. The NCAA enforcement staff is committed to a fair and thorough investigative process. As such, any allegations of major rules violations must meet a burden of proof, which is a higher standard than rampant public speculation online and in the media. The allegations must be based on credible and persuasive information and includes a good-faith belief that the Committee on Infractions could make a finding. As with any case, should the enforcement staff become aware of additional credible information, it will review the information to determine whether further investigation is warranted.
Yes, we know that Newton’s father, the pastor Cecil “Huggy Bear” Newton Sr. tried to pimp his son out to the highest bidder. The NCAA found back in December of 2010 that Cecil attempted to solicit a large payment, reportedly $180,000, from Mississippi State in exchange for assurances that his son would transfer there from a junior college, bringing his football talents with him.
For this NCAA violation, Newton was ruled ineligible — unbeknownst everybody at the time. He then was reinstated in time for Auburn’s SEC championship game three days later, when the whole bizarre chain of events was disclosed. The NCAA was criticized at the time for not declaring Newton ineligible for the season. But it ruled that there was insufficient evidence that Cam Newton was aware of his father’s actions.
Now, if you wish to debate the logic of that, that’s fine. But what you think you may know is not exactly considered admissible evidence in a court of law. And there certainly never has been a evidence of wrongdoing by Auburn in all of this, despite what buffoons like Danny Sheridan might claim on radio shows.
Jackie Thurns, the NCAA’s associate director of enforcement, sent an email to Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs on Tuesday that outlined its 13-month investigation into the Tigers, not just regarding Newton but allegations of impermissible inducements and extra benefits connected to four other players: Raven Gray, Stanley McGlover, Chaz Ramsey and Troy Reddick. All made allegations on HBO’s “Real Sports” show called, “Dirty Money,” but nothing could be substantiated.
If anybody committed a crime, they did an excellent job wiping away the finger prints.
College football stirs emotions here in the South, and nobody stirred them more last year than Newton during Auburn’s unexpected run to a national championship. But the contention of many that Newton should not have been eligible to win the Heisman Trophy (which he did) and Auburn should not have been allowed to play for the SEC and BCS titles (which it did, and won) were baseless.
Many will vent about this, as they have for months. There will be angry comments from fans and flaming comments from a few major media outlets that quoted double-secret sources of Newton’s guilt and Auburn’s finger prints.
But the NCAA made the right decision here. The last time I checked, we don’t convict in this country on a juicy theory.
By Jeff Schultz
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558 comments Add your comment
MAD Dawg: Congrats WAR EAGLE !!!
October 12th, 2011
10:03 pm
……enough problems of their own to worry about.
Aubie-won-knobi
October 12th, 2011
10:03 pm
smirk….at all you pitiful leg humpers….**** you can engrave THAT on your tombstones because it’s obvious THAT is going to haunt you the rest of your little leg humper lives!
Patrick Romano WAR DAMN EAGLE
October 12th, 2011
10:05 pm
Dawglasville, I’ll make it brief for you and other Peabrain people out there. Get your facts right. AU has 2 NC, that’s National Championships and several other Undefeated seasons including 14-0 in 2004.
WAR DAMN EAGLE
Hit A Single
October 12th, 2011
10:05 pm
There is more cheating and abusing the system in college football and basketball than anybody is willing to admit. Corruption is everywhere and if the NCAA thinks they are controlling it then they had better get their head out of the sand.
Weather Channel Expert
October 12th, 2011
10:05 pm
Who said “the money be too good?” now you know.
JSH
October 12th, 2011
10:06 pm
The only people who care about Auburn are Auburn fans and Alabama fans. It’s sad when the only thing a state has going for it is their two football teams. #50 in reading and writing, #50 in graduation, last in everything except football and Walmarts.
Congrats Auburn on winning the National Championship.
Aubie-won-knobi
October 12th, 2011
10:07 pm
Come on Mad Dawg…you sayin YOU know more than the NCAA? Everyone in the SEC has had their a$$ handed to them for violations. But ONLY AU is forgiven? Are we SUDDENLY the chosen ones? The Golden Gods will let us ride but NO other else in the SEC? Contrarily…EVERYONE in the SEC would rather AUBURN be handed our A$$ than Alabama!!!!!!
Hit A Single
October 12th, 2011
10:07 pm
College baseball is the cleanest sport and it is the most discriminated.
Aubie-won-knobi
October 12th, 2011
10:08 pm
And the ONLY people who care about Georgia are LEG Humpers…goes both ways bro.
Asterrisk
October 12th, 2011
10:09 pm
Enter your comments here
Nick Fairley
October 12th, 2011
10:10 pm
UGA 92, it’s not church, it’s football. I will haunt Aaron Murray for the rest of Halloween ahhhh hahaha ahhhhhhhhhhhh hahahaha!
Hit A Single
October 12th, 2011
10:11 pm
Hey Nick you ought to be mad that you didn’t get your cut of the money.
Aubie-won-knobi
October 12th, 2011
10:12 pm
I lived in frickin Atlanta, Georgia for 13 years….how does it feel to be FIRST in unemployment and foreclosures in the Nation? Alabama and Auburn won BCS National Title AND Heisman back to back two years in a row….and the way Alabama and Trent Richardson are steam rolling…make it THREE in a row for the “oh so pathetic” state of Alabama!
Hit A Single
October 12th, 2011
10:13 pm
I know why Forrest Gump went to Ala. now.
Aubie-won-knobi
October 12th, 2011
10:17 pm
Oh I don’t know “hit a single…” is it because Mark Richt said he would be better as a wide receiver than a Quarterback?
Hit A Single
October 12th, 2011
10:18 pm
Forrest was before Coach Richt’s time.
Aubie-won-knobi
October 12th, 2011
10:21 pm
And from what we can ALL tell…it’s beyond Coach Richts time!
Hit A Single
October 12th, 2011
10:23 pm
Go Rangers! Two of the Braves former shortstops are going to be in the World Series. And oh yea why is Coach Richt in this conversation. Where does he coach?
Hit A Single
October 12th, 2011
10:24 pm
He had nothing to do with Cam Newton accept he could see thru him and his dad.
Aubie-won-knobi
October 12th, 2011
10:25 pm
okay….NOW I understand….I’ll not continue to ridicule this person. Not my style under the circumstances for those who read between the lines….
Hit A Single
October 12th, 2011
10:25 pm
I meant except.
Bama Fan#2
October 12th, 2011
10:28 pm
Anybody with half a brain KNOWS the barn payed Cam Newton.
The NCAA just let the door open for paying players and looking
the other way. Auburn may have won the NC title last year but
is tainted just like USC NC’S RTR
JSH
October 12th, 2011
10:28 pm
I wonder what degree Cam received while at Auburn. He had to have enough credits with stops at Florida, a Jr. College, and then Auburn.
Hit A Single
October 12th, 2011
10:29 pm
Oh well I have to go and it is just another joke by the NCAA. I can’t believe I wasted this much time on this.
TrishaDishaWarEagle
October 12th, 2011
10:31 pm
AU’s 2010 National Championship™ should not upset UGA fans! ……
This should…… Cam Newton Record: Panthers Quarterback Sets Rookie Mark With 432 Yards Passing Yards
Baron Von RICHTofen says, “We actually had him pegged more as a tight end prospect. ..”
Sometimes it is ok to just leave something unsaid, Markie…
MAD Dawg: Congrats WAR EAGLE !!!
October 12th, 2011
10:37 pm
UGA fans might as well stop hatin’ on Auburn and accept the fact that the Tigers are NOT GUILTY !! Talk about conspiracies but here’s one. Do the Dawgs hate AU was found not guilty of any payoffs because it took Tiger coach G.Chizik just two years in the SEC to win the National Title and UGA coach M.Richt hasn’t delivered yet in eleven years. If that’s the reason then I see why UGA has the most delusional fans, along with FSU fans in the nation. As a Dawg I give Auburn all the credit they richly deserve ! Their coaching staff is far smarter than ours. Only an idiot posing as a coach would pass up an opportunity to win the national title by recruiting Cam Newton at tight end than quarterback ! And when you think about it what would Urban Meyer have accomplished if he was able to keep Cam Newton at UF ? Georgia fans should really shut up and be glad Newton did leave Florida for Auburn. Had Newton stayed at UF and won titles clearly the pious Richt would have been run out of Georgia by now. All Georgia fans are not jealous or delusional. Congrats to AU on the not guilty verdict and shoutout to WDE !!
Frustrated, Inc.
October 12th, 2011
10:53 pm
SUCK IT you jealous uga haters…this serves as confimation that your leghumpers are on the level of vandy and uk (in football). How does it feel to be an also-ran that hasn’t sniffed a championship in 30 plus years???????????????!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dawg '88
October 12th, 2011
10:57 pm
sCAM newton, Inc. gets away with extortion….NCAA strikes again.
AJ Green sells his jersey and gets suspended 4 games.
sCAM and his Dad cheat beyond belief and get…nothing.
The NCAA….a joke at best…hypocrites!
And don’t give me that sCAM didn’t know….I’ve known what my father was doing on my behalf since I was born. Plus, where did he think that new church came from. The fact that Auburn accepted a criminal from Uf tells me all I need to know about them. The “family” is corrupt!
All In…gamblers cheat all the time!
robert
October 12th, 2011
11:01 pm
Auburn critics be gone or dorothy will drop a house on you just like she did to the Wicked witch in the wizard of Oz. Jealously does not become a person so the bible says. Now 2011 high school seniors come to the lovelist village on the plains and we will be back in the championship hunt in 2012-2013
DP
October 12th, 2011
11:07 pm
Just use cash!!!!
THE MAJOR
October 12th, 2011
11:10 pm
The AJ Green release said the same, if they find anything else they will look further into it, You DAWGS get over your envy and move on
VININGS DAWG
October 12th, 2011
11:12 pm
For our Dumb Dawgs out there, AJ Green was guilty and he admitted to it, Auburn is not guilty and did nothing wrong. As I have told all of you from the beginning, GET OVER IT!!!! Auburn won the NC now we have to get better,
Joe Bob Thibodaux
October 12th, 2011
11:13 pm
Jeff:
Newton was the best player in college football last year.
I traveled to Auburn and watched AU whip LSU in 2010.
Even though whipped and tired, I was glad for the opportunity
to see my team play against Cam-Fairly and Company. That was a real good football team. LSU didn’t tackel well in that game, and Cam
Newton put on a show.
JBT
MAD Dawg: Give AU their PROPS right now !!
October 12th, 2011
11:15 pm
Honestly I personally felt that in 2004 not only Auburn was robbed of the national title, but the SEC as well. As a Dawg, I have no problem giving the Plainsmen their props. It’s long over due. Only a fool that would see Cam Newton as a forgotten tight end and not as an award winning, first round draft pick at quarterback would be stupid enough to hate on AU. Did we hear any complaining from the Toomers when the pious one, Richt, took UGA to a no.2 finish in 2007 ? No, because everybody knows that that was the best finish UGA will ever have under Richt ! LOL ! Delusional, jealous UGA fans eat your hearts out !!
trupert
October 12th, 2011
11:18 pm
This time is no different than when Terry Bowden and staff were paying all those players and there was no evidence.
The dirty Auburn Tigers have cheating and paying players down to a science. 50 years of practice makes perfect. Nobody does it better.
Phil Ford
October 12th, 2011
11:18 pm
Anyone who thinks the man didn’t get paid is an idiot. I don’t know why it took so long for UNC to get busted. They took very good care of me way back in the 70’s. It’s not like it was a secret.
Ckgator
October 12th, 2011
11:20 pm
So the precedent now is that it is OK to ask for money, as long as the player is “not aware” of a relative selling his talents to the highest bidder.
This is a terrible day for college football. The NCAA just shot integrity in the head.
Cecil "Cash Money" Newton
October 12th, 2011
11:24 pm
Every cent of that AU money went to my church for the benefit of the Kingdom !
Kevin
October 12th, 2011
11:27 pm
Doesnt matter anymore…Guess what Auburn just got destroyed by Arkansas ..HAHAHAHA. Auburn can have their once in a century championship.
Sandy
October 12th, 2011
11:30 pm
Auburn is as innocent as OJ Simpson. Travesties of justice in both cases.
Chopblockthuga
October 12th, 2011
11:31 pm
JSH, most years, Alabama kids score higher on the SAT. Do some research. GA has nothing on AL and I am a GA native. Open your mind loser…..
Ckgator
October 12th, 2011
11:33 pm
As long as the player is kept in the dark, it’s ok solicit cash on his behalf to influence his decision on where to play.
This is exactly what the NCAA has told us with this decision.
Cecil "Cash Money" Newton
October 12th, 2011
11:33 pm
Look you haters out there just don’t understand. They were gonna board my church up for building code violations. We had a very leaky roof at the church and we ran out of buckets to catch the water when it rained on our service. We had a tax lien pending on my church and we really needed a dining room for the members to eat in after service. We don’t have any of those problems anymore, that’s why every penny of the AU money went to the church for the benefit of the Kingdom !!
DAMON
October 12th, 2011
11:34 pm
What does a beat-down, broken-down dawg do????……..he licks himself between the legs.
Take notice bulldawg nation……..LMAO
Ckgator
October 12th, 2011
11:34 pm
Auburn is the Casey Anthony of college football.
MikeP
October 12th, 2011
11:39 pm
All-Involved
October 12th, 2011
9:44 pm
“The NCAA got paid.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Three months ago you whiners were saying Auburn paid off the FBI in the gambling case. Here’s something to think about: If Auburn has both the FBI and NCAA on the payroll, you guys are in a LOT more trouble than you can even imagine! In the meantime, WAR EAGLE!
sports
October 12th, 2011
11:41 pm
You damn right they should investigate that pentitentiary in Auburn, Alabama. The hood that scam the cam went to needs big time investigating.
Cecil "Cash Money" Newton: AU made it rain $$$ up in here !!
October 12th, 2011
11:52 pm
We had a very serious termite and roach problem at the church that had to be rectified. Also rats were running loose and terrified the choir, pulpit and congregation. It was hurting the collection plate because visitors stopped coming and the church wasn’t bringin’ in any new members. I’m telling you I had to do somethin’ y’all and AU came through. Don’t worry haters, all this was done without Cammie’s knowledge. Okay.The NCAA understood any looked the other way. AU has their championship and we have a brand new, state of the art facility that is pest free. Cammie is a pro qb and millionaire now and why isn’t everybody happy for us all ? I don’t know why peoples is hatin’ !
rammer bama
October 13th, 2011
12:00 am
Where did cecil and cam hide all that money? cam’s a millionaire now—he should come clean about all that cash and the fatcat booster who paid it.
DAMON
October 13th, 2011
12:10 am
Just think, Cam could have attended UGA and been the number 1 tight end in last year’s draft.
INSTEAD, he chose Auburn and became the number 1 quarterback and number 1 overall pick.
THUS, Cam has a much, much bigger bank account. I know UGA is not mistaken for an Ivy League school, but can you NOT do the math????