Red_Lee

September 26th, 2017 at 1:37 PM ^

The FBI does not conduct fraud investigations unless there is already burden of proof, and they sure as hell don't go public with it until somebody is about to get proper fucked.

Any responsible party convicted by the FBI will certainly have NCAA ramifications. And any program that was already on probation (*cough* Louisville) is looking down the barrel of a death penalty. No way a fraud conviction based on federal grant money doesn't end up with the NCAA following up.

JMK

September 26th, 2017 at 2:50 PM ^

Actually, the FBI does not have subpoena power. In a criminal investigation, the federal prosecutor would have to issue a subpoena on behalf of a grand jury to compel someone to testify under oath. But the FBI would not be permitted to be present for the testimony, only the prosecutor, the grand jurors, a court reporter, and the witness. Probably doesn't matter for your overallpoint, but I typed it anyway.

Sopwith

September 26th, 2017 at 2:03 PM ^

The Death Penalty died when SMU levied it against the NCAA. No, I don't mean the other way around.



Coaching staffs at big-time college programs are structured to always give the HC plausible deniability. That's what you will see here – prosecutions will end with the assistants and that's as far as the feds will go. The NCAA will send a letter warning "stop being bad, Louisville, and THIS time we mean it for REALZ!" A couple scholarships gone for one or two years, maybe a TV ban for the month of January, NCAA enforcers home for dinner. End of story. Where is the motivation for top players to leave as long as UL and others keep meeting payroll?

gopoohgo

September 26th, 2017 at 2:27 PM ^

This is the FBI and DOJ.  And per the US attorney's presser, it's an ongoing investigation.   We are talking prison time for those found guilty.  

Do you REALLY think one of these assistants WON'T flip for a lighter sentence?  Or these shoe execs?  

This is going to get ugly.  The FBI has wiretaps and already one informant.  

The NCAA is going to be forced to do something, or this becomes a judicial matter.

rice4114

September 26th, 2017 at 5:02 PM ^

Louisville is exposed for setting minors up with prostitutes on their visits. I mean if you think about it a recruiting violation couldnt be any worse than that without death or dismemberment being involved. Also fake classes and cheating for incoming recruits at UNC? Thats probably the next step down on horrible recruiting practices.



Cant wait for UNC and Louisville to get whats coming to them.

bronxblue

September 26th, 2017 at 3:13 PM ^

Yeah, this isn't the NCAA apparently ignoring fake classes at UNC.  This is the federal government going after a school, and if that's the case it doesn't really matter what the NCAA says because the guilty schools will likely have to dramatically alter the makeup of their programs after people get jail time and/or massive fines.

FauxMo

September 26th, 2017 at 1:28 PM ^

Yes, I'm sure the NCAA will crush Arizona and Louisville with sanctions, thereby forcing the recruits to return their kickback $$$, and then seek other programs to play at...

freejs

September 26th, 2017 at 2:01 PM ^

has been able to accomplish, only being able to recruit from a limited pool of players. 

Fuck all these programs, but I'm pretty confident they're the rule, not the exception. 

Also amazing: the abuse Coach Beilein takes for not recruiting certain players. Gee. Wonder why he refuses to be involved in Recruitment A, B, and C that the hoi polloi are screaming at him to be a part of... 

 

taistreetsmyhero

September 26th, 2017 at 2:27 PM ^

The NCAA's stubborn insistence that the players fueling their multi-billion dollar industry remain amateur student athletes almost feels like the war on drugs.



Competition at the top is inevitably going to lead to this shadiness, and instead of take the bull by the horns and regulate it themselves, the NCAA continues to launch these investigations without any balls.



Just as America should decriminalize drug use and regulate the legal exchange of drugs, so too should the NCAA regulate the payment of players.

funkywolve

September 26th, 2017 at 3:33 PM ^

to the NBA and NFL about that matter.  The reason football players can't go to the NFL out of high school and basketball players can't go to the NBA out of high school isn't because of the NCAA.  The rules that don't allow those players to enter the NFL and NBA out of high school were set up by the NFL and the NBA.

Mr Miggle

September 26th, 2017 at 8:27 PM ^

did allow players to be drafted at age 17-18.

As long as schools and coaches are willing to cheat to gain a competitive advantage, there will be cheating. It doesn't matter if the players can legally be paid. If there are rules in place, they will still be willing to break them. Maybe fewer players will be willing to get involved, but I wouldn't count on a dramatic change. They aren't the ones driving the cheating, they're just along for the ride.

If you want to combat cheating you need to instill a real fear of getting caught and of serious consequences when you do. The first part of that is hard to do. The NCAA just doesn't have that power. Maybe this government action will scare programs.

The second part is in the NCAA's hands. They haven't been consistent in this regard and I'm not referring to that stupid Tarkanian line people beat to death. The UNC case is a perfect example. Now that they have decided to take a hard line, they are in a protracted fight with UNC over their authority. It's an important battle. It may even affect the schools caught up in this case. I fully expect Louisville to get hit very, very hard. Some of the allegations sure look like they are going to implicate Pitino personally.