Random Aside

A somewhat interesting, tangentially related story from my friend Steve.

He spent part of last weekend at the California 500 or whatever the auto race is called in Fontana, California.  One of his friends had access to a posh luxury suite and there was no way they were going to pass up on that opportunity so there they were.

Anyway, at one point former Navy legend and Heisman Trophy winner Roger Staubach strolls into the suite.  It was a pretty exciting moment, so they talked to him and whatnot.  Well, as often happens with athletes and celebrities some autograph requests are made and Staubach obliges.  But one of the friends had an unusual request: to have his beer can signed.

Staubach was a bit confused by the thing, but signed it, admitting he'd never been asked to sign a beer can before.

Yeah I don't know.  But I thought it was funny.

And it's about a former Heisman Trophy winner, so I thought I'd share. 

Brief Tuesday Roundup

Just some items I've saved over the last few days...

---The New York Times' Pete Thamel has a good story about the money angle of the many lopsided OOC games that are scheduled annually.

I wonder if teams would schedule more equitably if there were a mandatory $1,000,000 fee to schedule the Buffalo's of the world?

---Redshirt Freshman Mike Kafka will be the starter at quarterback for Northwestern this year, as sophomore C.J. Bacher has nagging leg problems.  Hopefully he can continue the offensive success established by forebears Zak Kustok and Brett Basanez.

---The Sports Frog talks a little about the amazing transformation with Stanford's stadium.  The school was able to demolish its old stadium (work beginning literally minutes after the Cardinal's season finale against Notre Dame) and build a new one within a single year.

---Rivals.com ($) has put together some fancy Heisman candidate highlight videos.

---Many more videos available from this link at FoxSports. 

---More from Rivals.com.  Here's a cool story about the round-trip travel mileage logged by D-I teams for road games this year.  Topping the list?  Florida Atlantic, with 15,064 total miles traveled.  The least-traveled team?  That would be Purdue with just 1,994 travel miles to be logged this year.  The most-traveled SEC team, the Arkansas Razorbacks, check in at No. 68 with 5,832 total miles.

---Hurricane turned tropical storm Ernesto continues to drag its way towards the Keys and South Florida after getting roughed up pretty bad after passing through Cuba.  It is unclear whether/how much it will strengthen as it heads towards the U.S.

---Yeah, the NCAA doesn't get it.  Callous fools sometimes.

---How much is Marshawn Lynch worth, according to the San Jose Mercury News?  $800,000.  Interesting read.

I really hate the word "exploitative" because it's often abused and thrown around as a weapon in public debate.  I'll ignore that angle of this story to simply say the following: the NCAA can do better by its athletes.  I'm not really in favor of free-market salaries or compensation for college players, but the NCAA desperately needs to find a way to be such poverty mongers.  There will be a point some time down the road where either the NCAA will collapse and the system will turn to chaos unless concessions start being made to take a stronger interest in athlete welfare and economic freedom not tied to eligibility.

---Oh, and here's a little more about Lynch from CBS Sportsline's Dennis Dodd.  Turns out the man can toss the rock a little.  And about that unusual running style (I don't know how else to describe it other than herky-jerky)?  Turns out it's from years of riding a bike that way through the streets of East Oakland.

---College Football News has moved to Scout.com.

---Now, where have we seen this argument before?  "Power rankings?"  "Prediction vs. relative strength?".  I love my readers.

I was watching SunSports' college football show last night and there was a segment discussion this topic almost verbatim from the Mandel column.  Good to see people are starting to wake up to the methodology arguments about college football's poll system.

Don't get me wrong, I love the polls, but there's a better way to do them, expressed many times on here.  It's simply encouraging to see that discussion trickle out into the mainstream.

Texas and Ohio State

I've been mulling over this game in my mind for a few days, figured I might as well write about some of those thoughts on here.

The rematch of last year's battle in Columbus (which Texas won 25-22) will be played in Austin on Sept. 9 at 8 p.m. Eastern in what could be a consensus No. 1 vs. No. 2 game. Hype worthiness TBD, but it's clearly a big intersectional game to rally around.

In assembling a game in one's mind, it helps to lay a foundation of facts, make some assumptions and then arrive at an outcome, hopefully more accurate ("Tennessee's vastly overrated in '05") than inaccurate ("Boise State over Georgia, wheeeeeeee").

The following are choppy but relevant facts about the proud combatants, typed up in scout-speak for rapid consumption:

Texas Longhorns

Defending national champions. Vince Young no longer at quarterback, replaced by completely untested R-FR Colt McCoy and true frosh Jevan Snead. Returns a good chunk of the roster. Will run the same offense and return for a second year of defensive coordinator Gene Chizik. Big, athletic defensive line. Three seniors return on a quality offensive line. Defense must replace veteran MLB Aaron Harris, DT Rodrique Wright, DT Larry Dibbles, SS Michael Huff and CB Cedric Griffin. Fast and shifty running backs in SO Jamaal Charles and SR Selvin Young, not much size in the unit except the overrated SO Henry Melton who may or may not be a tight end or defensive end this year. Like to run the ball. Major fumble issues although few fumble related turnovers.

Ohio State Buckeyes

Preseason No.1 team in the USA Today Coaches Poll. Return the majority of their offense, but will miss playmaking receiver Santonio Holmes, first-round center Nick Mangold and guard Rob Sims. However, they must replace nearly the entire starting defense from last year. Many good players return, however, and have experience everywhere except the secondary. Defense plays very physical football. Will likely have best offense in the coach Jim Tressel era (six seasons) with quarterback Troy Smith, backs Antonio Pittman and frosh Chris Wells, and receivers Ted Ginn, Anthony Gonzalez and Roy Hall.

Last Year's Numbers

These help paint a picture of what both teams can do and what they emphasize based on the previous season

Texas-50.2 points/game, 275 rush (5.9 YPC), 64.9% completions, 237 yards /// 16.4 points allowed, 131 rush (3.7 YPC), 51.1% completions, 172 yards, +7 turnover margin

Ohio State-32.7 points/game, 197 rush (4.7 YPC), 64.9% completions, 226 yards /// 15.2 points allowed, 73 rush (2.2 YPC), 60.7% completions, 208 yards, -9 turnover margin

Last Year's Game

Texas won 25-22 at Ohio Stadium. The Longhorns had a good first quarter and established a 10-0 lead, but panicked a little after an Ohio State touchdown, committing a few turnovers in their side of the field before making the appropriate stops and only allowing a few gimme FG's to the Buckeyes. Texas took an interesting risk in committing to untested frosh back Jamaal Charles who ran ten times and caught six passes. Aside from a few long plays Texas' offense never really was a threat after the first quarter (game winning TD drive aside).

Ohio State's major flub was a tactical error in playing the shaky Justin Zwick. He wasn't a disaster, but struggled to inspire an already shaky offense. The bulk of the Buckeyes' offensive production came when Troy Smith was under center, generally running for haphazard gains and connecting on a few passes but doing enough to score when presented the opportunity. That all changed when Smith wasn't playing. Particularly woeful was the bungled last 2:37 of the game. After Texas scored to go ahead 23-22, Ohio State trotted out Zwick who proceeded to surrender a safety and fumble on another possession, effectively ending the game without any offensive threat.

Here's what I think happened:

Tactically, Texas played that game as well as they could. Much like last year's Rose Bowl, Texas gambled that its opponent would do some stupid things and give them a shot to win the game. Both times it worked against arguably superior foes. Texas also knew it had its best team in a long time and with a guy like Young at quarterback could emerge victorious in any game where they had the ball, were within a touchdown and the game clock was under 5:00 to go. The successful strategy has left a wake of such prominent victims as Michigan, Ohio State and USC.

What were those stupid things their opponents did? Well, for Ohio State they played the uninspiring Justin Zwick. To be fair Zwick was superb in his last start, the Alamo Bowl against Texas A&M. The thinking was that he would build on that momentum, which obviously didn't happen. The Buckeye offense clearly responded to Troy Smith both in the Texas game and throughout the 2005 season, but coming off his suspension I think politically the coaches had to be careful about his playing time in this game.

Compounding their mistakes, the Buckeye coaches let Zwick play on Ohio State's final two drives. Smith played a good chunk of the second and third quarters, when Ohio State scored all of its points and did the most offensive damage. Yet when the game called for a comeback, the coaches whiffed and let Zwick surrender two points and possession on a safety and then the game on another fumble. [Ed.-I stand corrected, it was Smith at quarterback on the safety.  Regardless, it was a huge mistake]

Texas' gamble clearly paid off in that game and similarly in the Rose Bowl. USC's stupidity was in Reggie Bush's first quarter lateral on what would have been a scoring drive, and then the 4th and two stop when they didn't even have Reggie Bush on the field despite Texas' having keyed All America safety Michael Huff on him all night. With Bush on the sideline, Huff was the Longhorn defender who helped bring down LenDale White short of a first down. The rest is history.

So, what to make of this year's game?

The two obvious things to know are that it's in Austin, which gives Texas some kind of an advantage, and that it's early in the year. Good teams take a while to "get going", and that was clearly the case for both these squads last year. Ohio State in particular caught fire midway through the season once they figured out Troy Smith was in a class with other very successful Buckeye QB's of late such as Bobby Hoying, Joe Germaine, Stanley Jackson and Craig Krenzel.  The early season date is a tipoff that things are likely to be pretty conservative: controlled passing game, ball control, an emphasis on the run and simplified schemes on both sides of the ball.

As far as tactics, I think Texas will be confident it can continue its policy of "let them make the mistakes" and keep this game close even if they have opportunities to pull ahead. They'll try and run the ball and protect their young QB's McCoy and Snead.

For Ohio State, they'll probably be conservative too. Although Ted Ginn is a great athlete, he's been a fairly average receiver to this point in his career. The real playmaker in their pass game was Santonio Holmes, and with his departure I anticipate a scaled-down passing game more concerned with small gains down the field instead of taking large chunks of yards at a time.

Both defenses are likely to make their stand against the run, and gamble that the opposing quarterback cannot make enough big plays against their secondaries and linebackers to put the game out of reach. This is where Ohio State actually gets a break, because their defensive weakness is the secondary and Texas' passing game is in the hands of very inexperienced young quarterbacks.  Mind you, that advantage can be neutralized if McCoy or Snead start making plays all over the field.

Of the two teams, I anticipate Ohio State will also be the better running team. I'm enamored of Texas' Jamaal Charles, and he played big role in Texas' offense last year against the Buckeyes, but ideally you want a bigger, more physical runner to bang into the Buckeye defense who can then soften things up for Charles. Texas does have big Henry Melton, but I'm not sold on him as a hammer.

Ohio State under Tressel consistently trots out a no-name defensive line that can stop the run. I think they've twice led the country in either run defense or defensive yards per carry. They like to maul up front and make things real messy and crowded, and this group should be one of their finest despite losing two of last year's starters. Last year Texas could muster only 2.9 YPC in this game, and 112 yards overall. I anticipate similar numbers, which means with a young quarterback their scoring should be fairly low.

For the Buckeyes, they'll be going up against a talented texas defensive line, but one that can be run on. For all the hype last year, Texas was vulnerable to the run, as Antonio Pittman had a fine day against them (17 carries, 75 yards, 4.4 YPC), as did Oklahoma State (250 yards, 5.4 YPC), Baylor (112/3.7), Kansas (119/5.4), Texas A&M (277/5.3) and USC (209/5.1). They're good, but not impregnable the way Ohio State tends to be. That's a sign of a soft underbelly that might be exploited given the right conditions. In addition, Pittman is just a fine runner with good speed and the size and strength to run inside. He'll be complimented by frosh Chris Wells, one of the nation's top recruits who is a big, physical runner at 6-1 and 225 pounds.

Here's what I think will happen:

In last year's game, Texas invested heavily in scoring early, exhausting a certain amount of their offensive capital in racing to a 10-0 first quarter lead. It was smart strategy and let them play keepaway for a good chunk of the game. Expect more of the same this year. They'll craft a game plan to score early and get fan and player faith in the new quarterback and some doubt in the hearts and minds of Buckeye players and fans.

But then things will bog down for the Horns' offense, much as happened last year. Meanwhile, Ohio State will find ways to move down the field but probably not score too much, tilting this towards being a low-scoring affair. They have a terrific offense but Texas has a fine defense as well and is at home and it's early which means offenses will take what they can get.

There will be a moment at some point in the third or fourth quarter when both teams get a little desperate and either do something great or make a mistake and put themselves in dire straits.  Who will flinch?  It's tough to tell.

Texas has conditioned itself not to panic in the last two years, but their main source of calm and sobriety, Vince Young, is gone.  Their resolve without him is unknown.

Meanwhile, Ohio State's always been a calm team under Tressel.  Think back to the amazing 2002 season where nearly every game was excruciatingly close and narrowly won.  They like playing that way and are probably a little more comfortable than Texas at such a battle, especially with Young gone.  Given the youthful realities of Texas' quarterback situation, I give the edge to Ohio State.

They have the more veteran offense led by Heisman Trophy candidate Troy Smith, they have what should be a great defensive line despire dire predictions to the countrary, and are arguably the superior team.  Despite playing this game on the road, they should be favored and it will be a disappointment if they don't come away with a victory whether it's one point or twenty-one points.

As I noted earlier, Ohio State is likely to gamble that it can stop the run and pray for sloppy quarterback play when Texas' young passers are asked to win the game for the Longhorns.  It's a smart gamble and the odds are on their side.  Texas can't be so cavalier knowing the athletic and passing abilities of Troy Smith.  To gain victory here, they'll have to find a solution to overcome this apparent disadvantage.  I'm not sure they will, but we'll see, maybe McCoy or Snead are better than anticipated and can handle a big game like this so early in their careers.  The fact that neither has emerged as "the" guy is concerning, however, and the same issues plagued Ohio State last year in this very game.  Again, advantage Buckeyes.

That's my call.

***
I'll try and provide another analysis like this of this year's other anticipated matchup between elite teams, USC and Notre Dame.  Stay tuned. 

Around the Blogs

Alright, time for a quick stroll, see what my peers are up to...

---Heisman Pundit's had a little fun lately, talking up offense with coaches at Pac-10 media day and Heisman with Ohio State quarterback Troy Smith.

---MGoBlog's in Las Vegas at the World Series of Poker.  Sweet.

---BON's captured Texas A&M coach Dennis Franchione's whining at Big 12 media days.  Poor Fran.  He was a great coach... once.  I have a friend with a connection to people at Texas A&M and they've basically given up.  The key word here is "mutiny".  Insert any other descriptive phrase such as "water's been poisoned", etc. and you have the problems at Texas A&M.  No surprise of course, but only Fran's mega-contract keeps his job safe.

You can basically repeat the above for what's happening at the University of Virginia under coach Al Groh.

---The Wiz continues to raise hell (more and more)about a new NCAA rule that will effectively reduce the number of plays and thus scoring in a game.  The NCAA instituted the rule to reduce the real time length of games, and of course badly misfired.  Must read if you care about NCAA football.

---The brand-new Razorbloggers has wall-to-wall coverage of star Arkansas back Darren McFadden's early morning not-so square go outside a private club that resulted in a potentially season-ending injury to his toe.

---And, keeping with the Arkansas theme, Hogs/Hill/SEC says a different new NCAA rule will help scoring on kick returns.

---The great Georgia Sports Blog has rumors about UGA's suddenly strong OOC road scheduling efforts.  CFR's happy. 

Stat Shrine

The following is a little project I'm helping my friend Tex Noel with.  Tex is an accomplished college football stat historian and would appreciate your contributions to this project of his.  I'd appreciate them as well, so if you have a moment put on the "homer" cap and send in something about your favorite team or players.

Thank you.

***

Since 1951, many outstanding players and coaches have been enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame--since 1995, located in South Bend, Indiana.

If you ever get the chance to visit, do so--while walking through its many exhibits and parts of the Hall, your own personal experience into the game's past will be enlightened.

I have been to the Hall three times--including the grand opening in 1995; (other seasons here include 1997-2000) and when it was housed near Cincinnati, in 1978-1979.

The Hall, as stated above, includes only players and coaches, with special sections for outstanding performances...

With that in mind, I am proposing the creation of a "Hall of Fame" for outstanding teams, games and statistical accomplishments and those who were a part of the game in this manner.

Visitors to CollegeFootballResource.com can be an active part in the selection of what teams, games or accomplishments will be enshrined.

There will be nominations and voting for a two-wee period and then the tabulation and release several times before inductions to forever remember these special moments in the game.

Regardless of level of competition (NCAA I-A, I-AA, II or III; NAIA or two-year schools, all teams and accomplishments are eligible to be included.

A list will be made available of each accomplishment and the voting will then take place from August 1-15, 2006 and after the tabulations, those receiving 70.1% of the votes cast will be enshrined.  The reasoning for 70.1% is to eliminate ones that have garnered 69.99% making it in.

Several inductions will be held throughout the 2006 college football season and monthly in the offseason--at least for the first year.

Each accomplishment that is enshrined  will include background; the percentage of votes received and also listed with the person(s) that nominated the member.  It's all in fun, but cast your votes wisely and help preserve this part of the game.

If there are any questions, please email me or CFR.

SAMPLE BALLOT:

TEAMS
2005 Texas Longhorns
National Champion
WLT: 13-0-0

GAMES
2006 Rose Bowl

STATISTICAL ACCOMPLISHMENT
Vince Young, Texas vs. Southern California (2006 Rose Bowl)
Passing: 30-40-0 267 yards
Rushing: 20-201

Submitted By:______

Votes Received: 15/20 votes... PCT: 75.0

Email your nominees to Tex Noel at cfbstats1869fwd@wmconnect.com with subject line STATSHRINE--this way I know your email will be safe to open.

I'll be sending my ballot in to Tex soon.  I hope you join me.

Old No. 7

Heisman talk, anyone?  It is the preseason, what better way to kill time than idle speculation.

Thing is, with the Heismandments the speculation can be supported with historical facts.

This time last year, I talked about Heismandment No. 7:

7. If you are a quarterback, running back or multi-purpose athlete at one of the following schools, you have a good chance to win if you have a very good statistical season, are an upperclassmen and your team wins at least 9 games: Notre Dame, USC, Texas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Ohio State, Michigan, Miami and Florida State. These nine schools have won 11 of the last 14 Heismans and seven of the last eight

From that criteria, I was able to create a hypothetical field of 15 candidates.  In fact, the top four finishers would all come from within the framework of one single Heismandment.  Not bad!

Let's try this again and take a look back next year to see how the race went.

• Notre Dame---Brady Quinn, Darius Walker, Travis Thomas
• USC---John David Booty, Chauncey Washington
• Texas---Selvin Young
• Oklahoma---Adrian Peterson
• Nebraska---Zac Taylor
• Ohio State---Troy Smith, Ted Ginn, Antonio Pittman, Justin Zwick
  
• Michigan---Chad Henne, Mike Hart, Jerome Jackson
• Miami---Kyle Wright, Tyrone Moss, Charlie Jones, Andrew Johnson
  
• Florida State---Lorenzo Booker

That's a field of 20 candidates based on Heismandment No. 7's excellent track record.

More:

---According to the countdown timer on HP's blog, we are now under 175 until the crowning of the next Heisman Trophy winner.

---Check out this YouTube video of Florida State back Lorenzo Booker doing his thing.  And you wonder why Seminole offensive coordinator Jeff Bowden draws my ire...Free Lorenzo!

***
Previous:

• Heismandments, Extrapolated

Five Best

Self explanatory---five best teams in each BCS conference, per CFR.

This list is simply a preseason/post-spring 2006 snapshot to kill time and stir discussion.  Subject to constant revision.

ACC

1. Miami-Come on, they're the 'Canes!  They may never return to 2001 form under Coker, but they're still pretty good.  Kyle Wright knows what he's doing this time around.
2. Florida State-Looked like a much improved team final few games of 2005, almost toppled Penn State.  Still running a mickey mouse offense, but they're overdue for a resurgent season to ice Bobby Bowden's amazing career.
3. Clemson-Will play with some urgency this year as quarterback Will Proctor is a first-time starter entering his senior season.  Solid running game, talent on defense and at the skill positions.  This team's finally got some grade A ammunition.
4. Virginia Tech-I like Ike.  Quarterback Ike Whittaker that is---assuming he ever hits the field.  It's a rebuilding year but Frank Beamer is simply one of America's finest coaches and has finally parted ways with the Vick legacy.  That should mean he gets back to the business of aggressive defense, special teams and ball control offense.
5. Georgia Tech-I love senior quarterbacks.  Reggie Ball has plenty of warts to his game, but by now very little should rattle or surprise him.  John Tenuta's defense has done well against ACC foes, so they have a shot of playing conference spoiler.

Big East

1. West Virginia-Call them 1a.  Pat White and Steve Slaton have to do their best to overcome a sophomore slump like the one that hit Michigan's Chad Henne and Mike Hart.  Everyone will now be gunning for them and expectations are very high in Morgantown.  A lot of the players on the roster aren't used to that kind of success and it may affect the team's psyche and outlook.
2. Louisville-Petrino, Brohm, Bush.  The Holy Trinity, sponsored by Yum Brands.  West Virginia has more heart (won in a stunning comeback against the Cardinals last year as Steve Slaton scored six touchdowns), but these Cardinals have been through the ringer and will have a chip on their shoulder.  Remember this date: 11/2/06---West Virginia @ Louisville.
3. Rutgers-It's a tall order busting up the two-headed monster above, but Rutgers has a shot.  They're yet another chippy team taking on the personality of coach Greg Schiano.  They proved they belonged in a thrilling bowl loss against Arizona State.
4. Pittsburgh-Tyler Palko will get it right this time.  Coach Wannstedt has recruited a surprising amount of talent, enough to make some roster battles more competitive and hopefully shake up some of the malaise about the program.
5. South Florida-The little engine that could.

Big Ten

1. Ohio State-This is simply the best offense that Jim Tressel will ever coach at Ohio State.  His defense needs work, but they'll come around.  Must deal with hype and expectations.
2. Iowa-Overdue for a high quality season.  Defense loses a lot, but replacements will be surprisingly good.  Well coached.
3. Michigan-Will be nearly impossible to repeat last year's lackluster effort.  Coaching shakeup should sharpen team's focus.
4. Penn State-Rugged, fundamental team as always.  Not as good as they think they are and not likely to improve upon last year's celebrated effort.
5. Northwestern-Defense is loaded with upperclassmen.  Several talented quarterbacks waiting in the wings to replace Brett Basanez.

Big 12

1. Texas-The Messiah left town.  Must overcome "fat and happy" syndrome, after already playing in "country club-like" atmosphere that is Austin and the UT football palace.  That said, they now have the swagger of a defending champ.  Defensive line has addition through subtraction---losing inconsistent Rodrique Wright and gaining Frank Okam's services full time.
2. Oklahoma-Not as good as some think they are, but aren't pushovers either.  Offensive line still needs help and the offensive core is very young.  Defense not as fast or athletic as early 2000's Sooner units.
3. Texas Tech-Most talented team yet under Mike Leach.  Live and die by their system, but finally have some playmakers to rally around on both sides of the ball.
4. Iowa State-Can make strong ascent in another down year for the Big 12.  One of America's most ultraconservative teams.
5. Nebraska-I could just as easily have gone with Baylor or Kansas here.  It's year three for Bill Callahan so the pressure and expectations are growing for a return to Husker prominence.  I'm not sure they're anywhere close to meeting those expectations.

Pac-10

1. USC-It will be difficult replacing the great offensive stars.  Team needs to stay healthy.  Defense should be fun to watch.
2. California-The only other consistently good defense in the Pac-10.  Wait-and-see attitude from CFR re: the changes to the offense and the quarterback competition.
3. Arizona State-Supercharged offense will have to carry this team.  Unknown what impact several talented transfers will have on the defensive line.
4. UCLA-New DC DeWayne Walker should help restore competitive attitude to UCLA defense.  Bruins have some talented offensive pieces to work with.
5. Washington State-A team that runs great offensive and defensive schemes but rarely has the talent to win with them.  Had a young, inexperienced team last year but should surprise a lot of people this year.  The Cougars are in a 5th place tie with Oregon.  I'm a fan of new quarterback Dennis Dixon's and think the Ducks should remain competitive.

SEC

1. Auburn-Talent and depth everywhere on the roster.  Brandon Cox is no longer a first-time starter and he has a million talented backs to work with.  The defense is small but fast.  Remember the name Trey Blackmon, a linebacker on this year's Tiger squad.
2. Georgia-Never count out Georgia under Mark Richt.  This team's finally sorted out its running back situation and can get to work on the business of helping out the new quarterback.  The defense should do well, but must patch up spotty interior/run defense that haunted them last year.
3. Florida-The offensive line remains a disaster and the tailbacks aren't much better.  When those things sort themselves out the Gators will take off, as Urban Meyer has already shown he can patch together the Gators' defense.
4. LSU-Talented, as always.  Overrated, as always.  Feeling confident after surprising victory over Miami in the Peach Bowl.
5. Alabama-Offense can only improve.  Fans and coaches were finally able to relax thanks to last year's successful effort.

Have at it, animals. 

The Good Fame

The 2006 class of College Football Hall of Fame inductees was announced today, headlined by the game's two winningest coaches, Bobby Bowden and Joe Paterno.  Also announced among the 15 honorees are Heisman Trophy winners Mike Rozier (1983) of Nebraska and Charlie Ward (1993) of Florida State.

CFR congratulates all those who will be inducted in December and then enshrined at the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend next summer.

The complete 2006 class is listed below:

Coaches

• Bobby Bowden-Samford (1959-1962), West Virginia (1970-1975), Florida State (1976-present)
• Joe Paterno-Penn State (1966-present)

Players

• Bob Anderson-RB, Colorado (1967-1969)
• Bennie Blades-DB, Miami FL (1985-1987)
• Carl Eller-T, Minnesota (1961-1963)
• Steve Emtman-DL, Washington (1989-1991)
• Thomas Everett-FS, Baylor (1983-1986)
• Chad Hennings-DT, Air Force (1984-1987)
• Chip Kell-OG, Tennessee (1968-1970)
• Mike Phipps-QB, Purdue (1967-1969)
• Mike Rozier-RB, Nebraska (1981-1983)
• Jeff Siemon-LB, Stanford (1968-1971)
• Bruce Smith-DT, Virginia Tech (1981-1984)
• Emmitt Smith-RB, Florida (1987-1989)
• Charlie Ward-QB, Florida State (1989, 1991-1993)

USC Update

It was a relatively quiet first weekend for the USC family of scandals.

The previously reported rumor of a LenDale White false drug test proved false.

However, new questions are being asked about the living arrangement between departed quarterback Matt Leinart and receiver Dwayne Jarrett.  Both lived in a posh downtown Los Angeles apartment, and paid equal parts rent ($650).  However, Leinart's father picked up the rest of the tab.  There may or may not be an NCAA violation based on this arrangement.

The apartment was unusually expensive, but Leinart's parents felt like getting him away from the campus and autograph hounds:

I was freaking out for his safety because people were following him home," Leinart's mother said. "He would walk out of his front door and people were waiting there for autographs."

Leinart's father said he put his son and Jarrett on the lease at the Medici complex downtown. Matt paid $650 a month, Jarrett paid $650 and Bob Leinart said he paid the difference.

"I have checks and money orders to prove it," the father said.

USC compliance officials are looking into whether the football program received an unfair advantage because, while Bob Leinart would have been allowed to make up the difference for his son, he might not have been allowed to do so for another player.

Finally, there are questions about Reggie Bush's future representative, Mike Ornstein, approaching a New Jersey memorabilia dealer in hopes of adding him to the Bush team as an official memorabilia guy.

Bob DeMartino said Saturday that Ornstein asked for a $500,000 payment in return for adding him to Bush's team. The request suggests the possibility that Ornstein was acting as an official representative of Bush, who was still a college player, thereby potentially violating NCAA rules.

Ornstein could not be reached for comment. On Friday, he told the Miami Herald that any talks with DeMartino were preliminary.

"All of that was based on only if I got [Bush] as a client," Ornstein reportedly said. "It was only going to be if and when I signed him. No deal was ever consummated until Reggie signed with me after the season."

DeMartino did not become Bush's memorabilia agent.

All Kinds of New Details

One more Bush story before I hit the hay.

"Bad News for Bush"

The New Era claim:

The lawyer for New Era Sports & Entertainment alleges that Bush's stepfather, LaMar Griffin, helped start the company with the idea that Bush would become its first star client, but the partnership turned ugly in December when Bush looked elsewhere for an agent...

...the relationship quickly disintegrated into unreturned phone calls, threatened lawsuits and a tense settlement meeting at a 2nd Street office in Santa Monica several weeks ago.

With Bush and his mother seated at a table beside their representatives, Watkins said he and a New Era executive were frisked as they entered the room, "to make sure we didn't have any tape-recording devices on us."

In another development Friday, Watkins released what he said was the content of a past text message from Bush assuring New Era executives they would be repaid.

Once again, Reggie Bush is fingered as knowing what was going on and participating in the process.

The Bush team claim:

Meanwhile, Bush's representatives — who have declined to comment on the purported business relationship — continued to assert that New Era is trying to extort millions from the athlete.

"We identified their scheme months ago and collected written evidence over the course of the months," said David Cornwell, the family's attorney. "And we provided that evidence to the NFL Players Assn. and NFL Security."

It's curious they haven't commented on the business relationship yet.  They're taking a beating in the press.

Sounds like the NFLPA isn't all that impressed with the extortion claims being made by Bush's attorney:

In a brief statement released Friday, the NFL said only that it has advised Cornwell to "consider referring these matters to law enforcement authorities" and would continue to monitor the situation. The NFLPA told the Associated Press it was investigating David Caravantes, a San Diego agent with connections to New Era.

I read this as them gently telling Cornwell that he's barking up the wrong tree.  The NFLPA has more interest in Caravantes, whose career as an agent is probably over.  One word: blackballed.

Here's more timetable information basically supporting what was reported earlier:

According to Watkins, the saga began in late 2004 when LaMar Griffin spoke to Lloyd Lake — a friend of Bush's from the neighborhood — about starting a sports marketing company. They made an unlikely pair. Griffin is a school security officer and minister, Lake a convicted felon who, according to court documents, has connections to a violent street gang known as the Emerald Hill Bloods.

So Griffin and ex-con Lake allegedly founded the company, but needed a third person:

In October 2004, the two approached a third man, Michael Michaels, a Sycuan Indian tribe member who worked for the tribe's development corporation. They spoke in a box suite after a Charger game. New Era was born

Now click your ruby red slippers together three times and you'll no longer live in a tiny apartment in East County San Diego.

According to Watkins, Griffin soon began asking for favors.

First came $28,000 to help repay family debts, Watkins said. Then, in spring of 2005, the Griffins — LaMar, wife Denise and teenage son Jovan — moved into the three-bedroom house east of San Diego that Michaels had just bought for $757,500. Watkins said the family agreed to pay a monthly rent of $4,500

Around the time of the Rose Bowl is when things turned sour for the group:

But in December, with the Trojans preparing to face Texas in the Rose Bowl, the back rent approached $54,000 and Michaels could no longer reach the Griffins by telephone.

"Then, an article came out in the paper that Reggie had narrowed his choices to five agents and he didn't mention his dad's company," Watkins said. "The next thing you know, he's hired an agent."

Bush hired sports agent Joel Segal, instead of Caravantes or another agent arranged by New Era. He had also retained Reebok consultant Mike Ornstein. Michaels and Lake began asking the Griffins to repay $300,000 — the alleged sum of unpaid rent, cash disbursements and other monies poured into New Era.

That's almost too unbelievable to be true.  Griffin, a minister of some sorts, is being fingered for swindling a deep-pocketed Tribal broker and an ex-con associate.  That takes cajones, if the allegations are true.

And for the soon-to-be-famous text message allegedly from Bush:

At some point, Watkins claimed, Bush tried to assuage New Era with a text message that read, in part, "Nobody is trying to screw u."

Why do I hunch that's going to be on a billboard somewhere in Los Angeles?

Now, for settlement talks:

Attorneys for both sides began settlement negotiations, Watkins said. Cornwell refused to comment on whether discussions took place. Watkins said Cornwell offered six figures. Watkins also provided The Times with a copy of a Feb. 13 letter he claims to have sent to Cornwell, asking for $3.2 million

ok.

"Please advise if it is your intention to involve the University in these settlement negotiations," the letter reads. "We would not object to their participation as we understand their wanting to be involved due to the fact this matter was ongoing during their Championship season of 2004 as well as the entire season of 2005, and any lawsuit filed might have an adverse effect on them."

There have been no claims that USC knew about the Griffins' connection to New Era. Coach Pete Carroll has said he was unaware of their living arrangements.

Good news for USC.  An NCAA investigation may have different findings, but one can read into this document to figure out that the New Era folks didn't feel USC was aware at the time of the business and housing deal.

And some new details about Bush's crew of representatives that he chose instead of the New Era guys:

Big-time agents have been almost smug in questioning New Era's pedigree. Yet, a decade ago, when Ornstein worked for the NFL, he pleaded guilty in a scheme to defraud the league of $350,000 and was sentenced to six months in a community correction center, ordered to pay more than $160,000 in restitution, and placed on five years' probation. Segal was fined and suspended by the NFL Players Assn. for providing money under an assumed name to a Florida State player in 1993.

Ornstein declined to comment for this article. Segal could not be reached

Finally, a peek into the potential mindset of Pac-10 investigators as they examine this story:

Ron Barker, a Pacific 10 associate commissioner for enforcement, said that such cases can be difficult for investigators looking at a number of questions.

"We have to hear the whole story," he said Friday. "Did the family get any type of preferential treatment? Did the landlord let it go and not try to collect like they would for a normal person? Did they not evict for a year when it would normally be three months?"

I'll let you digest all of that over your morning cereal or oatmeal or toast or whatever gets you going.

Enjoy the draft.

More Bush Items

1)The Houston Texans have signed a contract with North Carolina State DE Mario Williams, effectively making him the #1 selection in Saturday's NFL draft. Who knows where Bush goes...

2)Another Yahoo! Sports story: Bush allegations now date back to November of 2004.

Reggie Bush is now clearly implicated in this story, as a knowing witness to the business deal between his father LaMar Griffin and the New Era group.

[Landlord Michael] Michaels' claims, which he has promised will be backed up by corroborating evidence, moves the timeline of Bush's potential ineligibility back to the Trojans' 2004 undefeated BCS national championship season.

In a statement released to Yahoo! Sports on Friday, Michaels' attorney, Brian Watkins, said that in October 2004 Michaels was approached at a San Diego Chargers football game by Bush's stepfather LaMar Griffin about investing and partnering in New Era Sports & Entertainment, a new sports agency.

In November 2004, Michaels then met with Griffin, longtime Bush friend Lloyd Lake and Bush himself to discuss the plan where the USC running back would be the firm's central client when he turned pro in the spring of 2006.

"In November 2004, in San Diego, Reggie Bush, recruited by his stepfather to validate Mr. Griffin's company, convinced [Michaels and Lake] of its viability," Watkins said in the statement.

"There was the representation that Reggie would come with his stepfather," Watkins told Yahoo! Sports on Friday. "Reggie ratified that."

Michaels said that soon thereafter Griffin asked him to pay off $28,000 of Griffin's personal debt, which Michaels obliged.

BCS officials are now considering whether to vacate USC's 2004 BCS national championship if Bush is found to have been ineligible for any part of that season.

BCS officials told Yahoo! Sports on Friday that if Bush is ruled ineligible by either the Pacific 10 Conference or the NCAA for even one game during the 2004 season, the BCS will discuss amending its rules to allow it to force the Trojans to vacate the national championship.

At this point I don't know what to say.

Allegations are allegations and we need to treat them as such until investigations occur and Reggie Bush and his parents the Griffins attempt some kind of rebuttal, but this is pretty damning.

Bush's link to the NCAA violation allegations is now more concrete.

What's surprising is that the USC Athletic Department has yet to be linked to this in any serious manner aside from an anonymous/sourceless allegation made by ProFootballTalk.com that USC players knew something was wrong and therefore the USC coaches should somehow have known and reported a possible violation to the NCAA.

We'll see if that allegation goes anywhere.

This week is perhaps the worst week in USC athletics history.

The Bush housing allegations began on Sunday night when the Yahoo! Sports piece was first published.  Monday is the height of the news cycle so this story was certain to get played all week.  Then, various allegations and facts about the story have continued to flow from the various media enterprises throughout the week, peaking with today's allegation that Bush may have been ineligible as early as November of 2004.

Combine the Bush housing scandal with Wednesday's sexual assault allegation and arrest of backup quarterback Mark Sanchez, today's news that Bush will not be chosen #1 in the NFL draft as had been anticipated for months and tonight's ESPNClassic's re-airing of the 2006 Rose Bowl loss to Texas, and the USC community cannot be feeling any worse about itself.

This week has been so bad for USC, even some of USC's bitter rivals are sounding almost sympathetic given the string of events.

Wow.

Mercifully, the weekend and the NFL Draft are upon us, giving USC but a brief respite in the crazy news cycle before things heat up again on Monday.

***UPDATE***

Yahoo! Sports is also reporting that agent David Caravantes---alleged to be a member of the New Era group and also alleged to have threatened to extort Reggie Bush and the Griffin family---says he has nothing to do with Reggie Bush:

David Caravantes told The Associated Press on Friday that he is unaware of the investigation, adding: "I have had no involvement with Reggie Bush. The truth will come out."

Gene Upshaw, executive director of the NFLPA, confirmed Friday that the probe of Caravantes has begun...

..."I wasn't even aware of the money asked of the Bush family until yesterday," Caravantes said. "They (New Era) recruited me."

Stay tuned...

Michaels Speaks Out

Michael Michaels, the landlord of the property occupied by Reggie Bush's parents, claims they failed to pay rent at any time during their tenancy.

The parents of Southern California running back Reggie Bush did not pay $54,000 in rent during the year they lived in a home owned by a sports marketing agency investor who wanted to represent the football star, the owner of the house told the San Diego Union-Tribune.

The landlord, Michael Michaels, said that Bush's mother and stepfather agreed to pay $4,500 in monthly rent when they moved into the Spring Valley house, the paper reported Friday. They didn't pay for the first few months but promised to pay when the Heisman Trophy-winner started earning millions of dollars after turning pro, Michaels said.

He also sent the Griffins an eviction note on April 3, according to the story.

Watkins said he plans to file a $3.2 million fraud lawsuit against Bush's parents and possibly Bush. The sum includes $300,000 in "out-of-pocket" money that Michaels claims the family owes him and another investor, Lloyd Lake, plus punitive damages.

This story is now very much against the Griffins unless they can produce documentation counter to Michaels' allegations, or somehow discredit the eviction note as park of the alleged shakedown reported earlier tonight.

It remains unclear from the story whether there was a prior agreement to rent the house in return for the future services of Bush.  This fact is crucial in any likely NCAA sanctions against USC for playing an ineligible player.  Michaels does allege that the Griffins promised to pay rent several months into the living arrangement, once Bush had turned pro---but this is not necessarily concrete proof of an agreement prior to the Griffins' moving in.

As reported here yesterday, Bush's representative Mike Ornstein claims Michaels is a longtime family friend---a fact that needs further exploration by media, the NCAA and the Pac-10 in order to clarify the intent behind the housing agreement.  Was he renting the home as a way to look after friends?  Or was he doing it after making some kind of agreement with the Griffins to work with Bush later on---a clear NCAA violation?

The cards are stacked against the Griffins (and indirectly USC), based on my reading of this---I'm an NCAA rules novice but simply leveraging payment against future earnings may be an NCAA violation for improper benefits.

It's not exactly like getting a free car but it goes beyond the normal round of benefits enjoyed by most college students.  This home thing looks more like the deal where you go to the electronics store and get a high-price appliance free for several months before the backloaded payments kick in.

With a pending lawsuit this case is only going to get uglier as accusations fly between the involved parties. 

***UPDATE***

Here's a Yahoo! Sports article by Charles Robinson with details from Michaels alleging that Bush was aware of the marketing agreement at some point last year.  It also details Michaels' allegations in further detail.

It's still a little unclear what Bush knew and when he knew it, but it sounds like he mostly stayed out of the fray.

His parents, however, are looking more and more like freeloaders and frauds. 

Interesting Twist

Again, source in LA says ESPN reporting something about Bush and his family being extorted by the bumbling trio agent, David Caravantes.

I missed the story, will await the next SportsCenter or any other links on the various websites.

More details needed to see how this reflects on the main issue of the rental agreement and also agent contact.

***Update***

ESPN link

This story just get crazier and crazier.

The NFL Players Association and NFL Security have concluded that sports agent David Caravantes and marketing company New Era Sports used an attorney to try and force USC running back Reggie Bush to pay them $3.2 million after Bush decided not to sign with the group, sources told ESPN's Joe Schad on Thursday.

According to the sources, Caravantes threatened to reveal embarrassing personal information about the Bush family if he did not receive the money. Sources also say Caravantes tried to evict the family from a San Diego house they rented from his business associate Michael Michaels

Just taking a wild stab here, but what are the odds that at least one of Yahoo! Sports writer Charles Robinson's sources was Caravantes or an associate? If so, he's now part of the story, having been the tool for a revenge-minded Caravantes to get back at Bush and the Griffins who refused to bend in front of threats of embarrasment and extortion.

This still doesn't excuse the Griffins. This story may be the reason for their delay in discussing the housing deal, and they may yet not have ok from attorney, but at some point they have to explain what happened and provide ample, legitimate documentation.

The NCAA and Pac-10 are waiting.

***Update***

ESPN also reporting that the NCAA and Pac-10 will wait until after this weekend's NFL draft to begin interviews about the Griffins' housing deal.

Latest Bush Update

Someone finally tracked down Reggie Bush yesterday---in New York City for a marketing appearance before the NFL draft.

Los Angeles Times Story

Bush acknowledges that he knew landlord Michael Michaels, but continues to avoid comment on the housing deal.

His marketing representative, Mike Ornstein, had the following NEW information to share:

[Ornstein] said Michaels was a longtime family friend of Bush's stepfather and mother. Ornstein said Michaels knew LaMar and Denise Griffin were having difficulty paying rent at another residence, so he allowed the couple and Bush's teenage brother, Jovan, to stay in a Spring Valley home he purchased for $757,500 last year.

"They were having a financial problem. So this guy came to them and said 'Move into the house,' " Ornstein said. "And so they did and they worked out an arrangement to pay him. That's what I understand."

Finally!  We have an explanation for the housing deal---sort of.  But it's not through the Griffins or Michaels, but instead one of Bush's representatives.  Grain of salt alert.

We still lack documentation and corroboration from the Griffins and Michaels, but we do have a version of the home deal to analyze.

So we're getting closer to the benefits story and whether Bush's parents received an improper benefit.

This explanation may or may not be legit.  If truthful, it quiets a lot of the fires about improper benefits although it does not remove any of the lingering sentiments of a shady deal.

The article also paints Bush's stepfather LaMar Griffin, as a significant debtor.

On Jan. 26, in San Diego Superior Court, a collection agency won a judgment against LaMar Griffin for $1,954.45 in unpaid bills to a cellphone company, a debt that according to court records dated to late 2001.

So we can now add Griffin's unpaid bills to the now well-documented hijinks of the bumbling trio of agent Michael Caravantes, Sycuan Tribesman and landlord Michael Michaels and professional criminal Lloyd Lake.

File This Under: Anonymous Rumor

ProFootballTalk's rumor mill has this latest contribution:

From the perspective of the USC football program, the only question regarding the Reggie Bush rigmarole that really matters is whether anyone in a position of authority knew or should have known that Reggie or his family were receiving benefits from any prospective agent.Based on information we've picked up from several sources, it is now obvious to us that multiple members of the USC team knew that something was going on with Reggie.What that "something" is remains to be a matter of contention. Players knew about Bush's family living in a house that they didn't own. Players knew that Bush was involved, to some extent, with the New Era group

A smoking gun implicating USC, perhaps. Obviously the NCAA and the Pac-10 have to get some players to admit to 1)knowing about the allegations and 2)allege that the coaches also knew.

What this could do is trip up the argument that what happened was outside the view of USC coaches and administrators and finger USC for failing to report the possible Bush violation.

***
The truth, as always, rests with the Griffins and Mr. Michaels. If a violation occurred, and these new allegations can be proven and coupled with the violation, USC's in for a long summer.

If not---the Bush angle of the story will fall apart.

The PFT rumor will certainly be investigated by the NCAA and various newspapers and extend this story to the issue of USC and compliance, but the actual allegations of a violation will disappear.

My one concern is that PFT's rumor is anonymous and there will be tremendous difficulty for the NCAA in determining the "what did you know, when did you know it" aspect of whether or not USC coaches or administrators were aware of Bush's unusual home situation. I'm not sure what means they have to compel testimony from players and USC personnel since this is not a legal matter but an institutional matters as it stands right now.

Mostly Spin, But...

USC beat writer Scott Wolf adds a few details about the Pac-10's investigation of USC and any likely punishment for the Trojans.

1)As part of USC's investigation handed over to to the Pac-10, Bush told USC officials he was in the dark about who was behind his parents' lease:

Bush told USC officials he did not know his parents leased a house from a man who wanted to market him and guide him toward a sports agent, according to sources.

Bush gave USC his version of events because the university's faculty athletic representative, Noel Ragsdale, will provide details to the Pacific-10 Conference, which is going to investigate the matter

2)And the Pac-10 has said that if Bush were found ineligible, USC would forfeit its 2005 Pac-10 crown.

If the Pac-10 rules Bush ineligible, USC would forfeit its 2005 conference title, according to commissioner Tom Hansen. USC has never forfeited a game in 118 years of varsity football.

An investigation is likely to last a couple of months, sources said.

NCAA sanctions are yet unknown, but probably weeks to months away assuming their investigations uncover any violations.

***
Yes, folks, we still don't know. Bush's public proclamations aside, until documentation is provided to explain what financing occurred with the home, we're still at square one. The rest of these stories are just beating around the bush unless someone gets their hands on cancelled checks, tax papers, etc.

"I Know for a Fact They Never Met With Reggie"

Hot off the wires, a story updating information about the Reggie Bush situation (or is this the same story formerly under subscription cover at Sports Business Daily? My apologies if this is more or less a repeat of HP's entry, I don't have subscription access to SBD).

Most of this fails once again to address whatever happened between Bush's parents and Michaels and whatever rent/lease payments were made, but we have someone on record saying Reggie Bush did not meet with New Era Sports & Entertainment founder Michael Michaels and his partner Lloyd Lake as well as agent pal David Caravantes.

"I know for a fact they never met with Reggie," said [David] Reyes, who advises pro athletes on how they can help minimize taxes on signing bonuses.

Michaels' name is on the deed to the home Bush's parents were living in.

We now have public testimony that Bush is not directly connected to Michaels or the agent Michaels was associated with, David Caravantes. However, another article published at ProFootballTalk.com says Lake's attorney, Marc Carlos, testified the following at his parole hearing-

"Mr. Bush - or through his associates - had made some type of agreement with Mr. Lake's group."

It is unclear whether the above allegation is a claim Bush had personally met with Lake and his associates, but it stands in contrast to Reyes' claim.

Someone's lying. Looks like HP sniffed that section of the story out pretty well. The truth about Bush's agent connection or lack thereof relies on his word and the word of Reyes against the testimony of Lake and his attorney, Mr. Carlos.

***
We still do not know what the rent payments amounted to between Bush's parents and Michaels. As stated on here before, that's where this story is headed, it's the smoking gun that will chart the future course of events because it appears more and more likely that Bush had no direct personal dealings with any agents or the New Era Sports & Entertainment folks.

The rest of the new AP release paints an ugly picture of the New Era trio of Michaels, Lake and Caravantes.

The Sycuan Casino, of which Michaels is the assistant tribal manager, strongly denounced Caravantes:

"He was trying to help a friend who got sent to prison, and made inaccurate statements about his businesses relationship with us," [Sycuan assistant tribal manager Adam] Day said. "We are going to have our attorney look at statement and transcript to see what actions we can potentially take."

That's legal speak for "you're a big fat liar!"

Looks like the Tribe wanted nothing to do with the bumbling trio:

"There was a request to become partners in this New Era Sports," said Day, "Both the tribal council and the development corporation board of directors refused to join into the business venture."

Here's why:

The Sycuan Tribe said it was approached last fall by tribal member Michael C. Michaels, who created New Era Sports & Entertainment LLC with his partner Lloyd Lake, a documented gang member now serving time in prison for a probation violation...

...Michaels, who is also known as Michael Pettiford, was linked to Lake in a lengthy 2002 FBI affidavit filed in support of arrest warrants for Lake and other accused San Diego gang members. FBI agent Allan Vitkosky that Lake's "close relationship" with Michaels allowed Lake to tap a $10,000 line of credit with a quick phone call when he was running low on money at the casino.

Lake, 32, of El Cajon has a felony record that stretches back more than a decade. Police records identified him as one of 73 documented members of a street gang, according to the 2002 warrant. Lake has arrests and convictions for gun- and drug-related charges, and he is currently serving 12 months in a federal prison in Victorville for beating up his girlfriend while on probation for a drug-related charge.

They sound like real winners.

Of course, one of them has his name on the deed to the home formerly occupied by the Griffin family, Bush's parents. As noted on my very first entry about this story, the NCAA relevant mistakes made here are likely traced to Bush's parents and Bush's parents alone-

However, Reggie Bush's parents are potentially guilty of greed and stupidity

I think accepting a new home from bumbling ex-cons qualifies as both greedy and stupid. Now all that matters is determining what, if anything, was exchanged for that home.

Reyes' opinion of the entire New Era operation is particularly damning:

David Reyes, a financial and tax consultant, said he met with Michaels and Lake before they began courting Bush, and let Caravantes use his La Jolla office. New Era Sports used Reyes' office address on a brochure.

"I know for a fact they never met with Reggie," said Reyes, who advises pro athletes on how they can help minimize taxes on signing bonuses.

"Quite honestly, I was concerned from the beginning with this whole deal with Reggie, as far as getting him," Reyes said. "Most people felt he was going to be a No. 1 pick, and he was going with more of a known entity."

Reyes also said he wasn't aware of Michaels and Lake having any marketing experience.

"This was all from scratch," Reyes said. "They didn't have the credentials."

Yikes.

***
All that matters: Did they pay/what did they pay/was it commensurate with fair market value for that home?

We'll see if today brings any new testimony or documentation about the home deal. Two days in and both Michaels and his tenants have been mum, although it has been reported that the Griffins say they are going to cooperate with any investigation. The delay does little to alleviate the impatient and the pitchfork/torch types who have their minds made up already.

***
What does all of this mean?

Well, it appears the New Era folks are bad dudes. Somehow, they made a connection not with Bush but with his father, mother, or both. The connection was strong enough to situate the Griffins in a new 3,000 square foot home in March or April of last year.

However, New Era wasn't New Era until October of last year. That leaves a 7-8 month gap where it's unclear what Michaels' interest was with the Griffins---if it was one related to the yet-unborn company or one of regular Tribal/casino affairs.

What we do know is that nobody has fingered Bush or USC for any impropriety. Despite petulant accusations from longtime critics, there's simply no proof as of now that USC or Bush was "cheating" or directly and knowingly involved in any impropriety.

NCAA bylaws allow for punishment of institutions that play ineligible player, whether they do it knowingly or unknowingly. So further investigation will determine Bush's amateur status and USC's culpability and level of punishment, if any.

USC's athletic department passed along investigative powers over to the Pac-10 conference, so it appears the NCAA does not yet have oversight [Update---per this LA Times piece, the NCAA has jumped into the investigation: "a Pacific 10 Conference official confirmed Tuesday that the NCAA has joined the conference in an investigation into Bush's connections with New Era"] and is probably awaiting any investigative findings by the Pac-10. Thing is, the Pac-10 has little investigative power other than to question USC about its knowledge of the situation.

When the public is made aware of the Bush's payment situation is likely the same time the Pac-10 will be made aware of it. That is assuming, of course, that the involved parties ever make the details known publicly and truthfully.

In other words, it's a big waiting game outside of whatever dirt is dug up by the various newspapers and yet unknown public offerings by Michaels or the Griffins.

And Another Take

HP tries to piece together the Reggie Bush story with the new information detailed in the Pro Football Talk rumor mill---link.  As a bonus, there's a picture of oddly named Michael Michaels, the agent in question.

Like myself, HP sees the Griffins at the center of this story based on the evidence presented thus far.

Again, unless more proof is shown, it's going to be the word of New Era--a five-month-old company that has never represented a single player and has a convicted felon in its ranks--against that of Reggie Bush and his family.

Shady? You bet.

NCAA violations? At this point, a stretch.  Tomorrow, who knows.

Again, the fact-based community awaits more evidence.

Still No Smoking Gun

BN is calling this Bush's blue dress... except it isn't.

Choppy, typo-laden transcript from Pro Football Talk's Rumor Mill:

In what could be the next big step toward a finding that USC tailback Reggie Bush was ineligible for all or part of the 2005 football season and that USC knew or should have known about Bush's ineligibility, Liz Mullen of the SportsBusiness Journal reports that sworn testimony from two hearings regarding a parole violation indicates that New Era Sports & Entertainment had an agreement of some sort with Bush.

Michael Michaels and Lloyd Lake founded New Era in 2005. Earlier this year, Lake faced the revocation of his parole from federal prison. At one of the hearings, Lake's lawyer, Marc Carlos, testified that "Mr. Bush -- or through his associates -- had made some type of agreement with Mr. Lake's group."

Carlos also testified that, after Bush signed with another group, there was a dispute over "representations made by Bush and his family to Mr. Lake's group" and that "they were going to discuss potential litigation -- or a settlement involving Mr. Bush's involvement with that agency."

David Caravantes, an NFLPA-certified agent who reportedly was being lined up by New Era to handle the negotiation of Bush's football contract, testified as well. Caravantes confirmed his arrangement with New Era: "Lloyd [Lake] and I had got together in October [2005] to start a new sports management company with Sycuan. . . . Since October, Lloyd was a viable part of the company, helping recruit players, and in the process of merging this New Era Sports with Sycuan. In the process of this happening, you know, it obviously hurt the company because he had some relationships with certain players who ended up not signing."

Lake gave the following testimony: "I had a sports agency that we had formed, and we had a guy in, Winston Justice, from USC. . . . Reggie Bush came into town. And at that time he was going to go out with us."

The initial significance of this testimony is that it removes any credible doubt that, at some time after Bush's family moved into the house owned Michaels but before the completion of the 2005 football, Michaels was an "agent" within the meaning of the relevant NCAA bylaws. Thus, if it ultimately is shown that Bush's family paid anything less than fair market rent after Michaels became an "agent," then Reggie was necessarily ineligible under the NCAA rules for each subsequent game.

More importantly, the reference to "potential litigation" suggest that New Era had (or at least thought it had) some type of binding commitment with Bush. If such an agreement was reached prior to the completion of the 2005 football season, Bush was ineligible regardless of whether his mother and stepfather were paying fair value for the house owned by Michaels.

***
Again, the college football angle of this story boils down to two participants: Reggie Bush and USC.

Right now nobody has proven that Bush has broken any amateur rules.  In order to do so, it will have to be shown that:

1)Bush had signed with an agent.  This story fails to address that.  It mentions an agreement between 'Bush, or his associates' to work with New Era Sports & Entertainment.  But there is no written documentation of this of yet.  Only the testimony of a convicted felon.

The story fails to address why Mr. Lake is in jail, but I'm certainly curious, aren't you?

Unless someone produces a paper with Bush's name on a dotted line agreeing to sign with this (or any agent) prior to Jan. 4, 2006, the agent angle is dead.

2)Did Bush had a hand in the home deal?  It will have to be proven that Bush had a hand in negotiations for the home, or was signing checks, negotiating, etc.  My read of this story is that his parents, the Griffins, are involved in the home deal, not Bush.

Being a college football player at a school two hours drive away, it's safe to say Bush was not a resident of the home.  Also, he has no previous experience with those kinds of matters, whereas his parents are adults and are much more aware of what the process entails.

3)The home deal itself.  Did the Griffins make rent payments?  How much did they pay?  Were their payments at fair market value?

The answers to these questions go a long way towards figuring out the amateurism issues at hand.  They are the real smoking gun, but are also what leads us farthest away from USC and Bush.  I think this is what is frustrating the pitchfork & torch crowd, because the most likely NCAA violation among these scenarios occurred farthest from their target: USC.

The Rumor Mill piece fails to provide answers to these questions, instead only adding the name of a convicted felon to the mix and distracting from the more narrow and vital NCAA issue.

Again, I hope the Griffins will provide documentation about their home deal in a timely fashion.  It will take this story to its next destination instead of the current hysterical, innuendo driven limbo where we currently are.

The Facts Before Us

Even though I have a longstanding policy of not attending to off-field stories like the Reggie Bush home scandal, apparently consistency is seen as being in the Speak No Evil/Hear No Evil/See No Evil camp.

Hogwash.

Not me 

The policy was in place for a myriad of reasons.  It has been my experience, knowing people well-connected to several prominent programs, that this kind of stuff happens everywhere.

And I mean everywhere.

It goes on just as easily at Duke and UCLA as it does at Texas and USC.  The only difference is who gets caught.

So please pardon my failure to get all hopped up over these types of incidents, since I'm a little too jaded and realistic to let my emotions get the best of me.  Sanctimoniousness need not apply and I can't help but feel terribly sorry, if also a bit amused, at those who make these stories out to be more than they are.

The news of the scandal broke late Sunday night after the story was published on Yahoo! Sports' website.  It documented the Bush family's tenancy at a 3,000 square foot home valued at $750,000 in San Diego.  The home is owned by Michael Michaels, a man connected to agent David Caravantes.

What's implied is that by occupying the home, the Bush family received an improper benefit and puts Bush's amateur status in doubt.  By extension, USC's 2005 season could also be in peril if it is determined they were playing with an ineligible player.

That's the story.

***
At first glance, one can go, 'hey' the Bush's are guilty, USC's in trouble, this is one big big scandal'.

But reality sets in at some point if you're not part of the hysterical crowd.

Obviously, the Bush family needs to explain its situation.  Did they even pay rent?  Reggie Bush said on ESPN yesterday that his family was leasing the home just like any other family.  If so, did they pay the going rate for a home that big and in that neighborhood, or were they getting some kind of discount?

I'd want to live there, too 

The story's fate germinates out of this unknown seedling.

However, I can't help but feel the implications are minimal.

NCAA rules prohibit improper benefits to both amateur athletes and their families and friends.  This is a case of a possible infraction applied to a player's family.

However, it will be tough to connect this directly to Bush.  Think about it, he's not signing papers to rent or lease that home.  I doubt he spent much if any time there as he was a college athlete at USC, which is well over two hours' drive from the family home.

If you follow college football with any intensity, you know it's a year-round sport---players don't have many opportunities to get away from campus unless they live within a short driving distance of their schools.  They end up working out through spring break and most takes summer school to stay eligible and be near the campus weight facilities.  Bush's family simply lives too far away for him to make the home in dispute any kind of residence.

Even more difficult is connecting this story to USC.  So far, there have been no implications that Mr. Michaels or Caravantes are USC boosters.  Instead, they're independent agent types.  They're the common hustler that can be found around any and all college football programs, and particularly successful ones like USC, attempting to poach their players before other agents arrive.

The NCAA frowns upon boosters and agents, but boosters are its main concern.  They're direct, financial connections to athletic departments.  They create paper trails and indicate that a program is directly attempting to circumvent the NCAA's amateur rules.  Agents are usually independent and universally loathed but harder to police and enforce.

Connecting all these dots, we see a story that boils down to the following:

There is no true crime committed.  The city attorney general has no interest in this story, for example.  It is purely an NCAA amateurism matter.

However, Reggie Bush's parents are potentially guilty of greed and stupidity.  Potentially.

By not producing evidence as of right now to explain their rent situation, they're dragging this story out and fueling speculation as to their possible guilt.  They could very well be innocent and then this becomes a complete non-story, much to the chagrin of the pitchfork and torch crowd.

As of now USC is guilty of nothing.  Unless other details come out, USC had no hand in the Bush family's goofy home deal and no direct means to control what had happened.  A players' family's home situation isn't usually something that's discussed in a compliance office if you catch my drift.

However, USC can still be punished because the NCAA rules do not permit schools to play ineligible players and dictate that any improper benefit to an athlete or his friends and family can merit a program's punishment.

What's my take?

Right now, I'm waiting for the Griffins to explain the deal.  That will help move this story to some kind of a conclusion.  USC is sitting pretty at the moment.  They do not appear to have been involved in this and it will be hard to directly connect the program to Michaels and Cervantes.

What's funny is that I had been told several weeks ago of an incident at USC's campus where an assistant coach nearly went roid-monkey on an agent who had been hanging around the front of USC's athletic department, more or less dragging the agent off campus.  That goes a long way in explaining USC's opinion of the agents circling the team and their appetite for the Michaels' and Caravantes' of the world.

Will USC be punished if Bush is found to not have been an amateur?  Maybe.  I've given up trying to understand the NCAA's punishment approach.  They more or less rule as they go along and the same may happen here.  I can look back to other recent improper benefit cases to have an idea of what may happen, but it's only an idea.

Ohio State's Troy Smith was suspended for some games after accepting money from an Ohio State booster.  However, Smith still had eligibility (Bush doesn't, obviously) and his situation involved a booster, which is normally a higher crime than agent infractions.

Recently, Oklahoma's Adrian Peterson drove a free car from an Oklahoma friendly dealership for several weeks before returning it.  The NCAA swiftly dismissed that case after talking to Oklahoma's compliance people.

However, Bush's family's home is of much greater benefit than a few hundred dollars or a new car.  The NCAA may or may not be as forgiving simply because the dollar amount changed.

How USC is responsible for that, I have no idea.  My guess is if this story dissolves, nothing will happen, but if it escalates, if new details emerge, we might actually look at forfeiture, which would be interesting and fairly unprecedented.  But then the NCAA would have to stomach taking this year's remarkable Rose Bowl off the books as well as one of it's all-time great games in the USC/Notre Dame game from October.  Somehow I doubt the NCAA wants to do that.

There, I addressed this story.  Right now it looks like much ado about nothing, since the devil's in the details.  It makes for great offseason fodder but it's a crime that carries an expiration date (Bush is no longer eligible) and it will be hard to punish USC since it had no clear role in this other than unwittingly playing a guy who may or may not have been eligible.

You may now return to your previously scheduled pitchfork and torch rabblerousing.

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