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Pat Dye Field => War Damn Eagle => Topic started by: Ogre on November 04, 2008, 09:51:56 AM
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Auburn Board of Trustees non-committal of future for football coach Tommy Tuberville
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
By EVAN WOODBERY
Sports Reporter
AUBURN — Members of Auburn's Board of Trustees aren't rushing to support embattled head football coach Tommy Tuberville.
The Press-Register called 13 trustees on Monday. Most declined to comment or did not return messages, while some offered general support for the team. None of the trustees joined fellow board member Paul Spina in expressing support for Tuberville beyond this season.
"Right now we just want to sup port our football team and support their efforts," said Byron Franklin, who was reached at his office in Birmingham Monday. "We just want to see them push through these last three games and get a win."
Auburn is 4-5 after losing Saturday to Ole Miss. The Tigers host Tennessee-Martin this weekend for homecoming before closing the season with games against Georgia and Alabama.
Spina, a Pelham developer who is president pro-tem of the board, said last week that he believes Tuberville should get an opportunity to correct the mistakes he made in 2008 and return for another season. Spina's comments prompted vague and non-committal statements about Tuberville's future from Auburn President Jay Gogue and Athletic Director Jay Jacobs.
No other trustee was willing to wade into the issue of Tuberville's future.
Earlon McWhorter, an Anniston businessman, acknowledged that Auburn fans are "not having a lot of fun right now," but said the decisions about Tuberville's future would come from Gogue and Jacobs.
"We put a policy in place that clearly states that the president is in charge of athletics," McWhorter said. "It's my intention to support whatever the president and the athletic director bring to us. As much as you read in the papers about trustees being involved in this, that isn't the case."
McWhorter and Franklin were involved in the effort to oust Tuberville in 2003.
Both trustees were on a now-infamous flight to meet with then-Louisville coach Bobby Petrino. Auburn closed the 2003 season with a win over Alabama, and many fans rallied to Tuberville's side when the plan to fire him was revealed.
Tuberville retained his job, then-President William Walker was forced to resign and Auburn's Board of Trustees disbanded its athletics committee and vowed to avoid improper meddling in athletics.
The board adopted a policy on intercollegiate athletics in 2004 that "delegates to the President of the University the full conduct and control of Auburn's athletics program."
"We put that policy in place unanimously," McWhorter said.
Tuberville is under contract through 2013 at an average salary of $3.3 million. The contract can be voided by a $6 million buyout clause, a large sum that would necessitate consultation with the board.
"I feel whatever decision (Gogue) makes, he will advise board members," McWhorter said. "We have $6 million, but we don't want to spend $6 million."
Prominent trustee Bobby Lowder, CEO of Colonial Bank, said through an assistant that he did not wish to comment on the football program. Auburn officials used Lowder's private jet when they made their clandestine trip to visit with Petrino in 2003.
Trustees Dwight Carlisle, Samuel Ginn, Charles McCrary, John C. Miller, Sarah Newton and Jimmy Rane did not return calls seeking comment.
Gaines Lanier of Lanett, who joined the board this summer, said questions should be directed to Gogue or Jacobs.
"This is the head coach, and that's the athletic director's role," he said.
Trustee Virginia Thompson, a marketing executive for East Alabama Medical Center in Opelika, said it would be inappropriate for her to speak for the board.
Trustee John Blackwell could not be reached. Gov. Bob Riley is officially president of the board. His press office did not return a message Monday.
You would think this dipshit would have learned his lesson from 2003. (http://www.al.com/auburnfootball/mobileregister/index.ssf?/base/sports/1225793791299790.xml&coll=3&thispage=1) That says to me "We've got the money to buy him out, but I hope we don't have to spend $6M to do it. Maybe I'm being cynical.
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I think you're being a little overly sensitive here. It's not as though Tuberville's buyout is a big secret. It's also not a secret that, if pressed, Auburn could pony up $6M.
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I think you're being a little overly sensitive here. It's not as though Tuberville's buyout is a big secret. It's also not a secret that, if pressed, Auburn could pony up $6M.
I'm just saying that fresh off of the SACS deal, it's not smart for any of our BOT to openly be discussing the future of our Head Coach....especially two of the JetGate participants.
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I'm just saying that fresh off of the SACS deal, it's not smart for any of our BOT to openly be discussing the future of our Head Coach....especially two of the JetGate participants.
I get that, but I think he covered himself enough with the statements regarding the President's authority to hire/fire.
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I smoked pot with one of the BOT members.
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I smoked pot with one of the BOT members.
Then why in the hell haven't you been keeping us in the loop, being an insider and all?
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Then why in the hell haven't you been keeping us in the loop, being an insider and all?
Cause he only gets good stuff when he shares the good stuff.
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I smoked pot with one of the BOT members.
Yeah, well I bet you didn't inhale. Pussy. :silence:
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Yeah, well I bet you didn't inhale. Pussy. :silence:
Well, that's true and.....okay, I've never had a blow job from anyone named Monica either.
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We did a pound of blow at the last trustee meeting.
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We did a pound of blow at the last trustee meeting.
Was that before or after the orgy?
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Let's consider the source -- and the agenda.
Evan Doucheberry is an Alabama alum and fan assigned to cover Auburn. Whether he admits it or not, he has a vested interest in stirring up shit. The cumlicker came to the MPR from the freaking Crimson White where he was a features writer.
http://cspa.columbia.edu/docs/contests-and-critiques/gold-circle-awards/recipients/2001-collegiate-circles.html (http://cspa.columbia.edu/docs/contests-and-critiques/gold-circle-awards/recipients/2001-collegiate-circles.html)
CM. Evan Woodbery, "Student leaves bible study behind," Crimson White,University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL
I have expressed my anger and frustration at the MPR for first hiring an Ole Miss fan to cover AU when Tuberville came and replacing him with an unabashed Alabama homer after AU got the jump on the Turds for the past few years. They don't care. Pathetic. I can tell you this, the Turd fans down here would not stand for an AU alum and former Plainsman writer to cover their shitty team.