Why I won't pull for the SEC in the BCSNCG
I think that Cam Newton is, without question, one of the best athletes to play college football in the last 25 years. If the Heisman had nothing to do with character and integrity, he should win it by the biggest margin ever. However...
"I didn't know the laptop was stolen."
"I didn't know my father was shopping me."
"God is on my side... "
Yes, apparently if you cheat on college exams, take zero accountability for stealing or purchasing a stolen laptop, turn your iPod on while daddy sells your talents to the highest bidder, and act like the most absurdly arrogant and entitled douche bag to ever grace Jordan-Hare...
Then God looks fondly upon you.
Aside from the NCAA and SEC choosing money over ethics, let's remember too that Auburn has a history of pay-for-play. As much as AU fans have spent the last three decades disputing the number of titles Alabama has won (btw, I too disagree with "13"), they forget their
only title... in 1957... would've never been granted to them using today's standards. That '57 team was on probation, and didn't play in a bowl game. Why?
Because Auburn got caught in a pay-for-play scheme.
Auburn leads the SEC, and most other conferences for that matter, in the number of times an institution has been put on probation by the NCAA with
7. Of course, their only defense is to say that the players involved were pathetic thugs who were extorting
them, and oh, btw... "Alabama does it too."
In Auburn, it always comes down to the University of Alabama.
Baseball players like McGuire said, "I didn't do anything wrong," and Marion Jones blasted the media for "digging for something that isn't there." Meanwhile, we the public knew something was amiss. So, when AU goes from barely finishing in the top 25 in recruiting several years in a row to a remarkable top 5 finish... people start to get curious. What drew players like Dyer and Newton to the Plains? Was it their head coach's 13-24 record? Was it their winning tradition and multiple titles?
Or... was "the money too much?"
Bobby Lowder is under investigation and Colonial Bank has folded. Where is AU in recruiting right now?
In the top 25... barely.
Wait... even with a 13-0 team, a Heisman-winner, and a shot at a BCS title?
Right.
So... let's get this clear: I am loyal to the SEC. I love
my conference. Period. However, Commissioner Slive has taken the following stance:
An exhaustive NCAA inquiry of several seconds has found that while rules were clearly violated... none were broken. Hence, Cam's ineligibility has resulted in the following punishment: He is eligible again. But, I wish to make clear: These actions are unacceptable. There is no place for them in intercollegiate athletics... except at Auburn.
If Auburn wins in Glendale, it will only bring the SEC shame in the long run. A lot of shame. Auburn fans don't care, and I can almost understand their defensiveness. They want a title... even if it's vacated later. They'll just blame their inevitable undoing on the University of Alabama. Like always.
Homers like h0other will wipe the "Cammy-Cam Juice" from their chins, and continue on with an even bigger chip on their shoulders.
If I'm angry at my own team, it's because they choked last week in doing the league a huge favor. So now, the majority of the rest of the country will be hoping the Oregon Quack Attack can somehow spare us the agony of having the SEC dragged through the mud at a later date.
And I count myself amongst that group. So, as much as it pains me to say it...
Go Ducks? :dunno:
