Cam Newton and Auburn in the clear? Not so fast, my friend
Just because Auburn chose to play Cam Newton against Georgia doesn’t mean Auburn or Newton is safe. The NCAA doesn’t work that way. The NCAA gears, such as they are, grind slowly. The NCAA has only begun to sniff around.
Phillip Marshall of Auburn Undercover reported Saturday that the Newtons and Auburn administrators met with NCAA representatives last Thursday. (Link requires registration.) That the school chose to play Newton has been taken by some as an indication that the NCAA has nothing on Auburn. That’s not necessarily true. The NCAA might have nothing on Auburn yet. But by now its investigators have, or should have, a growing indication that this player was put up for sale at least once.
ESPN.com reported yesterday that another Mississippi State former player, the Florida businessman Bob Bell, essentially confirmed the story Kenny Rogers told on ESPN 103.3 Dallas last week and even added a detail: There was a payment schedule for Newton – $80,000 on his commitment to State, $50,000 one month later and $50,000 more a month after that.
From ESPN’s latest report: “Bell said Cecil Newton [Cam's father] never specifically asked him for money, but that Newton was present during three-way calls in which Rogers discussed a pay-for-play scheme.”
Again, none of the former Mississippi State players — Bell, Rogers or John Bond, who was the first to go public — has implicated Auburn. But here again we ask the only logical question: If Cecil Newton wanted $180,000 from Mississippi State, did he really turn around and send his son to another SEC school for free?
And the NCAA isn’t the only investigative body at work. From a TMZ report yesterday:
According to sources connected to the probe … FBI agents looking into the Newton recruiting controversy are also asking about Milton McGregor — a dog track owner arrested last month for allegedly bribing Alabama politicians to vote pro gambling.
We’re told agents asked someone connected to the Newton case if he was familiar with McGregor or the bribery scandal.
McGregor is an Auburn booster and an associate of the infamous former banker Bobby Lowder. McGregor owns VictoryLand, a dog track located just down I-85 from Auburn. Message boards have been buzzing about a possible Newton/McGregor link for the past week, but this is the first real report of any possible connection.
It’s unclear why the FBI would care about Cam Newton, but anytime the Feds get involved, however tangentially, the pace of an investigation accelerates. (Reportedly the McGregor case involves a wiretap.) The FBI, unlike the NCAA, has subpoena power. The FBI, unlike the NCAA, has the means to put somebody in jail for something.
Last week was a wild week regarding Newton. This week has been quieter, which is understandable. Auburn doesn’t play again until the day after Thanksgiving. Then it faces Alabama in Tuscaloosa, and that is, as you might have heard, a fairly big game. Then it comes here to play South Carolina for the SEC title. We are, you can be assured, going to hear much, much more about this surpassingly strange saga.
(Oh, and speaking of Cam Newton … a talented artist named MoonPie has re-imagined “Son of a Preacher Man” to fit these latest happenings. Take a look/listen. You’ll be glad you did.)
– Mark Bradley
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526 comments Add your comment
What the...
November 18th, 2010
11:40 am
This is like having a really hot girlfriend with the herp. I mean you really want to but you know in the long run you are going to pay for it. So enjoy it now Auburn!!! You are going to be on NCAA meds for a long time for touching him.
cam damn....
November 18th, 2010
11:40 am
last saturday was the first time i watched cam play. awesome, incredible athlete.
but from what i saw it was all about himself….running around the stands, jumping up into the seats, blowing kisses. did he even shake hands with the georgia players after the game? looked to me like he ran off and didn’t even acknowledge them.
with that type of narcissistic personality it is no wonder he is able to ignore all the furor and act as if nothing is wrong, in his mind taking the money is not wrong. rules don’t apply to him, he is above it all. he doesn’t care if he and his dad take down an institution, it is all about him and he will be gone at the end of the year…one and done. he has already been to three different schools now so why should he care about auburn. he took the best deal he could get and will do the same when he leaves for the nfl.
i hate it for auburn. while i didn’t go there i do like the school and have countless friends who did. it will be a shame to watch the school go down because of dirty boosters and a one year, free agent. but i guess if you lay down with dogs you are going get some fleas….
The NCAA "OVERSEER"
November 18th, 2010
11:41 am
CAM the “SCAM”, this kid and his “Daddy” are going to make Bama and UGA look like angels whe this REALLY hits the fan. Auburn will go back to second in a field of two in Alabama.
Tea Party Meber
November 18th, 2010
11:41 am
U no he took the money. If he cant get the goverment 2 give him money(welfare), he will get it some where else.
CSpin
November 18th, 2010
11:42 am
MB: Why do you ALWAYS play devil’s advocate in your columns?
Cry a Little More
November 18th, 2010
11:42 am
DawginLex,
Have a great time at the Music City Bo… Oh wait 1,2,3,4,5.. uh oh.
BP85
November 18th, 2010
11:43 am
Great article Mark. Keep us updated. Can’t wait to see the barn burn to the ground. Those cheating B@$+@rd$ have had dirt on their hands for years.
Supes
November 18th, 2010
11:44 am
Auburn – Dirty, cheating paper tiger champs…about to get expose by Saban and then the Chickens…and be handed the Death Penalty by the NCAA for the 2011 season…but you all sure like to live in denial…it’ll be amusing when it happens…these blogs will be void of delusional Auburn fans!
Poor Mark Bradley
November 18th, 2010
11:44 am
Must really have an obsession with Cam Newton and the Auburn Tigers.
I guess I can understand it, in a way. Nothing much in the way of positive stories you can post regarding the pathetic Bulldawgs, so lets concentrate on trying to tear down another program that is MUCH better than the Dawgs will every be. BRILLIANT plan!!! Especially since everyone knows Georgia fans are incapable of thinking for themselves and must rely on the media to do their thinking for them. Guess we should start calling them *Sheep*Dawgs instead of thUGA’s… lol
“baaaaaaaaah…. baaaaaaaaaaah…. bah bah bah”
drsoul
November 18th, 2010
11:44 am
AU Fan…I am sure your check got there on time this month…. and, maybe you even had a few tickets to scalp… hope your table is full…
As to us BAMA men, we work for a living…plenty to go around…
BTW, let’s see….auburn nat’l championships?????? auburn SEC champ games and wins????
compared to the men in Crimson????? hmmmmmmm…….
and, by the way, make sure cammie has those exam answers and a legit laptop…
James
November 18th, 2010
11:47 am
Ask anyone in Valdosta: John Bond is a total sleezeball and never to be believed or trusted.
RGP
November 18th, 2010
11:47 am
But here again we ask the only logical question: If Cecil Newton wanted $180,000 from Mississippi State, did he really turn around and send his son to another SEC school for free?
BINGO,Mark. You hit the nail on the head with this question.
ALABAMA BEAT DOWN
November 18th, 2010
11:47 am
Hey Auburn
Will you post on here when the bad news comes down I wonder
I doubt
Just crickets will only churp
lefty fielder
November 18th, 2010
11:48 am
Just askin . . . what are the odds/possibilities that daddy cecil successfully takes the fall on this . . . “my son knew nothing about this”? Would Cam be able to escape the ax with that defense?
Hey Cam Damn?
November 18th, 2010
11:48 am
Wise up. Cam in not showboating when he blows kisses to the fans. He is showing his appreciation to the fans who have stuck by him through all the controversy.
Why shake hands with the thUGA’s who were not very sportsmanlike during the pregame, the game and even the postgame? Heck, I’d not want to touch one of the thUGs myself with their coach-endorsed unsportsmanlike conduct? Bulldawgs are a joke.
Jerry McGuire
November 18th, 2010
11:49 am
SHOW ME THE MONEYYYYYYYYYYYYYY………
To Lefty Fielder...
November 18th, 2010
11:50 am
Cecil won’t be able to take the fall for this. Read the Reggie Bush story… The NCAA rules include family members receiving or soliciting funds or gifts.
Auburn = Cesspool
November 18th, 2010
11:51 am
They will blame: Alabama, MSU, Florida, UGA , etc,… but bottom line they are their own worst enemy.
AU FAN
November 18th, 2010
11:51 am
FAUX titles, “claimed” titles … its disgusting. You are all the same, not one different from the other. My guess is that you are one of the typical BAMMERS that have to pull for their team every Saturday and twice on every other day, yet- majority of your fans have never stepped foot on campus, or any campus for that matter. Because every rural area that has a 12′ inch black and white TV in Alabama will root and holler for Alabama because their daddy’s told them to. ( Their Daddy didn’t go to college either )
Hey Dr Soul?
November 18th, 2010
11:52 am
You Bammers are nothing more than fair weather fans. You go whichever way the win blows. I remember when Auburn was beating you guys consistently and you’d show up wearing blue ‘n orange at our house and say “Yeppers, we’ve seen the light. We’re Tiger Fans now!” And yet, you’d still have your Bama seat cushuns — two cheap to buy new ones. All you’re interested in is siding with a winning team — makes you look better somehow, I guess.
But ya’ll can’t handle it when Bama is down. No character at all. You just disappear into the woodwork like roaches.
Pathetic.
Dr. Phil
November 18th, 2010
11:53 am
I was an undergraduate at Auburn in the 60’s and come from an Auburn family. Bobby Lowder took de facto control of Auburn in the early 80’s and brought Pat Dye there. He lent large amounts of money to several governors and exerted a “Huey Long” like influence in the school and in state government. My father started taking me to Auburn games in the early 1950’s. It is a fine school and very similar in many ways to UGA, where I taught as a graduate assistant. Lowder had a hand in the play for pay scheme under Dye, and Terry Bowden was one of Lowder’s boys, until they had a falling out. Tubberville was not a Lowder minion, and I think that Tubby ran a clean program until he had enough of Lowder’s meddling. Lowder’s banking empire crashed in the last two years, and hopefully, his grasp on all aspects of the University has diminished. I don’t know about Chizik, but I think he is being unfairly (sorry) criticized. If there is a connection between Newton and McGregor, I hope Auburn gets an appropriate penalty. Maybe that is what it will take to purge the University of Lowder’s 30-year corrupting influence. By the way, both Lowder and Michael Adams are from Montgomery, and these two “go together like peas and carrots.”
Jeff
November 18th, 2010
11:53 am
Hey AU Fan……LMAO….cant wait to the Barnyard birdies are a sweet 0-12……bet you wish Tubbie was back. He had more class in his pinky that the piece of sewage you have now.
Auburn = Cesspool
November 18th, 2010
11:54 am
Oh, I forgot LSU because they have so much to gain. War Eagle fans wake up no one is out to get you…OPEN YOUR EYES AND YOU DID IT TO YOURSELF.
SID
November 18th, 2010
11:54 am
College football is all about $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. What’s the big deal???????
bigboyball
November 18th, 2010
11:54 am
Hey James,you can say that about John Bond all you want to,But he is talking about his own school,Not Auburn.And do you really,really think this guy is going to lie to the FBI? Come on man.
As the Plains Burn
November 18th, 2010
11:55 am
Jeff,
It is a crime to buy stolen property. How is that for a fact?
lefty fielder,
Yes, Cecil’s actions, if proven, will make Cam ineligible regardless of if he knew or not.
help me out
November 18th, 2010
11:55 am
Ok, I need some help with some of this:
1) When this story came out a few weeks ago AU said that they were aware of the allegations from Miss State, did their own investigation and found nothing irregular in their recruitment of Newton. Was I dreaming that? If they knew at the time isn’t it safe to assume they had some discussions with the SEC and NCAA to make sure they were on good footing to have Newton start the season? I certainly would if I were in their position so you have to assume that either these guys are complete idiots (could be) or had some confirmation that they were good to go.
2) Wasn’t Newton playing at Blinn last year and if so doesn’t that mean he was an eligible player? I think Blinn is NJCAA instead of NCAA but again have to assume that eligibility requirements are similar. Obviously Oklahoma and Miss State thought Newton would be eligible to play. So I don’t get the assumptions that somehow some things that may have happened at FL (or according to FL did not happen) would impact eligibility now. So what am I missing?
3)As for potential ties to Bobby Lowder and Milton McGregor – that could get interesting. However, right now I believe that Alabama (the state not the university) has bigger issues there as the FBI netted a few state reps, lobbyists, etc. along with McGregor that point to significant corruption in the state government. Lowder is under investigation for potential bank fraud in the billions which certainly trumps any football issues. There may be some collateral damage to AU from the FBI investigation but that remains to be seen.
Bottom line to me – a lot of speculation here but still very few facts. This certainly has the potential to be bad for AU but it also could have a big impact on the SEC and college football as a whole. I would really hate to see that.
AU FAN?
November 18th, 2010
11:55 am
They don’t step foot on campus, cuz they don’t know where Tuscaloosa is. Can’t even find it on a map. Bama fans cuz daddy was a Bama fan and cuz it’s easier to go along with the crowd than to have a spine.
Bammers might have a better record on the field (for now), but they’re losers at the Game of Life.
Always have been.
Always will be.
AU FAN
November 18th, 2010
11:56 am
Jeff- 11-0 now, Bammers always coming up with stats that don’t exist. Do you not see how you fullfill evey sterotype of a BAMMER? Hilarious.
Skandrewj62j
November 18th, 2010
11:56 am
DawginLex.
I am in favor of vacated all of those Auburn wins. That would make my Gamecocks 8-2 and would give a chance for the unusual 10 win regular season. Sign me up. Garcia fumbled that game away and now the AU boosters might give it back.
PS. If Auburn didn’t bench Newton yet, they are not going to do so until the NCAA or SEC mandate that they must do so.
drsoul
November 18th, 2010
11:58 am
AU Fan…not FAUX… earned and deserved…. obviously, you cannot read nor interpret records…!!!
yes, we do pull for our teams on Saturday, that is the real fan in us… we are not ‘once in a decade or two, just a fly-by-night’ university or team… do we have stagnant years every once in a while..YES, but the difference is AU is stagnant and has a good year here and there… you cannot really question our record in all honesty… and back when the BEAR was rolling up wins and dodging those ‘nose bombs’ across the way from Shug, we were real then as now…!!! also, yes, the BAMA fans have TV’s to watch our team, do not have to get the news a few days later or over the radio… quite a difference… sorry you are so jealous…!!!!! now, why don’t you go get your wife/sister a nice bouquet of flowers for the pretty day…!!!!
Uhoh
November 18th, 2010
11:59 am
The Tiger Droppings stuff was apparently written by Lyndon Larouche.
So funny
November 18th, 2010
12:00 pm
The *Cesspool* typed:
“They will blame: Alabama, MSU, Florida, UGA , etc,… but bottom line they are their own worst enemy.”
Save that quote to your clipboard. You can use it when talking about UGA any day of the week. Just plug in whatever the ExcuseOfTheDay is:
“They will blame: [refs, bad calls, the weather, ingrown toenails], etc,… but bottom line thUGA’s are their own worst enemy.”
AU FAN
November 18th, 2010
12:00 pm
Since we are stating non-existent stats:
I would say that I believe – 83% of Bama fans never went to college ( anywhere ) All so uneducated , look at them , red shirts, beer stained- mustard stains , drooling even sometimes. Embarassing to the state and all they can yell is “J-U-L-I-O”
Uhoh
November 18th, 2010
12:00 pm
i just got an update, AU just scored on UGA again.
AU FAN?
November 18th, 2010
12:01 pm
Go outside and talk to a treestump or a rock.
You’ll get a much more intelligent response than you’ll ever get from a Bama Fan.
Noman
November 18th, 2010
12:03 pm
you have got to be kidding…..TMZ reported……where is Paris Hilton in the mix……even if Cam doesn’t get the stupid trophy he can laugh all the way to the bank from an NFL contract. Seems to me Florida and Mississippi State have done what they set out to do. I don’t think I would stay in the college ranks after all this.
AJ Green
November 18th, 2010
12:03 pm
I have a game-worn Cam Newton jersey for sale. Only $180,000.
AU FAN
November 18th, 2010
12:03 pm
I think the rock may actually be more intelligent, atleast a rock has a past- it came from something years ago and has been molded over the years into what it has become. A bama fan, well….useless on all accounts.
cam damn....
November 18th, 2010
12:03 pm
hey cam damn?…..oh, thanks for clearing that up. i could have sworn he was blowing kisses to himself on the big screen. acknowledging the fans with kisses is so sweet……
you sound like the rest of these defensive/angst ridden auburn fans who don’t know whether to celebrate an awesome season or get ready to cry when the axe falls….i think the latter. quite the dysfunctional situation, eh.
and why you goin’ all thuUGA on me? did i say i was a georgia fan? was just making an observation.
roll tide!!! go cocks!!!
Headley Lamar
November 18th, 2010
12:04 pm
But here again we ask the only logical question: If Cecil Newton wanted $180,000 from Mississippi State, did he really turn around and send his son to another SEC school for free?
Only an Auburn fan blinded by loyalty to the school would believe that.
brad kominsk
November 18th, 2010
12:04 pm
This is going to get really ugly at some point. If it’s as bad and as encompassing as it looks it may be the NCAA may decide the best thing is for there not be to be football at Auburn at all. And since it involves politicians and bribes I would be a little uneasy if I was a Bama fan as well. both universities just might be looking at an unprecedented move by the NCAA. The state of Alabama football has a long history of slimy proceedings. The NCAA may decide it would do best without either of them.
Headley Lamar
November 18th, 2010
12:05 pm
you have got to be kidding…..TMZ reported
TMZ whether you like them or not usually nails it. The broke the Tiger Woods thing earlier and they are usually dead on.
War Cam Eagle
November 18th, 2010
12:06 pm
What’s all the hub-bub? We’ve been doing this for years. Ya think Bo didn’t know money? Bo Knows!
SID
November 18th, 2010
12:08 pm
How much did Murray get to come to UGAg??????
cam damn....
November 18th, 2010
12:08 pm
where did my post go? damn internet gremlins….
AU FAN
November 18th, 2010
12:09 pm
AU will come out of this like nothing ever took place. We have known the situation and we have people in place to divert, distract and disarm. “WE ARE THE S.E.C.”
brad kominsk
November 18th, 2010
12:10 pm
All major football programs Know money. But, this is getting into FBI dealing with bribery of public officials and secondray paying off college athletes. Let’s face it this is bad news! I don’t care for either Auburn or Bama but this is going to be bad for all of the sec.
whythehateman
November 18th, 2010
12:11 pm
The timing of this whole affair is really strange to me. The NCAA was informed of the ‘possibility’ of Newton being shopped back in January but after 9 games or so, here come the headlines. Secondly, the only evidence that the media can some up with is he-said she-said so I wouldn’t break out your jump to conclusion mats yet.
It seems to me that this case in being tried in the media and the court of public appeal which is a shame. The kid is guilty unitl proven innocent and the burden of proof is not on Newton. Here in America, you do not have to prove your innocence, the accusers must prove your guilt.
And all of you Dawg fans are just mad because you got beat. Maybe Richt will one day lead you to the promise land…but I doubt it. Your coach and whole team is overrated and your record proves it.
BBBWWWAAAAAHHHHAAAAAHHHAAA
Please spay and neuter your pets.
Biff Pocoroba Fan Club
November 18th, 2010
12:13 pm
If Auburn forfeits this season due to Cam, it would be a win against Auburn for Georgia and it would save Richts job!