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
Dawglasville
October 13th, 2011
9:29 am
Cam Newton
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!
This is where the story gets real sad. I believe that Cam will end up like 85% of the NFL – with a broken body and a busted checking account. Unlike most of the guys in the league, Cam had a father figure in his life. Unfortunately his father is a scum bag already trying to profit off of his son’s abilities. Apparently the young man never had plans for school. I guess we will find out how far that smile and that arm will take him. The bottom line is that you Auburn fans, like most fans, don’t care as long as he wins you a title. If you guys really love the kid you will start saving money for him now, because I believe that he will end up another NFL statistic.
A simple equation
October 13th, 2011
9:30 am
The most embarrassing thing about UGA is the win-at-any-price mentality of Richt, which has effectively made UGA a football factory, with cheating, recruiting of low-intelligence jerks who barely graduated from high school, and tolerating immoral and unethical activities by both players and coaches. Even with all this, he still can’t win.
DawginLex
October 13th, 2011
9:31 am
simple question from a simple mind
Shoe fits doesn’t it?
Hollywould
October 13th, 2011
9:31 am
dawginlex, didn’t see a word about Auburn football in your statement although with your clairvoyance I am sure I am wrong somehow.
CMR
October 13th, 2011
9:32 am
UGA a football factory? Yeah… I wish!
ROFLMAO!!!
DawginLex
October 13th, 2011
9:32 am
I’m out of here
hollywould the ultimate Auburn redneck equates trashing Auburn football to someone trashing my kid
only a simpleton Auburn redneck would think like that
i’m done arguing with the pig
I’m covered in mud and smell like sheet
DC
October 13th, 2011
9:33 am
Also,
Want to say that most AU fans don’t condone anything that Cecil did. He is one of the worst people you will ever meet. Who does that??…People say whenever you meet Cam all those preceived notions you have on him are completely washed away..just something to think about..
Hollywould
October 13th, 2011
9:34 am
dawginlex, you are right about your last sentence.
Auburn Fans
October 13th, 2011
9:35 am
Look, all you whiners…
You’re all just gonna have to admit that we’re better than you – at cheating!
Everybody does it. We just do it better!
Moves like Jagger
October 13th, 2011
9:36 am
The whole episode is a sad, sick joke. Obviousy, there was some wrong doing here.
Again, penalties don’t fit the punishment (AJ, Miami, etc.).
Any team now needs to cheat anyway possible without worrying. Hell, the NCAA can’t even control the conferences. Again, what a joke.
@ A simple equation
October 13th, 2011
9:37 am
That may be the dumbest blog I have ever read. Vanderbilt is the only school ahead in athletic academics in the SEC. Your statement is like saying Jimmy Carter was the most dis-honest president ever.
KAW
October 13th, 2011
9:40 am
@Barnyard Follies — thanks for the apology. And, I agree everyone should keep things in perspective. It is a game….and I am a huge college football fan. But, we all need to remember that this is a game that is being played by 18 – 22 year olds. We can have fun, rib our oponents and enjoy the victories. However, a W or L is not going to change the things that really matter.
Tech'10
October 13th, 2011
9:41 am
DawginLex: Football fans from the State of Alabama would sell their first born child to the devil if the devil promised a MNC. Their sense of normacly and manners goes right out the window the minute college football is mentioned.. kind of like mike vick’s pitbulls getting a whiff of bacon..
Lonnie Walls
October 13th, 2011
9:47 am
Congratulations Cam and the War Eagles. Hard for me to say being a dawg!!!! Awesome job in the pros so far.
Steve
October 13th, 2011
9:52 am
Glad to see the book has closed on this matter after a thorough investigation.
Congratulations to Auburn and Cam.
Moves like Jagger
October 13th, 2011
9:53 am
More brilliance form Schultz – honor graduate from the Terrance Moore School of Journalism. He’s a paid troll.
AJC, really. Are these the best writer’s available? JS is the Mike Bobo of sports writers.
Steve
October 13th, 2011
9:55 am
Also, congratulations to O J Simpson
ALL IN
October 13th, 2011
9:56 am
Apparently the repayment check from Camster and the “The Family” to the NCAA are “ALL IN” .
James Gundlach
October 13th, 2011
9:56 am
Mr. Williams, I didn’t know you were a Sociology major. How come I never saw you in any of my classes?
1eyedJack
October 13th, 2011
10:02 am
Maybe all those FBI investigations muddied the water too much for the NCAA to see.
Terry
October 13th, 2011
10:05 am
Wait a second.
LSU’s compliance dept self reports a player receiving unauthorized transportation and free and discounted lodging and impermissible phone calls. As a result LSU doesn’t allow this player to ever play one down, release him & the coach was let go. The result is a Major one year probation.
auburn does *&#%@#)^*%# and the NCAA looks the other way. This thing still isn’t over. We know how they got those top notch recruits out of other people’s backyards coming off a losing season. There is only one way these step children from Alabama can compete. It is the same reason why they are the most corrupt program of all time in the country.
Smitty
October 13th, 2011
10:05 am
When your boosters have been making payments like this for decades, I’m sure they are experts at hiding it. The only way this thing ever blows up is if the IRS decides to investigate “Huggy Bear”.
G-Dawg
October 13th, 2011
10:06 am
NCAA is a sham!! Allowed eligible players from OSU to play in their bowl game, but then suspended them the following year!! Thats CRAP!
Punishments are not equal across the board!!
Someone on the NCAA Board is getting paid….they should be investigated for violating anit-trust laws!!
Moron Dawg Fan
October 13th, 2011
10:08 am
I don’t care what the overwhelming evidence says or investigations reveal….Auburn has to be guilty….they won a national championship and my dawgs have not won one in 31 years…they just have to be guilty.
Auburn4Life
October 13th, 2011
10:08 am
You haters can say whatever you want!! Read it!! Accept it!! It is what it is!! Stop hating and move on …maybe your team will win a NC someday!!! Hint…hint you GADAWG…so full of hate!! Get a life!!!!
RCB
October 13th, 2011
10:09 am
I am a lawyer and would make three points. Playing college football is not a constitutional right and the SEC (and NCAA) are free to adopt standards that are higher than what we find in our local criminal courts on a daily basis. Secondly, even in the criminal courts circumstantial evidence is admissable and “proves’ a fact as well as direct evidence. Now you may want to believe the son did not know what the father was up to at the time it was happening (I don’t), but don’t you find the son’s comments about the dad more than just a tad curious when he publically condoned all of his dad’s behavior after it had been publically revealed? (Imagine the defendant’s son taking the stand and saying “we are all family and my dad has done nothing wrong” after the prosecution showed the video of the dad robbing the store owner. I would want to know who was driving the get away car). Thirdly, as a lawyer my advice to any kid in a similar situation with a set of values similar to the Newton family’s and yours would be to let the dad do all the negotiating and deny knowledge if he gets caught. If the kid feels a little uneasy about letting his dad take all the “blame” I would remind him that the media casts no blame and makes no moral judgements, even as you say your father did nothing wrong. Welcome to the brave new world of college football morality. Congratulations!
2010 BCS CHAMPS
October 13th, 2011
10:13 am
“I believe that Cam will end up like 85% of the NFL – with a broken body and a busted checking account. ”
I guess we’ll put that up there with the death penalty and all the other loser predictions you UGA losers make every year.
Cam is better than ANYTHING UGA has had in the last 30 years.
2010 BCS CHAMPS
October 13th, 2011
10:16 am
“Maybe all those FBI investigations muddied the water too much for the NCAA to see.”
Yeah, and 911 was an inside job. You conspiracy types need to get a freaking life.
2010 BCS CHAMPS
October 13th, 2011
10:19 am
RCB
Don’t you have some ambulances to chase?
2010 BCS CHAMPS
October 13th, 2011
10:20 am
“Auburn quarterback Cam Newton was facing possible expulsion from the University of Florida for academic cheating”
The U of Florida denied that and scolded Thayer Evans for writing about it.
Bottom line: UGA sucks.
2010 BCS CHAMPS
October 13th, 2011
10:23 am
“AU has a long history of paying to shut people up”
Alabama is on probation until 2012. Every single one of Alabama’s sports programs is on probation.
Bottom line: If Bama screws up, it’s death penalty time.
Hey, please quit poisoning the trees, Updykers.
2010 BCS CHAMPS
October 13th, 2011
10:26 am
“2nd yr coach chizik goes undefeated – NOT coach of year as voted on by peers.( a 3 loss spurrier is) cam newton freakish athlete -not player of the year as voted on by other SEC schools. what did the voters know???”
Auburn – BCS Nat Champs
Gene Chizik – Nat coach of the year
Cam Newton – Heisman winner- player of the year, first black SEC qb to win a Heisman, only qb in SEC history to throw for over 2000 yards and rush for over 1000.
Yep, what did the voters know?
2010 BCS CHAMPS
October 13th, 2011
10:26 am
DawginLex is the biggest joke of a troll to ever grace the pages of the AJC.
2010 BCS CHAMPS
October 13th, 2011
10:28 am
” after the dirty playes last year I hope the Dawgs take care of business.”
I love hypocritical dawg fans. I love how the leg humpers call AU players dirty yet TWELVE of their own players went to jail.
Remember leg humpers, UGA hasn’t beat a ranked team in over 2 years.
Wet Willie...keep on smiling
October 13th, 2011
10:39 am
Lowder U is great at what they do and that is pay players and stick together. Pat Dye and Lowder are the masters and have been since 81. The only way they can compete is to cheat and they do it well. Never under estimate how good the Lowder U folks are at buying players with no trail. Keep in mind “at this time” doesn’t mean forever. Cash is the only way.
NCDAWG
October 13th, 2011
10:46 am
All the NCAA said is their information didn’t meet the “burden of proof”. It doesn’t mean there’s not a smoking gun, they just don’t have concrete evidence. Auburn has done a better job of hiding their misdeeds. On the other hand, as a dawg fan, I have to say that you can’t take anything away from Cam’s play or the Tiger’s resilience under pressure last year. I still congratulate them on the NC even though I still believe the program is not clean.
UGA2002
October 13th, 2011
10:50 am
Okay, for those of you who have short memories, every grown up involved with this event including the Ms St boosters have been rather consistent. Cecil and a booster sought money, it blew up in their face on the spot, Cecil retreated, nobody ever said Auburn paid for anything, MsSt doesn’t say a word, Cam goes to Auburn, MSST mumbles something and runs, investigated and there was no evidence of anything, somebody leaks the story when auburn and cam are on a tear, NCAA investigates it, UGA fans scream cam will be benched and auburn death penalty and auburn loses iron bowl and cant beat spurrier twice and go ducks and wait til the NCAA gets done with you!!!!
13 months later and a huge investigation and nothing is found anywhere on the auburn campus and hbo looks like it made up stories out of thin air.
And now UGA fans complain about the NCAA. Get real folks. You look bad.
UGA2002
October 13th, 2011
10:54 am
How are Bobby and pat (UGA man) masters at hiding stuff if auburn got caught in 93?
Dawglasville
October 13th, 2011
10:57 am
2010 BCS CHAMPS – 85% of the players in the NFL leave broke. If you look at the poor example the kid’s father has been it doesn’t look real likely that he is going to buck that trend. I won’t be happy if it happens. I’m also not going to lose any sleep worrying about how Cam “showed me” anymore than I’m going to worry about how Aaron Rogers “showed me” last week. In the big picture though, I have a feeling that I care more about Cam Newton’s future than 95% of the Auburn fans out there. Hey, “you” got “your trophy.” “You” fans really earned it.
DawginLex
October 13th, 2011
11:03 am
hollywould and 2010 BCS Champions make my statements about the majority of the Auburn fanbase seem correct.
Real easy for you two simple minded rednecks to sit behind a computer and say things about me and my family.
If you ever faced me in person and tried to simply speak, you would crap your pants and then pee yourself.
2 losers
2010 BCS CHAMPS
October 13th, 2011
11:11 am
“hollywould and 2010 BCS Champions make my statements about the majority of the Auburn fanbase seem correct.”
Trust me, leg humper, we’re MUCH smarter than you.
“sit behind a computer and say things about me and my family.”
Says the guy who sits behind a computer… Family? LOLOL!!!!!!!!
“If you ever faced me in person and tried to simply speak, you would crap your pants and then pee yourself.”
Oh wow, tard, I’m so scared.
AU Liberal in ATL
October 13th, 2011
11:12 am
No surprise that you morons refuse to accept the truth. You believe what you want to believe. Black is white, up is down, left is right. Whatever, fools. I frankly don’t give a flying fluck what you Einsteins think. We won the National Championship and we did it fair and square. War Damn Eagle! I’m out of this cess pool.
2010 BCS CHAMPS
October 13th, 2011
11:12 am
” In the big picture though, I have a feeling that I care more about Cam Newton’s future than 95% of the Auburn fans out there.”
I love your stats, leg humper. I’m gonna go out on a limb and suggest that you made that up.
Poor ole Dawgs
October 13th, 2011
11:13 am
DawginLex, actually the real losers are the Dawgs, who once again are fighting for a Chick-fil-A bowl bid. Sit back down at the kids table and perhaps one of these days you will be invited to the big dance. Until then, act like a tough guy some place else.
Zach Mitcham
October 13th, 2011
11:21 am
Newton’s father did not break any NCAA rules last year. However, his actions will be in violation of NCAA rules now that the NCAA has decided to prohibit parents from seeking payoffs for their child’s services. So, in that huge NCAA rulebook, which requires compliance officers at all universities to oversee regulations on phone use, cafeterias, etc., they failed to ban parents from selling their kids? No rule on shopping kids was in place? Wow, what a loophole! That’s a truly egregious oversight and something that truly tarnished a national championship and an entire year of college football. The NCAA lacks credibility as an oversight entity. They now have a rule banning Newton’s father’s actions. It came a year too late.
DawginLex
October 13th, 2011
11:29 am
Truth hurts so the little loser gets all angry.
Did I hurt your widdle feelings?
You need anger management classes dude.
2010 BCS CHAMPS
October 13th, 2011
11:36 am
“Truth hurts so the little loser gets all angry.”
Loser = A butthurt dawg fan who predicted AU getting the death penalty.
Suck it, loser.
Dawglasville
October 13th, 2011
11:37 am
2010 BCS CHAMPS – “Leg Humper.” Brilliant.
Sports Illustrated reported 80% in March of this year. I heard 85% on The Zone or The Fan during the lock out. If I was wrong, it wasn’t by much.
“I love your stats, leg humper. I’m gonna go out on a limb and suggest that you made that up.” I’m going out on my own limb here and suggest that I must be dealing with a twelve year old.
DawginLex
October 13th, 2011
11:46 am
2010 BCS Champs
“We are locked and loaded for the future.”
An Auburn fan saying that is priceless after the felonies committed this past year by the players………..
The Truth hurts
October 13th, 2011
11:50 am
Cecil got away with it and the money!