Blackwell exposing Dantonio on Auston Robertson recruitment in deposition

Submitted by TheCube on September 19th, 2019 at 3:54 PM

I remember there were quite a few eyebrows raised around here when MSU recruited this guy who had already had a checkered past with regards to sexual assault. 

MSU slappies minimized the kid's troubles as high school shenanigans, so naturally that came back to bite em in the ass when he assaulted a fellow teammates' gf on campus. 

I wonder how MSU will squirm out of this one. 

https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/27652914/ex-staffer-dantonio-ignored-warnings-recruit

MGoBoard

Leaders And Best

September 20th, 2019 at 1:36 PM ^

Again, what facts? What facts do you have to support that Michigan was still recruiting him after his legal issues and after he decommitted from MSU after Signing Day?

Because he didn't visit Michigan after decommitting and opening up his recruitment. There is no record of an in-home visit, school visit, or any contact from Michigan. So what facts are there supporting that Michigan was still recruiting him?

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Leaders And Best

September 19th, 2019 at 4:22 PM ^

Robertson reopening his recruitment after Signing Day:

Michigan state is still my number one but I'm am re-opening my options.

— BigTicketRob6/21 (@auston_robertsn) February 3, 2016

His 247Sports profile with only one official visit to MSU AFTER Signing Day: https://247sports.com/Player/Auston-Robertson-59322/high-school-103183/

No report of any school except MSU contacting him after his arrest. Then he signs with MSU in the spring and talks about how they never gave up on him and stuck with him: https://247sports.com/Article/Top247-DL-Auston-Robertson-signs-LOI-with-Michigan-State-44552241/

The whole thing was disgusting at the time and called out for it on this blog at length. You're out of your element.

https://youtu.be/H0OaeMYTbs4

 

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Beilein 4 Life

September 19th, 2019 at 4:24 PM ^

So your position is that all those teams, including Alabama, wanted him super bad and he just didn’t sign with any of them, even after signing day? And then he, by his own words, opened his recruitment back up because he just had so many options? And then he chose MSU even when he had numerous other big time college offers? Lol, ok

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Brianj25

September 19th, 2019 at 4:34 PM ^

My position is that he had offers from those teams and there is absolutely zero indication that any of his offers were revoked. 

You seriously think 'Bama and Ohio State cared about his legal situation? They may have, only to the extent that it would've effected his eligibility. Once it became clear that it wouldn't effect his eligibility those schools would not give literally one shit about it. 

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SalvatoreQuattro

September 19th, 2019 at 4:39 PM ^

There is no evidence that they continued to recruit him. You fixate on offer while ignoring/not understanding that schools toss out as many as 100 in a single season. 

Recruiting requires consistent contact and pursuit. We see no evidence of that after the October incident.

Your ignorance of recruiting undermines your attempt at defending your Spartans.

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Blue Middle

September 19th, 2019 at 6:40 PM ^

Zero evidence?  That is completely false.  There is no article saying his scholarship was pulled, but that does not mean there is zero evidence.  You obviously didn't read the ESPN article. In fact, you're wrong about all kinds of things:

  • You said the pre-college incidents had nothing to do with rape.  So, forcibly groping a girl against her will has nothing to do with rape?
  • "Police reports and court documents show that Robertson was involved in a string of incidents where he was accused of sexual violence and two forceful rape attempts during his high school years."  That's pre-college.  That's directly connected to rape.
  • He put Michigan in his top three, but did not take his scheduled visit.  This is pretty strong evidence--especially when considering his proximity--that his scholarship was either pulled or he was not being recruited.
  • He said, "Michigan had some ground to make up" in his recruiting which often indicates a lack of attention from a school.
  • There is no evidence, of any kind, of Michigan pursuing or hosting Robertson after May of 2017.
  • He did not sign with anyone on signing day.  That is extremely rare, and even more so for a recruit with his ranking.
  • You obviously don't understand how scholarships work.  If they pulled Roberston's offer, they wouldn't publicize it.  They would just tell him he no longer has an offer.  They don't report this info to 247, Scout, Rivals, etc.

You accuse others here of being emotional, but it's obvious that you are the emotionally compromised since you have admitted that you wanted the kid and are from his area.

This individual had a history of sexual violence and there is lots of evidence--including him not signing on signing day--that he was not wanted.  The ESPN article referenced by the OP even points out that MSU (other than Dantonio) didn't want him.

People do deserve second chances.  People who continue to get opportunities even after demonstrating a pattern behavior aren't getting another chance, they're being enabled.  That's what happened here.

Sorry you refuse to look at all the facts.  Even sorrier that you accuse everyone else of ignoring the facts and choosing to publicly a defend a serial sexual abuser who never should have been admitted to any school.  Most of all, I'm sorry and feel bad that you actually believe you're the only one with a valid argument here, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

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DelhiWolverine

September 19th, 2019 at 6:50 PM ^

Thank you for comprehensively and patiently explaining the blindingly obvious. 
 

So many indications that his offer was pulled, but OP is going to die on the hill that “you don’t know” because there isn’t public communication from Michigan that the offer was revoked. 
 

I agree that the biggest indicator that offers were revoked is the fact that he didn’t sign with any school on National Signing Day. If offers were still on the table, it’s almost assured that he would have signed with someone.   

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Brianj25

September 19th, 2019 at 4:39 PM ^

Lol sure, my five year posting history without one single incident suggesting I give one shit about Michigan State coupled with my unwillingness to go along with your completely fabricated story here about a recruit having his scholarship revoked suggests I'm a Spartan. When the facts aren't on your side, pound the table and call the other guy a Spartan fan I guess. 

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UP to LA

September 19th, 2019 at 7:31 PM ^

You're having a complete meltdown, my man. Whatever, it happens. But it's all premised on a really misguided understanding of how evidentiary standards work. The essence of your claim is positive: that Michigan actively recruited this kid after it was clear that he did some horrible stuff. The burden is on you to demonstrate that. You can't just cite a tick mark in the "offer" column, which can mean a wildly divergent set of things, and then say that the burden is on everyone else to show dispositive evidence that he wasn't being recruited. You keep repeating this line of argumentation, it's all unpersuasive and cringy, and you should really step away for a bit.

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Brianj25

September 19th, 2019 at 8:16 PM ^

Nope, completely wrong. I've observed several facts that nobody is disputing. Everybody is just angry that I mentioned these facts. I do not have a burden to demonstrate the truth of straw man claims that I did not make. 

What is cringy is that there's not one single other person on this board who is willing to take a step back from their fandom and think rationally. 

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wellington

September 19th, 2019 at 8:58 PM ^

Wow, man. You’ve now reached the point of claiming literally everyone on the board is wrong except for you? And this doesn’t throw up a big red flag for you regarding the quality of your argument(s)? You present yourself as someone so obstinate that engaging you in any meaningful way seems impossible. 

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Brianj25

September 20th, 2019 at 2:15 AM ^

No, the fact that a bunch of fanatics who cannot control their emotion and think reasonably when rival schools are involved does not tell me anything about my “argument” - which isn’t an argument at all, but merely observation of facts, the truth of which nobody disputes. 

Does it raise any red flags to you that there are over a hundred comments on this thread and not a single one raises a coherent response that amounts to more than “nuh uh”? 

I am not even saying anything controversial here. People are mad because the facts I’ve raised do not mesh well with their preconceived and unsubstantiated opinions. Everybody agrees that everything I’ve said is true. There’s no dispute. The controversy isn’t about any conclusions I’ve drawn - it’s about these unfavorable facts being discussed in the first place instead of being buried where they won’t interfere with people’s predetermined world view. 

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Robbie Moore

September 19th, 2019 at 4:45 PM ^

Hey Brian. The problem for MSU is they enrolled him. Nobody else did. You can say, well, they would have enrolled him but that is speculation. Fact is, with his horrible reputation on the record, Dantonio took him anyway. And when Robertson acted at MSU as he had in high school it's all on Dantonio and MSU. That other universities may have been interested at some point is irrelevant. 

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Brianj25

September 19th, 2019 at 5:18 PM ^

I don't disagree with you. 

I do disagree with this stupid take that people don't deserve second chances and that whatever other school offered the second chance is worthy of ridicule.

Other schools, including Michigan, wanted him. Those schools were right to want him. The fact that he messed up despite being given a second chance does not change the fact that it was right to give him a second chance. 

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Brianj25

September 19th, 2019 at 5:52 PM ^

You have absolutely no idea what the girl thinks. It is perfectly possible that she's a compassionate human being who realizes that people are a product of their environment and hoped that he would get proper support to turn his life around. You seem to be perfectly okay with making the gross and insulting assumption that she's a vindictive person who doesn't believe in rehabilitation, but hey, more power to you. 

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Brianj25

September 19th, 2019 at 6:06 PM ^

His pre-college incident didn't even have anything to do with rape. Now go take a seat next to all of the other people who don't have even a basic familiarity with the facts. 

We rehabilitate people for all sorts of misconduct, including rape and even murder. GTFO of here with your uneducated nonsense. 

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Blue Middle

September 19th, 2019 at 6:42 PM ^

You haven't read the article.  His pre-college incidents--there were several--were directly related to rape and sexual violence.  From the article:

Police reports and court documents show that Robertson was involved in a string of incidents where he was accused of sexual violence and two forceful rape attempts during his high school years.

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spider-sal

September 19th, 2019 at 7:09 PM ^

We both know I am the one that is showing concern on behalf of the victim while you down-played the significance of the event. This guy had a history of at least 2 prior rape attempts and you continue to tell us his “2nd” (3rd,4th,5th maybe?) chance was deserved and correct. A real person was sexually assaulted and you clearly want to minimize that.

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spider-sal

September 19th, 2019 at 9:46 PM ^

Sorry I did not agree with your take on how the  victim may view this terrible act.  In a poor attempt to win your argument, you downplayed the impact the sexual assault may have on this person’s life. Furthermore you chose to sympathize with the perpetrator because of his up-bringing. I use an obviously hypothetical example of how YOU may view the victim’s feelings. Sorry you can’t pick up on what’s obvious. Maybe try comprehending what is being written before throwing shit at the wall. But really we all know that’s your only play. 

I’m done with you now. You don’t offer any reasonable responses because you have none. Continue on with shit throwing. 

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Hackett 4 President

September 19th, 2019 at 5:18 PM ^

Wow Brian, you really have this figured out. Not one person comes to your defense in this entire thread because your argument is dumb. As others have mentioned, there is not a single mention of Michigan being a part of his recruitment once word got out he was a troubled kid. Michigan being in his top 3 means what exactly? My 4 year old could say Michigan is in her top 3....that doesn't prove shit. Here are the facts....MSU continued to recruit him and enroll him knowing his past. Did he come to Michigan? No....it doesn't really get much more complicated than that.

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Brianj25

September 19th, 2019 at 5:21 PM ^

Nobody has come to my defense in this thread for the same reason nobody would come to an Ohio State fan's defense in a thread on an Ohio State board on a post that doesn't paint Michigan in a negative light. 

My "argument" isn't dumb -- it's not even an argument. I'm observing facts. And that has people riled up because those facts are inconvenient to their world view. 

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outsidethebox

September 19th, 2019 at 6:01 PM ^

I am not a favorite on this board as I often see issues from a perspective that differs with many whom I call "mindless partisans" . But, here, you sir have wandered far off a very long pier. You have no substantive argument and you have made a complete fool of yourself. Just quit it. You do not even have an "argument" so you are correct...something that does not exist should not be considered "dumb". But your claim of having "facts" on your side simply declares that you have no ability to synthesize information and think critically-like none. Your best plea, here-at this time, is insanity-truly it is. As a nurse, I have worked in a psyche ward...and there, this is how people acted. You are friggin nuts-good luck.

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Brianj25

September 19th, 2019 at 6:11 PM ^

Ah, great rebuttal, I have no ability to synthesize information and think critically because I am unwilling to buy into a completely fabricated fantasy world that has absolutely no basis in fact. Got it. 

Congrats for being a nurse. I have the fun privilege of seeing in pro per litigants on the other side of the court room. So I shit on laughably stupid arguments like those provided by you and others here on an every day basis. 

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umgoblue11

September 19th, 2019 at 9:19 PM ^

So as a lawyer, you understand how asinine it would be to walk in a courtroom and argue a case that you only 1/10th of the story?

This entire story has not been reported. Blackwell knows where the bodies are buried. If MSU coaches get deposed they are going to have texts that prove that MSU knew more than they were letting on. Why do you think they waited till June to get him into the University?

You're making assumptions and picking apart other arguments without knowing what happened...

 

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Brianj25

September 20th, 2019 at 12:46 AM ^

What exactly do you think I’m claiming here? 

I simply said the kid deserved a chance to turn his life around and we wanted him at Michigan. 

It’s easy to say in retrospect that giving the kid an opportunity was a bad idea. If Robertson would’ve come to Michigan and turned his life around every single person in this thread would have lauded our coaches for being the only people brave enough to give the kid a chance. The fact that he went to a rival school and messed up does not change the fact that it was right to give him a shot. 

People are infuriated about my assertion that we wanted him. Again, that is an undisputed fact. But that is what people are angry about. 

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Benthom11

September 19th, 2019 at 11:01 PM ^

Holy shit I read all this ridiculous nonsense and you are a lawyer?? I guess it makes sense that you would be willing and able to argue an obviously terrible point for so long, but damn you must be an awful lawyer considering you have convinced 0 people.

 

Honestly what are you even trying to prove?

No one disputes that UM was interested and had offered as of May 2015.

There is no evidence of UM being interested after his incident but plenty of evidence in MSU being interested. 

The evidence you want of a pulled scholarship is impossible. It would be a recruiting violation.

Robertson could have said his UM offer was pulled. Robertson could have said he was committed to UM. Doesn't make it true until he signs an LOI.

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Brianj25

September 20th, 2019 at 12:39 AM ^

I am not trying to prove anything. I am observing facts. You clowns can’t get your panties out of a bunch because you feel these facts attack your little fantasy world. 

But sure. Go on thinking thinking that my inability to “convince” a bunch of Neanderthals to change their mind is a reflection on my persuasiveness and not their complete inability to think dispassionately and even remotely rationally about any topic that has to do with a rival school. I’m sure I probably couldn’t convince Michigan State forum goers that Jim Harbaugh is a great coach either. But hey, I don’t post here to try to convince people who can’t be convinced to consider facts that they won’t consider. Nobody’s telling you that you have to leave your precious fantasy world where facts don’t matter. 

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Jon06

September 20th, 2019 at 8:00 AM ^

The facts you keep pointing out aren't germane, lawyer bro. We all agree he was offered prior to his trouble. In fact we can just stipulate that we all agree with every fact you've pointed out. The problem is that none of the facts you've pointed out, not even taken together in their entirety, supports your position.

I think there is a fact you'll agree with, but that you haven't wanted to focus on. It is this: I think we all agree there is no external sign as to whether or not Michigan still wanted him after his malfeasance became public. That is actually, you may be surprised to learn, germane. The fact to which everybody else is pointing--and it is a fact--is that there is no publicly discoverable evidence that Michigan continued to recruit him. This absence of evidence ordinarily means that a school has stopped recruiting somebody. It is certainly consistent with a school no longer recruiting somebody. Not only that, but to everybody but you, it seems inconsistent with the school remaining interested in the kid.

You presumably think you can't take absence of evidence as evidence of absence. But when there is a systematic apparatus for recording recruiting contacts, as indeed there is, you can. If we were still recruiting him, there would be evidence of that. But there isn't. So we weren't. In other words, it's a very reasonable conclusion from the facts that Michigan stopped recruiting him at a certain point.

Speaking of patterns of evidence inconsistent with things, your pattern of insulting everyone who disagrees with you is inconsistent with your not being the one who is acting from emotion. I can't even give you the customary "you're not wrong, you're just an asshole" here. You were both wrong and being an asshole. You should probably apologize for the latter.

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Brianj25

September 20th, 2019 at 10:33 AM ^

So, to be clear, you’re acknowledging that I’m right while simultaneously drawing up a straw man argument that I did not make and arguing that it is wrong. Great. What exactly do you think my “position” is? I’m merely observing facts. It is telling that mere observation of these facts leads everyone else to come up with the same straw man conclusions. I don’t even have to make the claims - the facts do all of the work on their own and that is what is making people angry. 

It’s perfectly plausible that our reduced contact with him had something to do with his commitment to Michigan State. Indeed, in light of the facts and circumstances, that is the most likely reason we reduced contact with him. The idea that we cut off contact with him because of the October incident is based on blind assumption and nothing more. 

 

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Leaders And Best

September 20th, 2019 at 10:54 AM ^

But he reopened his recruitment in 2016 after Signing Day. He was no longer verbally committed to MSU. Michigan still did not recruit him or any other school as far as we know. There are only reports of MSU backtracking and deciding to sign him later. That is the the issue. Why did MSU decide to pick up and recruit him again when no one else would?

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