NYT: NCAA looking into Eric Bledsoe recruitment

[Steak Snabler]

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/29/sports/ncaabasketball/29recruit.html?hp

¶Brenda Axle, the landlord for the house where Bledsoe and his mother moved for his senior year of high school, said that Bledsoe’s high school coach paid her at least three months’ rent, or $1,200. By moving there, Bledsoe was eligible to play for Parker, which he led to the Alabama Class 5A title game. Maurice Ford, the coach, denied paying the money.

¶A copy of Bledsoe’s high school transcript from his first three years reveals that it would have taken an improbable academic makeover — a jump from about a 1.9 grade point average in core courses to just under a 2.5 during his senior year — for Bledsoe to achieve minimum N.C.A.A. standards to qualify for a scholarship.

¶A college coach who recruited Bledsoe said that Ford explicitly told his coaching staff that he needed a specific amount of money to let Bledsoe sign with that university. The coach, who did not want to be named out of fear of repercussions when recruiting in Birmingham, said Ford told him and his staff that he was asking for money because he was helping pay rent for Bledsoe and his mother. Ford denied this, saying, “I don’t prostitute my kids.”

Obviously, there always seems to be smoke around Calipari, but anyone who knows anything about inner-city Birmingham basketball (and Maurice Ford in particular) shouldn't really be shocked, either.

I remember Alabama recruited a Parker kid named Walter Sharpe a few years ago. Then-coach Mark Gottfried made a huge public to-do about announcing they were no longer recruiting Sharpe, which you rarely see college coaches do.

Turns out Ford had asked for money ($10,000, I think) to steer Sharpe to Alabama. He wound up signing with Mississippi State, then later transferred to UAB, in between suffering minor gunshot wounds on the streets of Birmingham.

 

[D-3 Fan]

UK didn't care about ensuring themselves of any possible trouble when they hired Cal.

They just wanted to wipe their hands of Billy Clyde and win championships.

 

[Mizzougrad96]

Any list of the dirtiest coaches in the country in the last 20 years should start with Calipari.

I may be forgetting someone, but I think he's the dirtiest since Tarkanian retired.

 

[slappy4428]

Maurice Ford is a unique individual...
He's still steamed that Bledsoe didn't win Mr. Basketball. My response was and is, "Win the state title and it would have been a moot point."
Ford also left Parker after the 2008-09 season to go coach in Huntsville; he was laid off a couple of weeks ago because he didn't have tenure and the district cut teaching positions.

 

[Crash]

The interesting side to this is that Ford apparently didn't get what he wanted from Kentucky, because he was noticeably disappointed when Bledsoe committed.

His quote about Bledsoe playing with John Wall: "Like I told Coach Calipari, I can't see them playing together," Ford said. "He said they can, but they both play with the ball in their hands. I just don't see it getting done. ... Me personally, I think he would've blossomed better at Memphis or Cincinnati, where he could walk in and be the point guard from Day One. ... I might take another high school job, but it won't be in Kentucky. I'm not moving to Kentucky."

And later:

“Eric is there. That’s his decision. Ain’t nothing I can do about it.”

 

[dog428]

So, wait, you're telling me a star basketball player might have received improper benefits while in middle/high school? Noooooooo. Next thing you know, I'll find out he played AAU ball, too.

For God's sakes, I'd like to see one Eric Bledsoe who isn't receiving something. Bledsoe, Mayo, Wall, the half-dozen stars this year and next -- they're all getting **** and have been for years. For some, it's free clothes and paid trips to nice tournaments and camps. Some get rent money. Some get car money.

I hate to keep defending Calipari, but sonofabitch, how is this his fault, especially if he didn't slide anyone anything? If we paint him as the villain based solely on the evidence presented, that's a pretty big mountain of **** that college coaches are now responsible for: every player on the team, all the family members and friends of that player, everything that player might have done prior to signing with you, the academic standing of that player before and after he joins up.

At a point, we should probably at least consider the system in place. Because it's absurd to continue operating this way -- cherry picking a handful of players to investigate and everyone acting all surprised by what's uncovered.

To me, if no one is accusing the college coach of paying the player to attend or doing anything else against the rules to attract that player, I see no problems.

 

[slappy4428]

So, wait, you're telling me a star basketball player might have received improper benefits while in middle/high school? Noooooooo. Next thing you know, I'll find out he played AAU ball, too.

For God's sakes, I'd like to see one Eric Bledsoe who isn't receiving something. Bledsoe, Mayo, Wall, the half-dozen stars this year and next -- they're all getting **** and have been for years. For some, it's free clothes and paid trips to nice tournaments and camps. Some get rent money. Some get car money.

I hate to keep defending Calipari, but sonofabitch, how is this his fault, especially if he didn't slide anyone anything? If we paint him as the villain based solely on the evidence presented, that's a pretty big mountain of **** that college coaches are now responsible for: every player on the team, all the family members and friends of that player, everything that player might have done prior to signing with you, the academic standing of that player before and after he joins up.

At a point, we should probably at least consider the system in place. Because it's absurd to continue operating this way -- cherry picking a handful of players to investigate and everyone acting all surprised by what's uncovered.

To me, if no one is accusing the college coach of paying the player to attend or doing anything else against the rules to attract that player, I see no problems.

In theory, nothing is Cal's fault.
The admission's thing is on Kentucky; the zoning issue is on the AHSAA and Birmingham schools, which has a city AD who would ****up the proverbial wet dream; the money issue is on Maurice Ford, who isn't the cleanest coach I've ever met.
The snowball is that he found a talented, but dirty player, and circumstances escalated to Kentucky getting a player who jumped a half a grade point in his final year in order to play at one of the nation's finest university's -- one that belongs in the SEC and coached by a gangster at two levels, high school and college.

 

[TigerVols]

So I can only assume the anonymous coach who dropped a dime on Calipari is clad in an orange blazer twice a year.

 

[D-3 Fan]

Dog, it still happened on Cal's watch, no matter how you look at it and if he had no involvement.

**** always happens when he's around.

Guilt by association.

 

[Stoney]

So, wait, you're telling me a star basketball player might have received improper benefits while in middle/high school? Noooooooo. Next thing you know, I'll find out he played AAU ball, too.

This isn't free T-shirts, shoes or pizzas at issue here. Instead it's a coach (who apparently has a notorious reputation) paying the monthly rent for the superstar who just moved into his district to play his senior season for him. That certainly gives the impression that the money was meant to buy his basketball services. That type of "improper benefit" cannot be said about nearly any HS prospect.

As for the Calipari connection, there is no direct one. As usual, he's near the **** but not touching it.

But I'd say the Kentucky admissions/compliance people sure have some questions to answer for not red flagging this. Especially when you consider the timing, with Bledsoe's admission coinciding with the Rose scandal blowing up, you'd think UK would've been extra cautious to make sure there were no time bombs in Calipari's first UK class. And sounds like they should've seen bomb clues aplenty:

A kid who had a terrible academic record and looked to have little to no hope of qualifying at the end of his junior year transfers to another public school for his senior year where miraculously raises his cumulative GPA nearly a point in one year, just enough to become eligible. According to an ESPN piece I just read, he'd never had an A before he transferred schools, but soon was getting As in Algebra 2 and Algebra 3 (apparently taken at the same time) online, and had a D in biology from his prior school changed to an A through an online course.

A kid who's never had an A in his life is suddenly pulling them down in advanced algebra classes right after changing schools to play for Maurice Ford? That didn't trigger any alarms at UK?

 

[Sam Mills 51]

Dog, it still happened on Cal's watch, no matter how you look at it and if he had no involvement.

**** always happens when he's around.

Guilt by association.

Dog, at some point it's not a coincidence.

If even a fraction of the crap that swirled around Calipari sticks to him, he's being ignorant of the NCAA guidelines. And Lexington had to have known this when it hired him, but Mitch Barnhart had to have someone to march out there that the fanbase believed in after the Billy Gillispie disaster.

Heh ... Cal and Kentucky thoroughly deserve one another.

 

[Ben_Hecht]

So, wait, you're telling me a star basketball player might have received improper benefits while in middle/high school? Noooooooo. Next thing you know, I'll find out he played AAU ball, too.

This isn't free T-shirts, shoes or pizzas at issue here. Instead it's a coach (who apparently has a notorious reputation) paying the monthly rent for the superstar who just moved into his district to play his senior season for him. That certainly gives the impression that the money was meant to buy his basketball services. That type of "improper benefit" cannot be said about nearly any HS prospect.

As for the Calipari connection, there is no direct one. As usual, he's near the **** but not touching it.

Of course. Many have learned the techniques which organized crime uses so well.

 

[Sam Mills 51]

So, wait, you're telling me a star basketball player might have received improper benefits while in middle/high school? Noooooooo. Next thing you know, I'll find out he played AAU ball, too.

This isn't free T-shirts, shoes or pizzas at issue here. Instead it's a coach (who apparently has a notorious reputation) paying the monthly rent for the superstar who just moved into his district to play his senior season for him. That certainly gives the impression that the money was meant to buy his basketball services. That type of "improper benefit" cannot be said about nearly any HS prospect.

As for the Calipari connection, there is no direct one. As usual, he's near the **** but not touching it.

Of course. Many have learned the techniques which organized crime uses so well.

The NCAA and IOC have how-to videos if one needs more help.

 

[Stoney]

http://www.al.com/sports/index.ssf/2010/09/records_differed_on_bledsoes_p.html

An update to the Bledsoe story. Apparently the miraculous advanced algebra As on his final transcript don't match the grades reported on the actual grade reports for those classes.

 

[TrooperBari]

Any list of the dirtiest coaches in the country in the last 20 years should start with Calipari.

I may be forgetting someone, but I think he's the dirtiest since Tarkanian retired.

Dave Bliss, perhaps?

 

[Crash]

http://www.al.com/sports/index.ssf/2010/09/records_differed_on_bledsoes_p.html

An update to the Bledsoe story. Apparently the miraculous advanced algebra As on his final transcript don't match the grades reported on the actual grade reports for those classes.

Two things:

1) This story, and the lack of any follow-up from anything else in the original Thamel story, makes it look like Kentucky is in the clear. If the Darrell Arthur case is any indication, the standard is whether Bledsoe or Kentucky "should have or could have known" about the discrepancy. It's going to be hard to prove Kentucky should have known about Bledsoe's night school progress reports, which aren't in any way connected to the college application or admissions process.

2) Again, using the Arthur case, this is likely going away. If Bledsoe had a C average on the progress reports but his grade was changed to an A, that likely wasn't going to affect his standing for college unless the A made up for other bad grades, thus moving his GPA up enough to qualify. Arthur's grades were changed, but the NCAA ruled in his (and Kansas') favor using two criteria: A) that he didn't know about it, and B) that it made no difference in his eligibility. On the surface, this looks to be a pretty similar case.

The Birmingham schools report is due next week, I believe. I guess that's when we find out if the NCAA has to do any investigating.

 

[Hokie_pokie]

I'm probably gonna get killed for this post, but it's been on my mind for a while, so here goes:

* Kudos to Ford, the HS coach. As others have noted in this thread, big-time basketball players have had luxury items -- cars and women and God-knows-what-else -- purchased for them for as long as most of us can remember. Even if Ford paid Bledsoe's rent specifically to get a star player on his team, I say that is mitigated by the fact that he was helping a homeless kid and his mother get off the streets. I don't care about his motives. I'd do the same thing for the homeless kids my wife teaches if I could afford it, rules be damned.

* Kudos to whoever tweaked Bledsoe's grades to get him eligible to play college basketball. At some point it must have become painfully obvious that the only way this kid would have a chance to make a better life for himself (and his mother) was by making it to the NBA. Considering his background, Bledsoe most likely wasn't going to be a Rhodes Scholar, but with the current system in place, his only real option for maximizing his exposure to NBA scouts was to play at least one year for a high-profile college program. Who would it have helped for Bledsoe to be declared ineligible? How do you protect the integrity of a system that has none, considering the vast numbers of big-time football and basketball players who are admitted to college with inferior academic records every year?

Kudos to Calipari for signing Bledsoe and putting him in a system where he could shine alongside other gifted young players. Whatever you think of his ethics, Calipari is a realist and he knows how to work the margins. Along the way, he's helped a bunch of kids who were never going to become serious students land multimillion-dollar NBA contracts. IF MANAGED PROPERLY, this money can change these kids' lives for the better.

In closing, I will acknowledge the many sad stories of kids who chased NBA millions only to be injured or undrafted. But for a lot of kids, it's the only chance they've got. And until the NBA and NCAA get together (not holding my breath) to form a real (not NBDL) minor-league basketball system, they need to get into college one way or another.

 

[Steak Snabler]

Outing alert! hokie pokie is Leann Tuohy ...

 

[Ace]

I'm probably gonna get killed for this post, but it's been on my mind for a while, so here goes:

* Kudos to Ford, the HS coach. As others have noted in this thread, big-time basketball players have had luxury items -- cars and women and God-knows-what-else -- purchased for them for as long as most of us can remember. Even if Ford paid Bledsoe's rent specifically to get a star player on his team, I say that is mitigated by the fact that he was helping a homeless kid and his mother get off the streets. I don't care about his motives. I'd do the same thing for the homeless kids my wife teaches if I could afford it, rules be damned.

* Kudos to whoever tweaked Bledsoe's grades to get him eligible to play college basketball. At some point it must have become painfully obvious that the only way this kid would have a chance to make a better life for himself (and his mother) was by making it to the NBA. Considering his background, Bledsoe most likely wasn't going to be a Rhodes Scholar, but with the current system in place, his only real option for maximizing his exposure to NBA scouts was to play at least one year for a high-profile college program. Who would it have helped for Bledsoe to be declared ineligible? How do you protect the integrity of a system that has none, considering the vast numbers of big-time football and basketball players who are admitted to college with inferior academic records every year?

Kudos to Calipari for signing Bledsoe and putting him in a system where he could shine alongside other gifted young players. Whatever you think of his ethics, Calipari is a realist and he knows how to work the margins. Along the way, he's helped a bunch of kids who were never going to become serious students land multimillion-dollar NBA contracts. IF MANAGED PROPERLY, this money can change these kids' lives for the better.

In closing, I will acknowledge the many sad stories of kids who chased NBA millions only to be injured or undrafted. But for a lot of kids, it's the only chance they've got. And until the NBA and NCAA get together (not holding my breath) to form a real (not NBDL) minor-league basketball system, they need to get into college one way or another.

Well, that's one way to look at it, Hokie.

 

[slappy4428]

I'm probably gonna get killed for this post, but it's been on my mind for a while, so here goes:

* Kudos to Ford, the HS coach. As others have noted in this thread, big-time basketball players have had luxury items -- cars and women and God-knows-what-else -- purchased for them for as long as most of us can remember. Even if Ford paid Bledsoe's rent specifically to get a star player on his team, I say that is mitigated by the fact that he was helping a homeless kid and his mother get off the streets. I don't care about his motives. I'd do the same thing for the homeless kids my wife teaches if I could afford it, rules be damned.

* Kudos to whoever tweaked Bledsoe's grades to get him eligible to play college basketball. At some point it must have become painfully obvious that the only way this kid would have a chance to make a better life for himself (and his mother) was by making it to the NBA. Considering his background, Bledsoe most likely wasn't going to be a Rhodes Scholar, but with the current system in place, his only real option for maximizing his exposure to NBA scouts was to play at least one year for a high-profile college program. Who would it have helped for Bledsoe to be declared ineligible? How do you protect the integrity of a system that has none, considering the vast numbers of big-time football and basketball players who are admitted to college with inferior academic records every year?

Kudos to Calipari for signing Bledsoe and putting him in a system where he could shine alongside other gifted young players. Whatever you think of his ethics, Calipari is a realist and he knows how to work the margins. Along the way, he's helped a bunch of kids who were never going to become serious students land multimillion-dollar NBA contracts. IF MANAGED PROPERLY, this money can change these kids' lives for the better.

In closing, I will acknowledge the many sad stories of kids who chased NBA millions only to be injured or undrafted. But for a lot of kids, it's the only chance they've got. And until the NBA and NCAA get together (not holding my breath) to form a real (not NBDL) minor-league basketball system, they need to get into college one way or another.

You might be the only person to say kudos to Maurice Ford. Ever. And for good reason.
He didn't pay rent to help out a needy student, he did it to make sure an athlete played for him. Kudos would have been paying for him and Bledsoe playing for the school he should have in the first place.
Bledsoe had the grades to play college basketball, he didn't have the grades to play at an SEC school. He would have been a Juco player, then gone to a bigger school. He was helped in the hopes Bledsoe would make it big and pay him back -- whoever him was and I have a pretty good idea.
Birmingham City Schools are a joke.