McMurphy Hints at Further Information Drop

Submitted by kevbo1 on

Brett McMurphy hinted this morning that he has additional information to reveal.  I imagine he plans on waiting for the outcome and decision of the BoT and President.  

https://www.saturdaydownsouth.com/sec-football/urban-meyer-ohio-state-buckeyes-brett-mcmurphy-investigation-troubling-aspect/

Arb lover

August 21st, 2018 at 10:47 AM ^

"What I find there to be very troubling is that Ohio State is using a verbal recap of their investigation so that nothing will be available via public records, I give credit to Maryland who's on record saying they will be transparent in their investigation" - @Brett_McMurphy

— Peter Burns (@PeterBurnsESPN) August 21, 2018

Technically speaking they are not in compliance if their meeting minutes don't include a detailed recap of what was stated verbally. 

Arb lover

August 21st, 2018 at 11:32 AM ^

Yes but in many states they are required to contain a brief synopsis of discussions. However you piqued my curiosity. From Ohio code 122.12(C):

The minutes of a regular or special meeting of any public body shall be promptly prepared, filed, and maintained and shall be open to public inspection. The minutes need only reflect the general subject matter of discussions in executive sessions authorized under division (G) or (J) of this section.

Possibly of more relevance it doesn't look like they can technically hold a closed door session if they are also required to post notice 24 hours in advance.

(C) All meetings of any public body are declared to be public meetings open to the public at all times.

ijohnb

August 21st, 2018 at 11:01 AM ^

Honestly, if he is playing it "like a chess match," his methods are starting to become a little bit uncomfortable.  If he has all of this information with legitimate sources, he should just release what he has.  I don't think that reporters should use information like this to make a prolonged spectacle of something.  The allegations are serious and should not be made into prolonged "reality TV."  To do so is to make himself part of the story instead of just reporting on it.  It is a different issue if he keeps coming across new allegations or info but if he is sitting on information for nothing more than his next "counter punch" that is getting a little sketchy.

Hold This L

August 21st, 2018 at 11:05 AM ^

As someone who worked at such a big company like ESPN, I think he knows when a story will hit hardest and how important public perception is. It could be possible that he was waiting to see the reaction by OSU and Meyer from his info. 

Salinger

August 21st, 2018 at 11:11 AM ^

If he's just sitting on something, then yes, I think that's kind of sleezy. It's possible though that his investigation has continued and as his cache on the matter has grown he's been able to convince more sources to come forward. Speculation on my part, but it would not be unheard of.

The story of Louis CK gained a lot of momentum after the MeToo movement took down Harvey W. This would not be that dissimilar, though it would be one continued thread. 

ijohnb

August 21st, 2018 at 11:34 AM ^

It depends.  That pre-supposes the investigation is a sham, and could be self-fulfilling.  Is it possible that he has information that the President and BOT do not?  Do we know that they knew about the existence of the pictures, the sex toys, etc., before he released that information.  Is it possible that Drake genuinely did not know about the staffer and Smith before that report?  I don't believe he was president at the time.  It is possible that McMurphy has information that could actually aid them in making the right determination as opposed to being able to smear them afterward by releasing information they had not uncovered?

Two sides there, I think.  Once again, is he reporting news or creating news.  That is a very fine line.

Blarvey

August 21st, 2018 at 12:27 PM ^

I agree but I think the story has changed from Zach Smith is scum to Urban Meyer is harboring scum and in dereliction of duty as an employee of a public university. For it to evolve further is not a stretch and if he has info that the board does not, I think that is pretty clearly a bad job done by the investigators. If it is outside of the main story, something like paying recruits or players then I agree that is outside the scope of the original focus and sitting on a vetted story like that does seem vindictive.

Gr1mlock

August 21st, 2018 at 12:48 PM ^

Other possibility (and admittedly, this is 100% speculation) - it's something extremely salacious that would be incredibly embarrassing and damaging to the person (lets say the bestiality joke from earlier).  He's passed the information onto the decision makers and is waiting to see what they do. If they do the right thing, he'll keep it under wraps because it's not necessarily a story the public NEEDS to know and would be incredibly damaging to the person in questions; if they don't, then the story goes public.  There is something to be said for the journalistic integrity/human empathy to not publicly shame someone when it's not strictly necessary.  No idea if this is true, but I can see it as a plausible possibility.  

turtleboy

August 21st, 2018 at 12:28 PM ^

I don't think it's sleazy or tabloid only because the guy would still be coaching there were it not for this reporting. Now the new story is the cover-up, which they actively did, and are continuing to do. His reporting has already influenced their decision making, they fired the p.o.s. assistant. If he hints at more info to come it can continue to influence their decision making, and maybe, just maybe, force their hand into not doing the wrong thing for once.

kevbo1

August 21st, 2018 at 11:44 AM ^

Several reasons to hold info back: prove dishonesty, fading affect bias (people tend to feel less strongly about something with the passage of time), obtains new leads that need confirmation.

It may seem like a dirty game, but sometimes you have to fight fire with fire.

canzior

August 21st, 2018 at 12:12 PM ^

Yeah, I think it would be great for cfb. If OSU does an investigation and then he drops more info that wasn't part of that investigation, it shows how much of a sham it really was. I think a lot of people feel like this will be lip service to bring Urban back, but can you imagine the posturing from OSU brass if that were to happen? He's cleared, back on the field Monday, time served suspension, and then McMurphy drops more info? I think he should do it, piece by piece.  Hell, drop a story every Thursday night during their season for all I care.

JTrain

August 21st, 2018 at 12:04 PM ^

I’m logging back in to down vote. Not because what you said doesn’t make sense but because that would take away from my major source of entertainment the last couple of weeks. 

LETS KEEP THIS PARTY ROLLIN’!

love me some McMurphy!!

DelhiWolverine

August 21st, 2018 at 11:35 AM ^

He already had the new job lined up but couldn’t start until his ESPN contract expired. 

But this has raised his profile with the average person for sure. 

He still generates more clicks and views if he staggers the information dump and I don’t put that past him. I think he, like many of us, doesn’t trust OSU to do the right thing and fire Urban, so he’s holding trump cards to play later if OSU decides to go the route of retention. 

MGoStrength

August 21st, 2018 at 10:53 AM ^

I think it looks much worse if OSU comes out with nothing major in it's findings but just gives Meyer like a one game suspension for not handling the situation well, but then as the season goes on and more and more stuff comes out against not just Meyer, but the whole investigative process that it continues to be an ongoing distraction and eventually by year's end Meyer gets canned.  

Mongo

August 21st, 2018 at 11:31 AM ^

Exactly, can you imagine the Pressers where Urban keeps getting asked about some new bombshell dropped by Courtney via McMurphy ?  I mean what else is in that toy closet ... for sure there is more.  She obviously was collecting phone regards along the way to someday destroy Zach's life and try to take down OSU with him. 

jmblue

August 21st, 2018 at 10:56 AM ^

So if he's reinstated (with or without suspension) and then McMurphy drops another bombshell, are they going to have to investigate Meyer again?

Perkis-Size Me

August 21st, 2018 at 11:10 AM ^

Except in that situation, Drake and/or the BoT would end up getting drawn into that second investigation and potentially go down with him. Depending on the severity of the findings, of course. 

So if they reinstated Meyer tomorrow and then McMurphy releases information the next day saying something like Meyer knew about what was going on between Smith and the staffer and did nothing about it, it would be a PR disaster for the school as a whole. It wouldn't just be Meyer going down, but Drake and the BoT would have to answer for their decision to keep him. And the media would crucify every single one of them. 

I guess the question that Drake/BoT have to ask themselves is if they feel confident that there is nothing else out there McMurphy can find that would damage the situation even further. If there is anything else out there that's really bad, and they opt to keep him anyway, the minute that all comes to light their they're all out of a job. 

Blue in PA

August 21st, 2018 at 10:58 AM ^

Again, if osu doesn't come down hard..... this is going to blow the fuck up in their face!

Let them punish meyer with 'time served' and then proof of more smith-nanigans leak out.... not only will they be forced to fire him with egg on their face, but the president will be on the hot seat too.

Hard to believe Michael Drake, Stanford alum with a pretty unstained reputation, would risk his integrity and credibility for urban meyer.  

I hear buckeye nation is organizing a vigil..... ball cuddlers and wife beaters UNITE!   

OH  O NO!

jamesjosephharbaugh

August 21st, 2018 at 11:50 AM ^

as much as i hate them, i respect meyer's chess plays here.  the statement that said he followed all the rules, the middle finger about accepting a suspension for PR, and pushing back now against a suspension because he still thinks he's clear.  well done.

Hold This L

August 21st, 2018 at 11:02 AM ^

Apparently an OSU spokesperson responded to the report from yesterday claiming Meyer was going to receive a suspension. He didn’t deny that it was inaccurate, only said that the board would meet and the president would make a decision. He could have at least said “we don’t know what the punishment will be”, but he didn’t. 

kevbo1

August 21st, 2018 at 11:02 AM ^

Like a true investigator, McMurphy is giving Meyer the opportunity to fess up to everything.  If he doesn't, the next bullet in the chamber goes off.

jpo

August 21st, 2018 at 11:09 AM ^

I disagree. If you have corroborated information that adds up to a compelling story, you publish it. That's journalism 101. Waiting to see what the other side does makes it look like a personal vendetta. If McMurphy has credible evidence of something he should report it, regardless of what OSU is doing. I think the "drip drip drip" approach passes no standards of professional journalism.

snarling wolverine

August 21st, 2018 at 11:17 AM ^

Journalists do, in fact, sit on stories on a regular basis, for various reasons.  

He may also be in the process of verifying the information he's received.  I would imagine that he did not know all of the information he now does three weeks ago.  People have probably come forward since then.

 

jpo

August 21st, 2018 at 11:35 AM ^

Like so much in all this, there isn't that much we actually know. I sure don't know what McMurphy knows, but if he hasn't corroborated his story, then it's bad form to suggest that more revelations are forthcoming. If he does have claims he can substantiate, he should publish them. I'll grant that he might not be for reasons I don't know, but his credibility will take a hit if it turns out he was sitting on stuff for maximum impact.