Desmond Howard said on GameDay that Cam Newton was “guilty until proven innocent.†Several columnists wrote that Newton should probably sit out against Chattanooga, just until more could come of the story. One writer for the Orlando Sentinel wrote that he was going to leave Newton off his Heisman ballot. I was a guest on 15 different radio shows over the weekend, and all 15 mentioned Newton and Reggie Bush in the same segment. Several hosts, both on and off the air, asked if I actually believed Newton when he said he was completely innocent. This was the topic that everyone wanted to talk about, and it’s now a storyline that’s going to be a major deal for the rest of the college football season in one way or another. And it all comes down to this ...Do you believe that Cam Newton is telling the truth? If you do, then there’s no question mark about the Heisman. If you believe him, you vote for him, if he’s your choice, and you don’t hesitate thinking that a Reggie Bush scenario might happen. But if you don’t believe him, or if you question his honesty, then to you the legitimacy of the entire 2010 college football season is at stake. Enraged Auburn fans asked me how I could’ve changed my tone about the story from the initial reaction following the ESPN piece, when I said that if all the allegations were true, again, if they were true, then Auburn was going to have to do some serious explaining and Newton was going to be considered guilty until he proved otherwise, to saying that I thought Newton and his dad were innocent. It’s simple; everyone had done exactly what they needed to do, said all the right things, and acted the exact right way they had to. To me, the story changed, and to me, considering all the garbage I know about how these things tend to work in the college football world, this passed the smell test … for now. I originally wrote that Auburn needed to get ahead of the controversy and deal with it by the next morning. And it did by coming out and emphatically denying any charges, taking steps to show that there was nothing different now from the investigation from this summer, and not hiding and ducking behind a slew of “no comment†statements. I was expecting double-talking spin control, and Auburn came up with something completely different. I believe the Auburn officials and head coach Gene Chizik when they say they’re extremely confident there was nothing wrong with the recruitment of Newton, because now, if they’re wrong, and that includes if there's some rogue booster out there who's a part of some sort of payment, they’re heads are on the chopping block. I believe the dad, Cecil Newton. Voluntarily turning over phone records, bank records, and e-mails doesn’t necessarily mean anything, though. Cheating is so rampant and done so well and so cloak and dagger that this could all be handled without even a whisper of evidence. However, I’m buying his side of the story because of the way he’s been so adamant of his family’s innocence, and especially his son’s. If he’s cheating, then he has really put himself, and his son, out there. Most importantly, I believe Cam Newton. There might be something going on here. There might be someone in this who’s doing something wrong, making some money, or capitalizing on Newton’s name, but I don’t believe that Cam is involved in any of it. I know, I know, I know, in a world of Mark McGwire, Reggie Bush, Barry Bonds, Lance Armstrong, Marion Jones, Rafael Palmeiro, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa, and others lying through their teeth, sometimes emphatically, and sometimes in front of Congress, I’m not supposed to be naïve enough to believe an athlete when he says he’s innocent. But with the way that Newton has plowed though all the adversity, and the way that he has stepped up and been up front about his past problems, either he’s lying and he’s just another scumbag, or he’s stepping up and saying everything pitch-perfect correctly while conducting himself with the utmost class and character. I believe the latter, but I’m more than prepared to jump ship and flip-flop in a heartbeat if something else of substance surfaces. I know that charisma and character aren’t the same thing, but Cam has handled himself with more maturity and dignity than anyone else involved in the story. Now, there had better not be 200K sitting in some third-party off-shore account somewhere waiting to start trickling out on January 11th, and I had better not be writing a story four years from now about how LaMichael James should probably have Newton’s Heisman and whether or not Auburn should be stripped of its national title. From the people in the biz that I’ve talked to and from all the commentary I’ve read and all the correspondence I’ve received, I’m getting the sense that almost everyone is apprehensive at best and totally disbelieving at worst. There are too many strange things involved, including the Urban Meyer angle, that I'll save for another time. There are too many sketchy storylines and too much smoke, and after the Reggie Bush situation, cheaters are getting tighter and do things even more under the radar than before. There’s also a chance that nothing actually happened involving the Newtons. I’ve heard every rumor possible over the last few days. I was told emphatically that there’s a shoe waiting to drop before the Iron Bowl, saving the best for just the right time. I was told emphatically that there’s nothing happening and that Newton’s dad chose Auburn simply because he thought it would be the best fit for his son. To be honest, my brain hurts, and I've decided to let this play itself out. There are too many moving parts that need to settle before the definitive story is finalized. But for now, I really hope I’m right and I’m reading Newton correctly. Purely as a fan, I really want him to be totally innocent and for all the great things he's doing this historic season to be for real. Purely as a college football writer, I really want one of these stories to finally turn out the right way. And to complete the schmaltzy cornball, I’d really like to believe an athlete again when he says he didn’t do anything wrong. Cam, I’m buying. Don’t let me down.
Clearly he was affected by your email, and you got through to him.
http://theauburner.com/petefiu.htmlJust do the link. Far easier to read it there than it would be for me to doctor it up for the same effect.
What happened to that site?
Yeah, really. Obviously the kids that ran it graduated and got real jobs. Wish they woulda passed the torch to another capable crew.I still check it on rare occasion when I've exhausted all other Auburn sites.
Fiutak is a believer fucktard. One step above Evans.He is a professional, not a hack like Thayer. He should know better that to spout off like that.He is not a believer, he felt the change in the wind and altered his course. He can EABOD.
Quote from: Lurking Tiger on November 08, 2010, 04:48:37 PMFiutak is a believer fucktard. One step above Evans.He is a professional, not a hack like Thayer. He should know better that to spout off like that.He is not a believer, he felt the change in the wind and altered his course. He can EABOD.Eat A Bowl Of Doo? Eat A Bag Of Doritos? Eat A Big Ole Dick? Wait, Eat A Bag Of Dicks
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