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
a UGA fan
November 18th, 2010
12:44 pm
Innocent until proven guilty.
You are not guilty by media rumors.
Hopefully, there was no wrong doing by Auburn and it is wrong to assume so until evidence is provided.
This whole deal is bad for college football regardless of the outcome. People need to chill out until more FACTS come out.
Neutral
November 18th, 2010
12:45 pm
AU Fan – you obviously have nothing going on to post this much on a Thursday morning. Come out of mom’s basement and finish your chores. I guess you do need to post as much as possible before Bama has Auburn crawling back to the plains (I predict Fairley won’t finish the game).
Concrete Pete
November 18th, 2010
12:45 pm
AND IF YOU IDIOTS THINK FED INVOLVEMENT MEANS NOTHING, YOU ARE DEAD WRONG. THEY ARE HERE AND YOU WILL FEEL THE WRATH
kevdawg
November 18th, 2010
12:45 pm
Here’s another question. Why was Mississippi State having the money booster involved in the discussions anyway. If they were looking at pay to play are they on the hot seat as well? They just said I don’t want to hear about money? That did not stop someone from referring them to Bell.
volky
November 18th, 2010
12:45 pm
It is extremely nauseating to see all of these posters act so pious and insinuate that Auburn is the worst institution for breaking NCAA recruiting by-laws while their school has never and would never do something similar. EVERY school in the SEC (even Vandy!) has engaged in this type of activity in the past. Sometimes they get caught, but mostly they don’t. In a risk/reward environment, the potential rewards outweigh the risks, which is why this keeps on happening.
MR
November 18th, 2010
12:46 pm
@Soothsayer
Great logic dip wad. What country are you from? There is no tangible evidence that AU has done anything wrong…nothing. Why should they punsish the kid and the team just because some one is investigating MSU. That is not arrogance, that is common sense. If AU knows they are innocent and Cam is innocent then he should play. What are you a dawg or a tide.
DC
November 18th, 2010
12:46 pm
Arrogance? NO…it really doesn’t matter at this point..If CAM is ineligble..then they will forfeit the wins…but if AU didn’t pay CAM and thats all it was is the Miss St scandal AU will not get any more repercussions…maybe some scholarships being revoked up everyone shut up with this “death penalty” nonsense…you are just trying to say that b/c you wish the worst on anybody…NCAA will not drop that on AU..bank on it!..
Soothsayer..they aren’t putting together a case on Newton…FBI could care less about Cam Newton..he is just a bug on the windshield…they are going after bigger fish and if CAM is in it..then so be it…trust me you think they care about kid who wont be in school next year and will be in the NFL..no..money laundering and TARP money being sifted around is their goal..wake up
Coach Johnsons Paul
November 18th, 2010
12:47 pm
And just when those Bowling Shirts and Hummerzine Recruiting vehicles were becoming all the rage!!! It must really suck to be an Aubbie fan. Every time they goes and has a good season the “Man” done bees tryings to holds dem down!!!
Well…it was fun while it lasted…right Aubbie?!
WAR iLLEAGLE!!!
allinbaby
November 18th, 2010
12:48 pm
Feel the wrath from what? FBI is about the Victoryland and has nothing to do with us.
whama
November 18th, 2010
12:48 pm
But if you think about it,
All we’ve heard are Rumors
Maybe we should withhold our judgement
Aren’t you at least feeling a little guilty?
Seems to me like there is some jealousy
Under what circumstances does that make it fair to
Convict a young man when there is no evidence
Klansmen undercover trying to keep a man down
Shows that things haven’t changed
AU FAN
November 18th, 2010
12:49 pm
AUBURN is clean. Possible slap on the wrist. You haters will be so destroyed and discombobulated that this went down as it did. It so sad that you need AU to be sanctioned etc. “Big Brother” always trying to be on top, the only person that the city of “Tuscaloosa” is a brother to is Northport. They both are old, decrepit and run down cities- I would be ashamed to even walk the streets of Tuscaloosa. Trash.
volky
November 18th, 2010
12:51 pm
To all Alabama fans: What is the point of all the vitriol & hate that is being directed at Auburn fans? How short are your memories? It wasn’t THAT long ago that you yourselves narrowly avoided the death penalty. It really makes you look silly. C’mon…the fanbase of Alabama are classier than that.
TC_AU
November 18th, 2010
12:54 pm
Oh come on! McGregor came out with his lawyer and made a public statement stating that he had nothing to do with Newton. The guys about to be arraigned, the wiretaps will be used against him and you’re telling me that you think his attorney would let him come out and publicly lie about what was on the wiretaps and destroy what little credibility he has left just so that Cam can play against bama. Don’t forget at least half of those jurors will probably be bama fans. If he lies just to let Cam play, they’d crucify him.
BigDawg
November 18th, 2010
12:54 pm
This all couldn’t happen to a finer, classier program than Auburn. You scum bags are going to be found out and dealt with very soon. Scam, Fairley, and Chizek are the most classless people in college football and the penalty will be fitting for those 3 clowns!!
peeling the onion
November 18th, 2010
12:55 pm
As the Cam onion is peeled, more crying from AU fans…
allinbaby
November 18th, 2010
12:55 pm
You know how it is AU FAN,Lonely at the top when you are #1..Yes We Cam!!
drsoul
November 18th, 2010
12:55 pm
AU Fan, you would probably get lost walking in the trash….get it????
Seriously, I hope that this is all for nothing….college football does not need this kind of scam and SEC football does not either… cammie, of questionable character, is still a good athlete….yet to see if he is really NFL material in a big way… but, the sad part here is IF something is amiss, this young man will be clean on the outcome and only his school, coach and team members will pay the price… what a selfish person if it happens… no school deserves this…no matter where your allegiance… unfortunately, there are previous actions which fall in the same ballpark with cammie and it makes one wonder… for his team mates and clean coach, I hope that it is not true… what goes around, comes around and if true cammie will pay somewhere…
AU Fan…I will go on to say that Auburn is a good institution, but people like you who associate themselves with it only serve to bring it down and deface the respect from everyone else…
grow up, young man…do something worthwhile with your life…
RiffRaff
November 18th, 2010
12:56 pm
Bill Bell, a Mississippi State booster, said he told the NCAA that Rogers sent him a text message outlining a payment schedule. Bell said the text included a request for $80,000 the day after Cam Newton signed with Mississippi State, $50,000 30 days after that and another $50,000 30 days later.
“When he asked for it, it was like ‘Bam!’” Bell said. “He told me this kid’s dad is going to want money and the next day he sent me a text message. He didn’t say anything other than ‘This is what I want and I want it in three installments.’”
Bell said he kept Rogers’ text message on his old cell phone, which was damaged by water, but he is currently trying to retrieve the text message through his cell service provider.
Bell also said he has recordings of several voice mail messages from Rogers, which he played for NCAA investigators.
“[Cecil Newton] didn’t come out and say, ‘I want $180,000,’” Bell said. “He inferred it and talked about it, but not directly. Kenny would talk about it in front of him, and [Cecil Newton] never corrected him or said, ‘No, that’s not what we’re doing.’”
DC
November 18th, 2010
12:56 pm
Never thought about it like that TC_AU..I have yet to hear a BAMA or UGA fan state “lets just wait it out and see what comes out”…all we hear is “death penalty”..”stay classy” (that one cracks me up that UGA fans say that)
Concrete Pete
November 18th, 2010
12:56 pm
AND FOR ALL YOU LIB LABS OUT THERE CLAIMING “INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY”, YOU OBVIOUSLY DON’T KNOW HOW THE NCAA OPERATES. THEY DON’T USE A JUDGE AND JURY, ONLY THEIR OPINION AND COMMON SENSE. IF IT LOOKS LIKE A sCAM AND SMALLS LIKE A sCAM, THEN IT IS AND YOU ARE PENALIZED!
IN AMERICA, “INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY” APPLIES TO PUNISHMENT FROM THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM. SIMPLY PUT, YOU WON’T BE INPRISONED OR HAVE RIGHTS REVOKED UNTIL A COURT OF LAW DETERMINES YOUR GUILT. CAM, CECIL, LOWDER, TAYLOR, MCGREGOR OR ANY OTHER AU CHEAT WILL NOT BE JAILED UNTIL THEY ARE CONVICTED OF A CRIME. THAT DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE NCAA WON’T ELIMINATE THEM ALL FROM INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETICS.
WAR SCAM EAGLE!!!
chainz
November 18th, 2010
12:57 pm
AU fan is waiting for his soaps to start or is it judge Judy……lmao…..FOOL….. and Volky….you think AU FAN makes you look smart…..STFU
AU FAN
November 18th, 2010
12:58 pm
You have stated “son” and “young man” now, I am 43.
DC
November 18th, 2010
12:58 pm
RiffRaff welcome to last night..glad you could join the party…….
fr"AU"d in denial
November 18th, 2010
12:58 pm
The tigerdroppings, if you’re a fr”AU”d fan, don’t step in it, it won’t make you deny any less then you are now although it is a MUST READ for those of us not in denial. That sledgehammer is coming, the grave is dug, it’s just a matter of last rites and shoveling the dirt on top of you as fr”AU”d flatlines on the plains, and that ain’t any war eagle up in the tree, those are vultures, picking what’s left of the scraps of Newton, Louder, McGregor and every other liar from their talons, adios fr”AU”d….
BigDawg
November 18th, 2010
12:58 pm
DC,
Auburn is classy?
drsoul
November 18th, 2010
12:59 pm
AU Fan….if 43, then, YES, Grow up…!!!!
BigBad
November 18th, 2010
1:00 pm
I find it amazing that Auburn supporters are cheering wildly and vigorously supporting and defending the person, Cam Newton, that will be the demise of their program. This is worse than the women, fathers, brothers, and husbands of women that cheered Chris Rainey when he took the field for Florida.
DC
November 18th, 2010
1:00 pm
We have always had a respectable series with UGA haven’t we? 1 minute of last week and all of a sudden we aren’t “Classy” anymore…b/c uga doesn’t want to point out the fact they are 5-6 and have major coaching holes that can’t be changed over night…
If you think auburn is classless…then I don’t want to know what you think of your school…lets look at the institution as a whole not just sports..
chainz
November 18th, 2010
1:01 pm
isn’t 43 the SAT score required to get into AU……lol
DC
November 18th, 2010
1:02 pm
If you think AU is classless…I can’t imagine what you think about your school…lets look at the institutions as a whole..not just sports…
Gator Mike
November 18th, 2010
1:02 pm
I do not have a dog in this fight, but for the sake of AU (players and fans, Cam Newton and the SEC, I sure hope that Cam Is innocent. His failings at UF are over with, and they should not hamper his current status at AU. Hopefully, his father is the dirt bag in this issue, and Cam and AU are totally innocent.
I look forward to watching the Iron Bowl and may the best team win.
allinbaby
November 18th, 2010
1:04 pm
Why not cheer for Cam? If and I say IF anything was done wrong? It was not Cam it was his father.Cam knew nothing about that.
chainz
November 18th, 2010
1:04 pm
There is no shame in losing to a Professional Team….if players are paid they are PRO’s…..
Aubie-won-knobi
November 18th, 2010
1:05 pm
Someone asked earlier where are all the AU fans who were beating our chest over the UGA win. We’re still here and we still won. 49-31. Until some of you can provide conversation instead of the same “cheat” diatribe, we’re just simply bored and perusing other blogs where more educated people are posting. You know, ACTUALLY have conversations instead of childish, gleeful rants of nanny-nanny-boo-boo.
Do the innuendo
November 18th, 2010
1:06 pm
“a growing indication”
“we ask the only logical question”
“however tangentially”
“The FBI, unlike the NCAA, has the means to put somebody in jail for something.”
“surpassingly strange saga.”
“From a TMZ report yesterday:”
Why did I start humming Don Henley’s Dirty Laundry after I read this article?
Jeff
November 18th, 2010
1:08 pm
AU Fan…look forward to your post when the hammer falls……look at the Bush saga……it’s just a matter of time
chainz
November 18th, 2010
1:08 pm
and lets not forget the Feds have a 95% conviction rate…… they don’t say a word till you are already toast….
Lars
November 18th, 2010
1:09 pm
The more celebration highlights I see of this thug the more insane I think he is. He takes the whole “bow to me little people for I am your Messiah” complex to an even disturbingly higher level.
chainz
November 18th, 2010
1:09 pm
AU fan is gone…..I think genearl hospital started….lol
Aubie-won-knobi
November 18th, 2010
1:11 pm
Gator Mike. I obviously did not mean to include you in my previous post. Yes it sucks for AU and the whole SEC. All the conjecture and speculation does nothing except stir the pot which is the intention of some bloggers. But as a whole for our conference, the whole nation has been trying to tear us down. I posted on another blog that with McGregor making deals with state of Alabama politicians regarding gambling licensing and corruption, this will not end at Auburn. Look for a long road straight to Univ of Alabama as well. A corrupt politician does give a fig if their benefactor is a Dawg, a Tiger, a Gator or a Crimson Tide. Just show them the money. Bama fans should be worried instead of gloating at AU’s misery. They’re probably not far behind.
Aubie-won-knobi
November 18th, 2010
1:12 pm
meant to say “doesn’t give a fig”…
DC
November 18th, 2010
1:13 pm
Chainz thanks for that random stat that i doubt is factual…hey guess what 99.9 % of mockingbirds hate it when we read to kill a mockingbird..FALSE! 99.8% of mockingbirds hate it when we read to kill a mockingbird!
GTBob
November 18th, 2010
1:14 pm
That thread on Tigerdroppings is pretty incredible. This story is probably going to get a lot more interesting. Auburn fans should be pretty worried at this point. I hope all of this is not true, but it’s hard to believe this is a witch hunt. If you have the FBI and the NCAA investigating you then you better be squeaky clean.
Aubie-won-knobi
November 18th, 2010
1:14 pm
For those who don’t know, VictoryLand is located in Shorter, about 20 minutes from Montgomery, Alabama’s state capitol. It’s starting to smell like greyhounds have run amok throughout the entire capitol dome with numerous politicans on the dole, those who represent AU AND BAMA.
dtanner
November 18th, 2010
1:15 pm
another corrupt black pastor, now aint that surprising
DC
November 18th, 2010
1:16 pm
GT BOB..welcome to the party..but FBI isn’t investigating Auburn…its bigger than that…
stillcant
November 18th, 2010
1:18 pm
understand why three guys would get together and lie to the FBI about thier own school?IF it did not happen.Auburn Univ may be clean but they have an illegal player.
DC
November 18th, 2010
1:18 pm
and if thats the case stillcant..then yes auburn would have to vacate their wins..but thats all that would happen to auburn…no death penalty..*gasp*..
Arnie West
November 18th, 2010
1:19 pm
It was not Cam it was his father. Riiiiight…… Ok well that clears everything up. Thanks for clarifying allinbaby.
P.S.- You may want to find another team. Auburn may be going away for a while
Aubie-won-knobi
November 18th, 2010
1:19 pm
DC..thanks for posting that. It’s only the umpteenth time it’s been said as I did so myself yesterday. That’s why I don’t even bother to explain after the first time. Someone just trolling and trying to stir the pot.