Coach Cal Dirty?!? Say it ain't so!

[reinko]

Apparently, D. Rose, not wait that's too obvious, Derrick R. may have had gotten a major assist on the SAT...

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=4210798

And the Cats Pause crowd is oblivious

http://kentucky.rivals.com/showmsg.asp?fid=1383&tid=128661831&mid=128661831&sid=888&style=2

[CAINMUTINY]

Its a dirty business...... and its not like we took on a kid who was rumored to have had someone else take his ACT so he could become a partial qualifier? or wait we did. 

[texaswarrior74]

Interesting timing; they have known for months but just released the details.

http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2009/may/27/ncaa-alleges-major-violations-memphis-basketball-p/

[ecompt]

you can NEVER compare anything MU has done to what Calipari has done in his shady career. His awful graduation rate and his habit of buying automobiles for recruits put him high on a list of all-time coaching sleazebags. You watch, Kentucky will be on probation inside of four years.

[mviale]

Any surprise here.  He was a major proponent of no child left behind even if they couldnt read.

[ChicosBailBonds]

http://mbd.scout.com/mb.aspx?s=48&f=1030&t=4367984

[NCMUFan]

Guess it's catch me if you can.

[Guy Fieri's Dad]

Big surprise...every school that guy goes to runs into some trouble with the NCAA.

[reinko]

It is astounding, I mean not really, UK fans would murder their children for another championship, but just how bitter they are at, not at Cal, but at the media, at Memphis, at D. Rose, at Pat Forde, at UMass.  But very few posters over on their boards could care less the slime this guy carries around with them.

Over at Cats Pause, one poster seriously argued that at Memphis, Cal was allowed to have women beaters and someone who was in a drive by shooting, but the UK administration will never let that happen here.

And they are openly mocking Memphis, "well, sucks for you guys, he is our coach now. enjoy your sanctions" 

Cal, might hold the distinction of the only coach in NCAA history to have 2 FF vacated because of serious sanctions, but in their dream world that could never happen at UK.  *Cough 1989 Cough*

[VegasWarrior77]

Calapari is this generation's Jerry Tarkanian!

[ecompt]

The difference is, Tark was a decent guy and a great defensive coach. Cal is a skunk of a huiman being.

[muarmy81]

Everyone talks about how dirty he is but he always seems to slime his way out of the situation.  I think the big issue here will be did the "program" and therefore "Calipari" know about the bogus test D Rose took?  unless they have an email or some Blagoyevich type phone tap I'm sure Calipari will slither away to his next NCAA run in.

[Lennys Tap]

Does this mean that Cal (like Kelvin Sampson) and TC are no longer BFFs?

[bma725]

I think my favorite part of the story comes from the Sun Times courtesy of Zagoria:

http://www.zagsblog.com/2009/05/28/did-derrick-rose-cheat-on-his-sat/#more-17087

'' [The NCAA] thinks that [former Simeon player Kevin Johnson] took [the SAT test] for him," Luther Topps, who coached Rose's club basketball team with Derrick's brother Reggie, told the newspaper.

I can understanding cheating on the SAT for a top player with academic issues, I can even understand having someone else take the test for you.  But I can't comprehend the thought process that goes into having Kevin f'n Johnson take the test for you.  Don't you want to improve your chances at qualifying?

(For those who don't recall the name, Kevin Johnson played at UWM last year before transferring to Mineral Area Junior College....and then ending up in jail). 

[MilTown]

I'm a bit confused on the allegations. Are they saying that Memphis and Calipari knew about the bogus test? Do they believe that Calipari helped to hatch the plan or was involved with the plan with a payoff to the test monitors or something. If neither are true, and it was strictly the players actions, how can the Memphis be punished for relying on test scores provided to them by the national testing agency?

I'm not exactly sure how they administer the test these days, but back when I took it, it would have been a breeze to have another student take the exam. Risky yes, but not too difficult to accomplish. Who has taken the test recently? What is the procedure? If they have cameras or digital photo records this should be a cut and dry case.

[reinko]

I'm a bit confused on the allegations. Are they saying that Memphis and Calipari knew about the bogus test? Do they believe that Calipari helped to hatch the plan or was involved with the plan with a payoff to the test monitors or something. If neither are true, and it was strictly the players actions, how can the Memphis be punished for relying on test scores provided to them by the national testing agency?

I'm not exactly sure how they administer the test these days, but back when I took it, it would have been a breeze to have another student take the exam. Risky yes, but not too difficult to accomplish. Who has taken the test recently? What is the procedure? If they have cameras or digital photo records this should be a cut and dry case.

The SAT is run by the Collegeboard, and you sign up for the test via their website.  You do get to choose the location you take it, so I imagine if you were going to have someone else take it for you, you want to make sure you go to location where no one will know who you are.  Maybe 100 miles out or something.  When you show up to the testing site, you need to show your SAT Admission ticket, SS Card, and a picture ID.  So really, not that hard to get around the system.

[GGGG]

I'm a bit confused on the allegations. Are they saying that Memphis and Calipari knew about the bogus test? Do they believe that Calipari helped to hatch the plan or was involved with the plan with a payoff to the test monitors or something. If neither are true, and it was strictly the players actions, how can the Memphis be punished for relying on test scores provided to them by the national testing agency?

They played with an illegal player.  They would have to forfeit their games, but face no further significant punishment.  Unless they knew about it or hatched it, then not only Memphis but Calipari could face sanctions.

[MilTown]

True, they may have played with an illegal player, but based on their due dilligence, (verifying test scores directly with the national testing agency), the player was eligible at the time the games were played. I think it's unfair to take games away under that situation, assuming Memphis or Calipari knew nothing.

I understand how the NCAA works, but it just seems unfair on a few levels. This is also happening to Florida State, correct? They want to take away a number of Bowden's victories. Joe Paterno voiced his displeasure on the NCAA's actions.

[MR.HAYWARD]

i understand the rules and if nothing else the severity that needs to be doled out to avoid further occurences.  but taking away 38 victories seems harsh...heck with that BS schedule and conference Memphis could have won 35 games with derrick roses grandma on the team.

[Pakuni]

Reason #312 the NBA rule banning high schoolers from entering the draft is pure folly.
Derrick Rose had no business in college. Didn't want to go to college. Had no need to go to college. Probably didn't benefit from going to college. Likely didn't even attend classes after January, and almost certainly left campus after his last game.
Yet the silly NBA essentially required him to go to college, mostly for the benefit of the NCAA and people who seem to believe kids turning pro after high school is a sign of the apocalypse ... except in baseball, hockey, tennis, soccer and golf.

[lab_warrior]

I guess what makes me incredulous, is that no one really is going to be punished here at all.  Memphis gets off the hook for being forthcoming, Calipari is at another school, apparently that's some sort of "sanctuary", and Rose is earning his millions in the NBA.

[PuertoRicanNightmare]

Its a dirty business...... and its not like we took on a kid who was rumored to have had someone else take his ACT so he could become a partial qualifier? or wait we did. 

Can you please elaborate on this? That's the first I've heard. If you don't want to name names on the board, can you please send me a PM? That is news to me.

[GGGG]

i understand the rules and if nothing else the severity that needs to be doled out to avoid further occurences.  but taking away 38 victories seems harsh...heck with that BS schedule and conference Memphis could have won 35 games with derrick roses grandma on the team.

I think retroactively taking away victories is a relatively meaningless penalty when compared scholarship and travel restrictions.  I mean, Memphis fans still got the joy from the season, went to the Final Four, etc.  Erasing the victories takes down those banners, but it doesn't take away the joy of the moment.

[lurch91]

True, they may have played with an illegal player, but based on their due dilligence, (verifying test scores directly with the national testing agency), the player was eligible at the time the games were played. I think it's unfair to take games away under that situation, assuming Memphis or Calipari knew nothing.

I understand how the NCAA works, but it just seems unfair on a few levels. This is also happening to Florida State, correct? They want to take away a number of Bowden's victories. Joe Paterno voiced his displeasure on the NCAA's actions.

The question is, how do you enforce this with players that are one and done?  D. Rose is the one to blame, but because of his one year at Memphis, he got great exposure and was an NBA lottery pick.  How can you reprimand him now?  

Is it fair to punish Memphis or Calipari?  If innocent, they're the ones that were taken advantage of.  So the NCAA wants to punish the innocent because ...  ... they should have known that D. Rose was too dumb to qualify?????  Doesn't the NCAA Clearinghouse review all these cases to ensure that all players meet the qualifications (don't we all know this from the Hayward and Mbakwe cases)?  Shouldn't the NCAA make sure the NCAA Clearinghouse is doing it's job?

[The Lens]

Reason #312 the NBA rule banning high schoolers from entering the draft is pure folly.
Derrick Rose had no business in college. Didn't want to go to college. Had no need to go to college. Probably didn't benefit from going to college. Likely didn't even attend classes after January, and almost certainly left campus after his last game.
Yet the silly NBA essentially required him to go to college, mostly for the benefit of the NCAA and people who seem to believe kids turning pro after high school is a sign of the apocalypse ... except in baseball, hockey, tennis, soccer and golf.

Thank you. 

If Derrick Rose grew up in Winnetka, took his amazing athletic gifts to the sport of tennis he would have been in Florida training at an IMG academy at age 13.  But since his neighborhood favored hoops, he was forced to jump through ridiculous hoops, no pun intended to get to the professional level of his sport.

I wish the NBA would adopt the MLB rules.  If you want to go pro, go.  If you go to college you're there for 3 years.  You make the call.