Go Fiutak Yourself, Fiutak

[Townhallsavoy]

Fox Sport's Pete Fiutak

11-4-2010

The following is one of the first reactions published hours after the MSU/Newton story first broke. Fiutak later published a highly edited version - he removed the death penalty references and added a few qualifiers. Note that after the Miami scandal broke (you know, a scandal of worse offenses and evidence and whatnot), he was quick to point out that the death penalty was NOT an option at all. Now that the NCAA has officially cleared Auburn of wrongdoing and ended the investigation, he still maintains that Auburn was deserving of punishment. They want blood.

Auburn, take care of this. Immediately.

Auburn, this is on you. This isn't a court of law, and no, you're not innocent until proven guilty. If the story is true and a representative for Cameron Newton demanded $200,000 from Mississippi State for the star quarterback to sign on the dotted line out of junior college, then two plus two equals four and you are dead meat unless you take the lead and come up with answers. Right now.

Actually, you're dead meat anyway. Unless Mississippi State representatives are lying their tails off -- and if that's true then they're dead in the water and heads will roll in Starkville -- then Auburn, your football program is entering very scary territory.

Of course, Auburn is going to demand that a smoking gun turns up before firing anyone, and because it's the SEC, and because it's the South, and because it's football, and because it involves the Heisman favorite, and because it involves the national championship, there's going to be a lot of talking, perhaps a committee will be formed that talks about an investigation, and blah, blah, blah.

There's no time for that.

Auburn, your reputation as an academic institution, which is what you allegedly are, and your credibility as a university is on the line here. On the mere suspicion of impropriety, you have to suspend Newton. Yes, your prize JUCO transfer, who left Florida after getting arrested on three felony counts relating to a stolen laptop computer, can't wear an Auburn uniform until more of the story is uncovered. (And Florida, you had better get working on your story about how you got Newton to come to Gainesville in the first place.)

Again, this isn't a court of law. He's guilty until he proves his innocence on this one since this goes beyond a message-board rumor or some rumblings from insiders. Do you really think Mississippi State officials would put their neck on this type of a chopping block on a mere allegation or in an attempt at gamesmanship? Of course not.

No, Auburn coach Gene Chizik shouldn't be fired right now without any investigation, and Newton doesn't have to be booted off the team yet, but neither one should be allowed to wear the Auburn colors for the foreseeable future. They can't as long there's any question whatsoever over if they're dirty or not.

Auburn, you have to be proactive here to the nth degree. It's up to you to tell us what happened, because if it's the NCAA that ends up doing the legwork and it, or some news organization finds out that someone in your program paid to have Newton come in and play quarterback, you're going to become very familiar with three letters. S-M-U.

Don't worry right now about the 2010 dream season that's about to go up in a puff of smoke, and the Heisman race should be the furthest thing from your mind. Your football program and your national reputation are at stake here. It's up to you to grill Chizik and the assistants, and put Newton under a hot lamp, and demand to know the truth, and then you get to the bottom of this and act by 9 a.m. Friday morning. You find out how Newton ended up at your program and you connect the dots yourself. Not tomorrow, not after breakfast. Now. Because if you don't, and if you try to hem, haw, and wait for the process to play itself out, and it turns out he got paid to play for the Tigers, you are completely and totally fried -- as in Death Penalty time. This is that big.

This isn't former USC Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush going rogue and taking some coin from a marketing company. This isn't Alabama's Marcell Dareus getting jiggy with it at a party thrown by an agent. This isn't Georgia's A.J. Green selling a jersey. This isn't North Carolina players sticking around for an extra year, but making it worth their while by getting involved with agents.

If this is true, this is someone paying a player to come play football at Auburn University. This is as bad as it gets. This hits the core of collegiate athletics, and the NCAA isn't going to take it lightly in any way.

From a practical sense, Auburn doesn't need Newton or Chizik on Saturday to beat Chattanooga. They should both sit out and give this time to breathe, if for no other reason than to show that the university is on the case and is more than just a little concerned. The key right now is to not say or do anything that might seem like you're going to sweep this ...

"We have been made aware of the allegation," said Auburn media relations director Kirk Sampson. "Cam Newton is eligible to play football at Auburn."

S- M-U.

http://theauburner.com/fiutakcam.html

[Tiger Wench]

That was his post that I went fucking postal on him about.  The thread is on here somewhere...

[Jumbo]

Fuck that stupid son of a bitch.

[AUJarhead]

His response to the NCAA Letter from yesterday:

http://cfn.scout.com/2/1116780.html

E-mail Pete Fiutak

Not … the … point.

First of all, I can’t keep stressing this enough; you can’t prove that someone got a bag of cash. You can’t prove a $100 handshake. The NCAA, by saying it couldn’t find any violations, basically couldn’t find a paper trail, and it gave up. Remember, this wasn’t a criminal investigation; just because the NCAA didn’t find anything doesn’t necessarily mean that nothing happened. The NCAA doesn’t have subpoena power, and no, you’re not committing perjury if you lie in an investigation.

The NCAA got Reggie Bush and USC because there were pieces of paper that said he was getting paid by a marketing company. Ohio State got nailed because there were e-mails that proved Jim Tressel was covering up a controversy. There wasn’t anything here for the NCAA to prove that anything happened at Auburn in regards to the recruitment of Cam Newton and all the allegations surrounding the Real Sports interview, but again, that’s not the point.

The Cam Newton side of this wasn’t about Auburn, it was about the Newtons, and that ended a year ago when the NCAA inexplicably let Cam continue to play even though his father was the textbook definition of an agent. No, this isn’t a legal issue and this wasn’t a criminal investigation, but that the NCAA couldn't prove that money changed hands is irrelevant. A family member asked for money in exchange for a player. That should've been a slam-shut ruling.

Again, though, that’s so 2010.

That nothing happened in this case 12 months ago, with all the facts that were already out there, is still the problem when it comes to the effectiveness and the fairness of the NCAA. Whether or not you actually believe all the allegations surrounding the Auburn program is your opinion. Whether or not you believe that Auburn is totally innocent, or if everything was kept on the down-low so well that the NCAA simply didn’t find anything, is your call. Cecil Newton solicited $180,000 for his son’s services, and, if you want to believe that he decided to simply stop after asking Mississippi State, that’s up to you. It's opinion, because the NCAA couldn't find any new facts.

When the NCAA had a chance to act on the facts of the case last year, it didn’t, and what’s done was done the second the confetti started flying in Glendale. Even if the NCAA did find something, it was too late; vacated wins weren’t going to change anything.

And now Auburn fans are happy, non-Auburn fans are sitting with their jaws agape, and college football rolls right along.

Barrett Sallee's take:

By Barrett Sallee
Follow me on Twitter: @BarrettSallee

The biggest story of the 2010 college football season finally came to a close Wednesday afternoon, 13 long months after it started. The NCAA officially concluded its investigation into Auburn University, and found no major violations. Nothing on Cam Newton, Stanley McClover, Raven Gray, Troy Reddick or Chaz Ramsey.

Nothing.

“After conducting more than 80 interviews, the NCAA has concluded its investigation into Auburn University,” the NCAA said in a statement. “The NCAA enforcement staff is committed to a fair and thorough investigative process. As such, any allegations of major rules violations must meet a burden of proof, which is a higher standard than rampant public speculation online and in the media. The allegations must be based on credible and persuasive information and includes a good-faith belief that the Committee on Infractions could make a finding. As with any case, should the enforcement staff become aware of additional credible information, it will review the information to determine whether further investigation is warranted.”

2010 BCS National Championship...untainted.

When the NCAA knocks on your door to come look around, your whole house better as be clean as a whistle. The NCAA’s announcement that the investigation is over is a strong statement about the state of Auburn’s athletic department as a whole, and specifically the dedication of its compliance department.

You will see comparisons to O.J. Simpson and Casey Anthony in regards to Auburn football getting off the hook. The NCAA wouldn’t have concluded its investigation if it felt that there is anything that could implicate Auburn University or Cam Newton. It had no reason to. If the NCAA presumed guilt - or presumed that guilt is an option - the investigation would have stayed open until the four-year statute of limitations expires. It didn’t, and that’s BIG.

The fact that the NCAA doesn’t have subpoena power should also be a strong indicator of where it feels Auburn stands in the violation pecking order. The organization doesn’t have the power of the United States judicial system, but it also doesn’t share the same burden of proof as the United States judicial system.

Don’t believe me? Just ask USC.

In the NCAA’s letter to Auburn, it referenced more than 50 interviews and documents including, but not limited to, bank records, personal IRS tax documents, telephone records and e-mail messages directly related to the Cam Newton investigation. The NCAA may not have subpoena power, but in the case of Cam Newton, it didn’t need it. The Newton’s and Auburn University cooperated from the get-go, a fact that was reported - and largely ignored - last fall.

In the end, will Auburn ever recover in the court of public opinion? Probably not. At this point, it doesn't matter.

The statement released by the NCAA on Wednesday is another in a long line of statements that indicates that Auburn’s 2010 National Championship is clean, and will stay that way.

[The Prowler]

War Eagle Sallee & Fuck You Fuiatck (or whatever your stupid fuckin' name is)...fuckin' loser.  I can hear Fuiutake yelling as he pounded out his little post, like yelling out loud to himself what he's typing out, while drinking Makers straight from the bottle.

I bet the Emergency Rooms and Vets are gonna be slam pack today around all over Alabama. Door knob and stair accidents for the women and broken ribs for the pets...or vice versa.

[Buzz Killington]

Fuck you Fukkake

[JR4AU]

Barrett Sallee gets it.  I mean, who ever heard of the NCAA publicly announcing "The investigation is over, and your program is cleared"?  It's unprecedented as far as I know.   People scoffed at Gene for his pushing Roe Lache, but I think that was a turning point.  I think behind the scenes Lightfoot, Franklin let the NCAA know that litigation would be coming if they didn't formally announce any findings, lack of findings, and do so in a timely manner.  It was, IMHO, having an effect on recruiting. 

There was evidence against OJ.  There was a dead child in Casey Anthony's case.  There was NOTHING against Auburn in the Newton case beyond believing that since he asked at state, he would never have played anywhere for free.  Fact is, and this is an opinion shared by some, the real culprit is, and always was Kenny Rogers.   

[CCTAU]

Barrett Sallee gets it.  I mean, who ever heard of the NCAA publicly announcing "The investigation is over, and your program is cleared"?  It's unprecedented as far as I know.   People scoffed at Gene for his pushing Roe Lache, but I think that was a turning point.  I think behind the scenes Lightfoot, Franklin let the NCAA know that litigation would be coming if they didn't formally announce any findings, lack of findings, and do so in a timely manner.  It was, IMHO, having an effect on recruiting. 

There was evidence against OJ.  There was a dead child in Casey Anthony's case.  There was NOTHING against Auburn in the Newton case beyond believing that since he asked at state, he would never have played anywhere for free.  Fact is, and this is an opinion shared by some, the real culprit is, and always was Kenny Rogers.

Cecil installed new iron cages over the non-working HVAC systems at his church. That right there is evidence!