As I said weeks ago when the NYT article first came out and this whole topic got in the news, it is pretty much ado about nothing. Neither the NCAA or SACS will ever be involved because there are no rules broken. The bottomline is: 1. This was started by a disgruntled prof (James Gundlach)who was passed over for head of the Sociology Dept. in favor of another prof named Tom Peete. Gundlach said FB players were being directed to these independent study (IS) classes so they could maintain their elgibility. It turns out there were several hundred IS courses taught and only 18 athletes were involved and of these less than 10 were FB players. There was no evidence anyone got a good grade for not doing the work and there was nmo evidence of favortism being shown to athletes. So the athletic dept. was found to be totally clean in all of it and Gundach is backpeddling saying he never meant that. 2. It was determined that Peete and another prof were teaching way too many IS courses and both have been forced to resign and take an administrative position (they both had tenure and couldn't be fired. Gundlach's fate remains TBD but he will be persona non grata at Auburn. He had some points to make but he shouldn't have grandstanded to the NYT. New policies will be set placing more scrutiny on the IS courses and limiting them to 3 per prof. This will now be looked at by all major schools and many will make similar policy changes. You can bet it will get the attention of my good friend Sean O'Keefe. In a nutshell the storm has passed. Let's play ball!!!! How many points are ya'll gonna give me??
Proud, here is one of the things I find confusing. You mention that 18 of the 85 cited were athletes and less than 10 were football players. OK, granted. But, that doesn't balance out when I look at it. Considering that @ 2% of the student body is comprised of athletes, how to you explain that over 20% of those involved in the IS courses were athletes? It's one of those *math* things that confuse me. If this was indeed a professor that was disgruntled, why were the two he cited asked to resign their positions? Add to that, now it is about a disgruntled prof but a few weeks ago it was about a Tuscaloosa Newspaper that the NYT owned? I've taken IS courses. Everyone I've taken was "harder" than the traditional classes I was taking at the same time. They required more work, more study time, etc. So, when I base my experience with IS courses (along with others I've spoken with concerning their courses) and to a man/lady they all say it was a harder course of study...how does one explain how the GPA's for those players involved in those courses average a point+ higher than their normal GPA? Again, I don't want to see this story continue...it is about time for it to die and allow us to focus on why were are all here...to talk about football. That being said, there are still questions that I have about your whole ordeal...and, they leave me confused when I see the *explanations.*
Like I said when this story came out, it may turn out to be no big deal . . . but a big spotight is going to be shined on Auburn by the NCAA and SACS now. They must now pray that they are "totally clean" everywhere that light shines. Every school has a few shady areas that are better left dark, usually involving hard-to-control alumni, but also with academic shenanigans. The NCAA is vindictive and once they decide they want a school they will stick like glue until they find something. Ask Dubose or Dale Brown. Dale weathered three NCAA investigations before they found something to stick and they broke their own elligibilty rules to do that. Auburn must now be squeaky clean everywhere and that will be tough for any big school with rich alumni.
The best I have seen written on this whole issue: http://vodkapundit.com/archives/008852.php If you ever needed proof that summer is indeed the silly season for college sports, watching the newspapers in Alabama and a few points north over the last few would have settled your mind. After weeks of rumor and speculation, and shortly following a post of mine right here at VP, Pete Thamel of the New York Times rushed in his story on... ... well, on not much. But it's July, and there's nothing else for sportswriters to talk about, so Thamel's overheated article has been causing quite a stir in print and one the air since late Thursday. As for the realities of the piece, without further ado, a Fisking. My comments are in bold.
I'm certain that those who want to see something there can always find justification for doing so, but is mostly a case of the 'ole axiom, "liars figure and figures lie." (Terry - that is not directed at you, but rather the NYT and TDG) For example, two of the classes cited were taken by Carnell Williams. Of course, the newspaper made a big deal about "top 5, first round draft pick" getting preferential treatment. I mean, who cares if you damage an individual's credibility as long as it sells a few newspapers, right? CW took those classes after his intercollegiate eligibility had expired. That's right, he was simply fulfilling a commitment to obtain his degree by finalizing his coursework while prepping for the combines. Fact is, we should be applauding more athletes for sticking with educational commitments and setting positive trends, regardless of what school they represent. Cases like this, and the classes attributed to similar graduating athletes (including sports other than football) would absolutely be removed by anyone looking at the issue objectively. This issue was never about athletics, it was about academic standards in general. But that didn't fit the agenda of The Drake Group or the New York Times, so they spun it to sell subsciptions and to further TDG's agenda to end scholarships for all intercollegiate sports. Everybody on this board is smarter than that.
LOL. Two quotes I like better than that! Statistics are like a lamp-post to a drunken man - more for leaning on than illumination. David Brent Figures often beguile me, particularly when I have the arranging of them myself; in which case the remark attributed to Disraeli would often apply with justice and force: "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics." - Autobiography of Mark Twain
Interesting discussion but I'm sure the LSU guys here aren't all that interested in further details and I am ready to move on. It's not completely over since the investigation is still ongoing. Gundalch's fate is TBD but for sure he has done himself in at Auburn. Please let FB season get started soon so we can talk about important things:thumb:
Statistics remind me of a guy who drowned in a river that had an average depth of 3 feet. - Woody Hayes
