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
DawginLex
October 13th, 2011
9:00 am
Kentucky basketball hasn’t had an NCAA violation in 22 years.
Cam Newton
October 13th, 2011
9:00 am
If things don’t work out for me in the League, I’ve always got my AU Sociology Degree to fall back on.
wballs
October 13th, 2011
9:01 am
Georgia Fan: Yee haw, boi, you wait…someday, somewhere…that person with all the proof will crawl out hees trailer and get you Aweburn. you jus’ wait.
Me: Your throbbing jealousy is obvious.
Georgia Fan: But, dawg, boi, Aweburn dudn’t deserve to win no national champ-ship. They jus’ a lil school down yonder. They mussa cheated.
Me: Sorry, no, they didn’t. Auburn has been trying to tell everyone that for a year now.
Georgia Fan: Well, i jus don’t b’lieve um. They just couldnt win no national cham-ship and beat our tail the way they did. Jus’ couldna.
Me: Well, yeah, they did actually.
Georgia Fan: Dat Cam Newton just had to have been paid. Those cheaters. His dad…well, he cheat too. And Auburn. They all cheat. And that Nick Fairley. He cheat too. You see him hit our boi? He hit him hard? That’s just not fair. He cheat.
Me: Sorry you feel that way. You know, people do get hit hard in football sometimes. It is a contact sport, you know. Hopefully you will come around soon and just accept it.
MikeP
October 13th, 2011
9:02 am
So, the NCAA snoops that were sharp enough to find $1,000 in the Greene case couldn’t find 200K at the Newton household? After 20 months of snooping they couldn’t find an extra dime? Your only reasonable explanation is that there WAS NO extra money.
Love how posters here deny reality: Houston Chronicle, Gainesvile Sun and so forth prove that Cam Newton did not cheat at Florida and left the program in good standing both athletically and academically, yet supposedly ” honest” posters here continue to type lies.
Some of you need to let a preacher of your choice help you get to the point where you are as honest as Cam Newton.
Cam Newton
October 13th, 2011
9:03 am
Daddy was trying to get money from Miss St but I didn’t know nothing about all that.
Wink Wink
*All-Involved
October 13th, 2011
9:03 am
WarDamnEagle in Atl, you all can crow all you want, but you know the truth. The * ‘10 NC will always have an asterisk beside it as will the *’10 Heisman. Always.
Ernest T. Bass
October 13th, 2011
9:04 am
Auburn quarterback Cam Newton was facing possible expulsion from the University of Florida for academic cheating when he transferred to junior college in the spring of 2009, FoxSports.com reported Monday.
Newton, a Heisman Trophy front-runner, is said to have been caught cheating three times, including putting his name on someone else’s paper without that student’s knowledge.
Cam Newton
October 13th, 2011
9:05 am
That’s right MikeP!
I’d recommend my Daddy. He’s the most honest preacher out there, and I know it’s true – because he said so!
Ernest T. Bass
October 13th, 2011
9:05 am
According to FoxSports.com, Newton again violated the university’s honor code by putting his name on another student’s paper and turning it in. Newton was caught after the instructor asked the real author of the paper why he had not turned in his work.
Ernest T. Bass
October 13th, 2011
9:07 am
other schools already had offered $200,000, but because Newton really liked Mississippi State and had a relationship with coach Dan Mullen from their time at Florida, Mississippi State could get him for $180,000.
Cam Newton
October 13th, 2011
9:07 am
Like Daddy always said: Praise the Lord and pass the biscuits!
*All-Involved
October 13th, 2011
9:07 am
wballs, spearing a QB in the back long after he releases the ball is not part of football. But I know that cheating is ingrained in the *Awbarn psyche, so you *Aubies can’t tell the difference between clean and dirty. Let me give you a hint, *Awbarn’s filthy.
april glaspie
October 13th, 2011
9:08 am
Pure D bull.Cam didn’t know anything, and Trooper doesn’t cheat, but AJ Green is evil for selling his own shirt, to a guy nobody ever heard of before or since that the NCAA claims is an “agent”. What an immense crock of shinola.
Cam Newton
October 13th, 2011
9:09 am
Daddy said when the NCAA asks just keep quiet and pretend like I don’t know anything.
So when they ask I just smile real big and say I don’t know nothing. I just want to play football.
*All-Involved
October 13th, 2011
9:10 am
MikeP, you need to get your head out of that crevice and come up for some air.
DawginLex
October 13th, 2011
9:10 am
Well, auburn fans can’t tell the difference between their sister and their girlfriend either since they are one in the same……..
Matt
October 13th, 2011
9:11 am
That doesn’t mean it didn’t happen it just means there isn’t enough evidence to convict in a court of law. Good grief, criminals get set free all the time because someone messed up something, didn’t file something on time, evidence was “compromised”, etc. A lawyer’s job is to find loopholes in the system that prevent a conviction. Just because the justice system says I am innocent doesn’t mean I didn’t do something wrong, it just means they couldn’t prove it, 2 completely different things.
Our justice system is as flawed as our government. They are both run by egomaniacs with personal agendas.
meh
October 13th, 2011
9:11 am
I still think there’s no way his dad was pimpin him out to MSU without him knowing. Also, the NCAA is crooked as hell. Just because they say they didn’t find anything doesn’t mean they didn’t find anything.
Cam Newton
October 13th, 2011
9:12 am
I know y’all ain’t never gonna believe me, but guess what? I don’t care!
I got mine… The rest of y’all can just go f@@k yourselves. I’m laughin’ all the way to the bank!
MikeP
October 13th, 2011
9:12 am
Ernest T., at least three other, reputable news sources provided named sources and documentation that proved the FoxSports,com stories about Cam Newton cheating at Florida were not true. Try to keep up.
No money was turned down by the Newtons for Cam to come to Auburn. Can’t get that through your heads? Kenny Rogers at Mississippi State couldn’t come up with two quarters, let alone $200k.
The hits Just Keep on Coming
October 13th, 2011
9:13 am
A test to see if you are a true Auburn fan
_________________________________________________
A seven course meal is a bucket of KFC and a sixpack.
One of your kids was born on a pool table.
Your lifetime goal is to own a fireworks stand.
Someone asks to see your ID and you show them your belt buckle.
Your house doesn’t have curtains, but your truck does.
You need one more hole punched in your card to get a freebie at the House of Tattoos.
You have flowers planted in a bathroom fixture in your front yard.
You think the Mountain Men in Deliverance were just “misunderstood”.
If you refer to the fifth grade as, “your senior year”.
You’ve ever climbed a water tower with a bucket of paint to defend your sister’s honor.
It’s easier to spray weed killer on your lawn than mow it.
You’ve been on TV more than 5 times describing the sound of a tornado.
Your aunt and your grandmother went to the funeral and had a fight over who gets to be the widow.
You can tell your age by the number of rings in the bathtub.
suwanee dawg
October 13th, 2011
9:13 am
Congrats to Auburn on the NC. Been told to the “kiss the ring” since we now we both have ONE NC in the past 50 years. Looking forward to going 5-1 against the Tigers this year.
Matt
October 13th, 2011
9:13 am
Oj was set free for crying out loud! Anyone actually think he was innocent???
The hits Just Keep on Coming
October 13th, 2011
9:14 am
Things you will never hear an Auburn fan say
_________________________________________________
Honey, did you mail that donation to Greenpeace?
I’ve got two cases of Zima for the Super Bowl.
Wrestling’s fake.
Cappuccino tastes better than espresso.
The tires on that truck are too big.
Checkmate.
You can’t feed that to the dog.
Little Debbie snack cakes have too many fat grams.
Would you like your fish poached or broiled?
Spitting is such a nasty habit.
Be sure to bring my salad dressing on the side.
Duct tape won’t fix that.
My fiancee, Bobbie Jo, is registered at Tiffany’s.
I read an interesting article today.
Let’s listen to NPR.
Hey buddy save your money; this one is on me.
Let a professional paint your car.
Don’t kill it!
I love the sweet sound of the oboe.
May the best man win.
MikeP
October 13th, 2011
9:15 am
Dawg in Lex, aren’t you one of those that said you’d congratulate Auburn if they were cleared? Now’s the time, Dude. Waiting……
The hits Just Keep on Coming
October 13th, 2011
9:15 am
Santa Claus, the tooth fairy, a classy AUBURN Fan and an old drunk are
walking down the street together when they simultaneously spot a
hundred dollar bill. Who gets it?
* The old drunk, of course; the other three are mythical creatures.
WarDamnEagle in Atl
October 13th, 2011
9:15 am
ALL INVOLVED. . . .
Stop!! I’m laughing so hard it hurts. I didn’t realize you wrote the record books. What are you doing on these blogs? Get back to work and add that *** LMAO
It’s ok…..you’ll win a championship …..one day. But until you do, you can continue to obsess about ours. *KISS THE RING*
DawginLex
October 13th, 2011
9:16 am
Congratulations on fooling the most inept organization in the world.
*All-Involved
October 13th, 2011
9:16 am
Congrats *Awbarn, you hired a football player (who got kicked out of UF) for one season to come in and try and make you look like BBB (Big Brother “Bama). Didn’t work. You may have the *NC trophy, but it’s very, very tarnished.
Cam Newton
October 13th, 2011
9:17 am
We was all set to go to Miss St for 180,000 and play for Dan Mullen.
I was sure looking forward to hearing all those bells.
But dang if Auburn didn’t step in at the last minute.
I wont say how much it was but let me tell you it was more than 180,000
Heck daddy had a new Cadillac that very afternoon.
DC
October 13th, 2011
9:18 am
hey “Cam Newton” your jokes aren’t good..if they were i would laugh..but since they ware not just go back to your regular alias…
Cam Newton
October 13th, 2011
9:18 am
@MikeP
You should be more like me. Don’t worry about the haters. Just be glad we got away with it!
Ain’t nobody in their right mind gonna ever believe that I didn’t know what my Daddy did. Hell, I was right there with him when he did it.
WarDamnEagle in Atl
October 13th, 2011
9:19 am
MIKEP……
these poeple are hopeless
*All-Involved
October 13th, 2011
9:19 am
I wonder if *Cam Newton ever set foot in any of the building at *Awbarn besides the football stadium.
Woofy One
October 13th, 2011
9:20 am
Do the supporters get their money back now ?
DC
October 13th, 2011
9:20 am
UGA fans how many undefeated seasons have you had in the past 10 years..how many has AU had?…”just the facts ma’am”
Cam Newton
October 13th, 2011
9:21 am
Daddy had to tell the truth about MSU when they caught him, cause he’s a Preacher — but I ain’t!
Cam Newton
October 13th, 2011
9:21 am
If we knew about any money or even asking for it that would make us NCAA ineligible so we don’t know nothing about it,
Daddy told me just keep my mouth shut and throw that ball so that’s what i did.
DawginLex
October 13th, 2011
9:22 am
DC
I always thought auburn got hosed in 2004
Revisionist thinking says we did too in 2002 since the other 2 schools in the title game cheated to get there.
1eyedJack
October 13th, 2011
9:23 am
Well, I guess now the only thing to do is to beat the living sh1t out of ‘em.
Hollywould
October 13th, 2011
9:23 am
dawginlex, didn’t you get panties in a wad when someone joked about your daughter? Now you are doing the same about Auburn. Idiot!!!
DC
October 13th, 2011
9:23 am
Yeah..should have been USC vs AU…best offense v best defense..Reggie bush was sick! I’ve always wondered if AU could have stopped him. Who was the QB for Okla in that game? All i remember is him being very very slow
Cam Newton
October 13th, 2011
9:24 am
I’m just glad Daddy got to come to my big game in Phoenix. That part was kind of tricky, but we pulled it off.
Dang, we’re good!
$$$ Makes the world go round...........
October 13th, 2011
9:24 am
The NCAA gives itself a license to declare players eligible or ineligible. The NCAA imposes sanctions on Universities at their choosing…..like they have several times before against Auburn. The same NCAA in this case ruled that Auburn committed no wrongdoing. But the NCAA did not award Auburn a “National Championship” and in fact doesn’t even acknowledge it. They never have. There has never been a National Champion in D1A college football. Not Georgia’s NC’s in 42/46/80, not the 146 Alabama claims
………..not 96/06/08 Florida claims, the 4 Tech claims, ND, USC, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Ohio State, Penn State, LSU, Miami, FSU, Michigan, Texas, etc etc etc
So is the NCAA THE Authority in college football or not?
If they are, Auburn is not the National Champion for 2010, no D1A team has ever been.
If they aren’t then it doesn’t matter what they say about Auburn cheating or not cheating or about any other university for that matter.
It’s all fan speculation.
Of course……….
The NCAA, the Universities, the conference offices, and the bowl committees keep cashing the checks.
O J Newton
October 13th, 2011
9:25 am
I really appreciate the NCAA clearing me of any wrongdoing! Now, my dad and I can focus on my new book, “Did I know It? “
Hollywould
October 13th, 2011
9:26 am
allinvolved, you mean you cannot answer your own question like the rest of the fortune tellers here. You may kiss the ring/ there is not an asterik on it anywhere.
*All-Involved
October 13th, 2011
9:26 am
WarDamnEagle in Atl, you can kiss something too. I’m guessing that you don’t have a ring to kiss. Unless *AU bought you one like they bought the players.
DawginLex
October 13th, 2011
9:26 am
hollywould
ARE YOU STUPID ENOUGH TO COMPARE TRASHING AUBURN FOOTBALL TO COMMENTS ABOUT MY KID???
You need serious help dude.
Cadillac Williams
October 13th, 2011
9:26 am
We couldn’t go in 2004. That was part of the whole “Sociology” deal that we worked out with the NCAA.
Cadillac Williams
October 13th, 2011
9:28 am
Sociology been very good to me.