The Feagin Reveal
Feagin told investigators that “when I first started going to (Burke’s) house he had three big jars of weed up in his room. … One day T.J. was talking to me about some illegal stuff. He was under a lot of pressure because of his financial problems.
“I told him that I knew someone who could get him some cocaine. A few days later he asked me if I had talked to the person yet. I called right then and set up a deal.”
Feagin arranged to send $600 to a friend in Florida, whom he identified only as “Tragic.” In exchange, “Tragic” would send an ounce of cocaine to Ann Arbor.
It goes on from there. No cocaine ever showed up, this Burke guy tried to scare/murder Feagin by filling a bottle with gasoline and setting it on fire outside his dorm room, etc, etc, etc. You know, typical college stuff. Except Burke is 26. But whateva, TJ Burke does what he wants, which is apparently spend up to ten years in prison.
Feagin was a last-minute addition to Michigan's first class under Rodriguez when it became clear that Rodriguez wasn't likely to acquire a higher-rated quarterback recruit. He did not work out, obviously. The Freep article dryly notes that Feagin "struggled to learn the playbook" mere paragraphs after describing Feagin's extensive marijuana habit.
The onfield impact of Feagin's departure remains nil; the off-field stuff… well, at least when a Michigan player violates team rules he actually violates them. Woo spin!
But seriously: it's bad. It's also one guy that Michigan apparently didn't run as thorough of a background check on—or possibly any background check on—as they scrambled to reconfigure Rodriguez's first recruiting class. As long as the incident remains isolated, fine. Yes, Kurt Wermers, you get a point, which brings you up to negative four.
August 9th, 2009 at 11:41 PM ^
yeah, they do drug test. If I recall correctly, every few weeks there would be a random list of names at a practice and if you were on it, you had to go piss in a cup. Then it would be a different set of names the next time around.
August 9th, 2009 at 11:39 PM ^
Is it 100% fair to jump down RR's throat for this?
On the one hand, I do generally expect a head coach to be held responsible for every aspect of his program, and an arrest record seems to be a basic fundamental sort of thing you'd check for on every recruit.
On the other, I seem to remember Brian's theme when Feagin was recruited being something along the lines of "can't help but root for this guy." Feagin had a lot of us charmed and we hadn't even met him. Who's to say RR didn't do his due diligence, and Feagin explained away the arrests the same way he did to the police in that story: "Nothing ever came of it." Just some police pickin' on a black kid, maybe.
August 10th, 2009 at 1:07 AM ^
...he kicked Feagin off the team. Does he need a public flogging so that his critics feel he has done his penance? He took a risk on a QB and it didn't turn out. RR shouldn't take any heat for this whatsoever.
On the other hand, AFAIC, Feagin accepted a scholly under false pretenses. He was too busy getting high to learn the playbook. And, while a student who is not on an athletic scholly can party his ass off and still pull a four-point, any player on a scholly has an obligation to keep himself "clean," so as to maximize his ability.
That half-step Feagin lost from high school to college, that was attributed to the difference in talent level of his competition, could very well have been because of chronic drug use.
Feagin should be made to pay UM back in full for his wasted (pun intended) scholly.
August 10th, 2009 at 1:38 AM ^
Tater, have you ever smoked weed?
August 10th, 2009 at 6:20 AM ^
"RR shouldn't take any heat for this whatsoever."
You're right. He shouldn't be blamed for bringing in criminals and not doing thorough background checks. And just so there's no double standard, he also shouldn't be given credit for bringing in good student-athletes. Rodriguez deserves no blame or credit at all for anything that his players do. [sarcasm]
"That half-step Feagin lost from high school to college, that was attributed to the difference in talent level of his competition, could very well have been because of chronic drug use."
Or maybe he didn't lose half a step, since he had a 34-yard run against Minnesota in his limited playing time.
"Feagin should be made to pay UM back in full for his wasted (pun intended) scholly."
That's fine if you want to implement that rule. Let's hunt down all the other guys who have ever transferred or been kicked off the team and ask for their money back, too. But just to be fair, let's give any money Michigan made off of Ryan Mallett back to him. Let's return any money we made off of Sam McGuffie jerseys.
It's a trade-off - kids give us their football skills, and Michigan gives them an education. If you want Feagin's money back, that's great - but let's also forfeit last year's Minnesota game, since he helped win it.
August 10th, 2009 at 8:29 AM ^
...you meant Charles Woodson jerseys, right? : )
August 9th, 2009 at 11:48 PM ^
Anyone else more puzzled about this Burke guy? I mean, I'm upset about the Feagin fiasco, but there was no way in hell he would have made it in if not through the AD. RR took a risk that blew up in his face.
Who's the fartknocker in admissions that rubber-stamped TJ Burke?
As for the subject of coke, in my 4-1/2 years, all I ever witnessed was mary jane use (and not a whole lot of that outside hash bash). I never encountered a hard drug until I arrived in Austin, TX. The idea of coke use at my alma mater is a buzz-kill (pun intended).
August 10th, 2009 at 12:01 AM ^
The only time I saw hard drugs (coke) was at a party one time, but you must have stayed locked in your dorm room if you didn't see/smell a whole lot of weed.
August 10th, 2009 at 12:03 AM ^
Burke wasn't a part of the athletic department so the AD had nothing to do with his admission. And while undergrads in their mid 20's certainly aren't common at UM, it is a wonder that Burke could maintain a course load heavy enough to remain a student.
August 10th, 2009 at 12:10 AM ^
he states in the police report that he is a couple credits shy of a degree in cellular molecular biology. He was also in the navy for three years prior to enrolling at UM.
August 10th, 2009 at 12:15 AM ^
I overlooked that detail. So I'm even more perplexed... CMB is a pretty rigorous degree for anyone, particularly a pot head arsonist drug dealer. I guess I'm just naive.
August 10th, 2009 at 12:20 AM ^
Just because someone smokes pot or sells drugs, it doesn't make them an idiot or less of a hard worker.
August 10th, 2009 at 12:36 AM ^
That is all...
August 10th, 2009 at 7:14 AM ^
I'm assuming most of us on here have tried or done certain things in our day and would agree that what you just posted was really, really stupid. Seriously man, you're quickly becoming one of the worst posters on here.
August 10th, 2009 at 8:45 AM ^
You keep saying "everyone's done this". Feagin didn't get the boot for using drugs. Tons of Wolverines have gotten busted for weed and gotten second chances. Have you sold cocaine? I haven't. I don't actually know anyone who sold cocaine aside from one - and he a professional drug dealer.
There are two issues here:
1. Cocaine, legally, is treated differently than marijuana. Marijuana, in Ann Arbor, and many other places, is decriminalized. Possession of a smaller amount is treated like an MIP.
2. Selling and using are, legally, two extremely different things.
August 10th, 2009 at 9:34 AM ^
No, sorry for the misunderstanding. I doubt that anyone here has sold cocaine. I have not. Actually, i'm not even sure how this is getting turned around one me, haha. It was in reference to the likelihood that many of us have tried certain things, (hash bash in a2) but that doesn't make it a smart choice. Especially selling it. I haven't condoned any of this once on this forum.
For instance, when Brodie mentions that selling drugs doesn't make you an idiot, well, yeah it does. Great, I know plenty of guys who were brilliant minds that sold stuff but that doesn't make it a wise decision.
August 10th, 2009 at 10:37 AM ^
Brodie was responding to a post that expressed surprise that you could be both a drug dealer and a cellular molecular biology major. He didn't say dealing drugs is anything other than stupid. You're changing the way he used the word "smart" to make this seem like a disagreement when there isn't one, necessarily.
August 10th, 2009 at 12:41 PM ^
We're actually agreeing. I never said doing or selling drugs is a smart choice, everyone knows they're dumb. I'm saying plenty of extraordinarily intelligent and hard working people do drugs. Doing drugs is a stupid decision, but the act of doing drugs does not mean one isn't intelligent.
August 10th, 2009 at 10:36 AM ^
Yes, I've tried drugs just like 99% of the world. Was it for me? No. But that doesn't mean I don't know people who worked twice as hard as me while smoking twice as much ganja. If you think everyone doing drugs fits the same slacker stereotype then I'm going to question how many drug users you actually know.
August 10th, 2009 at 10:44 AM ^
Having conversations with random strangers is getting to be too stupid. Especially when we aren't even talking about michigan sports anymore.
August 10th, 2009 at 1:59 AM ^
a smart, educated, hard working, drug user. Some are now in pretty high-falutin professions. So, no, you shouldn't be surprised.
August 10th, 2009 at 1:18 PM ^
No, I'm not surprised that there are plenty of drug USERS that have been successful (although, as I recall, too much ganja does produce some chemical changes in the brain over time that can rob a person's ambition).
I'm talking about someone who was a few credits away from a CMB degree from Michigan. This person decides, for the sake of a "couple hundred dollars profit" to cross that line and become a DEALER of hard drugs, complete with the arson. That's beyond stupid... it's literally "felony stupid."
In summary, I don't think I've met too many professional folks who haven't tried drugs (myself included). But I haven't met a single educated, successful, professional who has admitted to dealing hard drugs. *Big* difference.
August 10th, 2009 at 5:12 AM ^
fwiw, he is also 26.
August 10th, 2009 at 10:33 AM ^
FWIW, if you spend three years in the Navy after high school you're not starting on your degree until you're 21 and he's obviously not on a 15 credit schedule.
August 10th, 2009 at 12:12 AM ^
Burke wasn't an athlete.
August 9th, 2009 at 11:59 PM ^
We have to keep this on the down low. Don't want App State finding out about this.
August 10th, 2009 at 12:14 AM ^
Couple thoughts:
*Generally speaking, it sounds similar to the Jamal Lewis case when he was in Knoxville.
*How long has Reyes been on the team? I only know him as a walk on from last year who scored on a block punt vs Northwestern. I thought he was a senior. Sounds like he's known this Burke cat for a while.
*We all knew that if word got out about why Feagin got the boot, that it would not be pretty. So he tried to rig a cheap coke deal. Thats bad. Yet, I had worse scenarios flying around my brain.
*Has Feagin even been arrested for anything yet? I am not sure we're even going to be properly scored in the Fulmer Cup. When it rains, it pours I suppose.
*Manningham drug suspension 2007; Sears in 2007; Feagin last year. Clearly, we should be doing a square game on 2009 Wolverines on drugs.
August 10th, 2009 at 12:17 AM ^
Reyes is a fifth year senior
Reyes and Burke graduated from the same high school, it looks like about 4 years apart.
It does not appear like Feagin has been arrested or charged with anything. The initial investigation was over the arson.
August 10th, 2009 at 1:56 AM ^
but it's not Rich Rod's fault. Carr's players messed up too. Hell, I used to take bong hits with Mallett.
August 10th, 2009 at 9:13 AM ^
I always wondered how you spelled llello. Are you sure that's right?
August 10th, 2009 at 9:45 AM ^
I've always seen it as yayo
August 10th, 2009 at 10:01 AM ^
this, courtesy of non-spanish speakers.
August 10th, 2009 at 10:54 AM ^
Yo hablo espanol y yo cree que la palabra es "yayo."
HOWEVA, we could always watch Scarface with subtitles to determine the proper spelling if need be.
August 10th, 2009 at 12:47 PM ^
Chi Chi, Chi Chi get the yayo.
August 10th, 2009 at 11:13 AM ^
ahem, avatar!?!
August 10th, 2009 at 5:06 AM ^
Brian's main pic here proves that Miami Vice jumped the shark when they ditched the Black Ferrari for the fake White Ferrari after the first season.
The Black Ferrari was bad ass and much sweeter.
August 10th, 2009 at 8:05 AM ^
I thought he stole. Doing coke is probably a bit worse.
August 10th, 2009 at 8:08 AM ^
he stole the $600 because he never delivered the coke
August 10th, 2009 at 8:27 AM ^
Doing coke is indubitably stupid, but it is a crime where you are only hurting yourself (provided you are not stealing to get the money, etc.).
August 10th, 2009 at 10:04 AM ^
Actually it's not. See above.
August 10th, 2009 at 11:50 AM ^
Tell ya what. Why don't you head down to Colombia and tell the people there that Western civilization's collective coke habit is "only hurting ourselves"
August 10th, 2009 at 12:03 PM ^
Yeah, but what's going on in Columbia is a function of cocaine being illegal and still demanded by the market. If cocaine was legalized these violent cartels would cease to exist. The rise of violent cartels has everything to do with how we've responded to cocaine.
August 10th, 2009 at 1:09 PM ^
Because trade goods that are legal, like oil, don't produce violent, criminal cartels in less developed countries.
August 10th, 2009 at 1:42 PM ^
The goods themselves aren't the problem. What would make you think that?
August 10th, 2009 at 1:57 PM ^
That's what I mean. If your argument is that legalizing cocaine would do away with the violence and cartels, you're sorely mistaken. Any product worth a lot of money in a poorly developed country is going to cause a lot of violence and gang work.
August 10th, 2009 at 2:30 PM ^
Nobody is killing each other over Citgo and Petrobras though, or any other legal good in Latin America for that matter. Colombia, on the other hand, is in the middle of a 30+ year civil war. T revolutionary group in that conflict, FARC, is funded by cocaine. Yes, I think if cocaine could be legalized and regulated countries like Mexico and Colombia would have way fewer problems.
August 10th, 2009 at 2:41 PM ^
I'm with ya on the drug war and the problems it creates, but do you really believe nobody is killing each other over oil? Or was that specifically in regards to S. America?
August 10th, 2009 at 2:53 PM ^
Specifically with regards to Latin America. What happens in Africa is outside the scope of this conversation really, because African countries are generally much less developed and much more likely to have their entire economic/political structure built on the export of a single commodity. In other words, the governments are too fragile to even effectively regulate their legal goods. This isn't the case in Latin America.
August 10th, 2009 at 2:56 PM ^
I just wanted to clarify.
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