Ncaa violations for Alabama?????

[Jumbo]

http://outkickthecoverage.com/bama-players-signing-gear-for-t-towns-menswear.php

Did T-Town Menswear Cause an NCAA Violation For Alabama?Published on: July 22, 2011 | Written by: Clay Travis
You know the drill these days. You go to the bar to celebrate the launch of your website with a bunch of great people, come home planning to fall into bed and dream about what gifts Les Miles might give us all at SEC Media Days tomorrow, and instead find a collection of emails in the inbox spilling out the latest social media scandal in college athletics. This happens when you're me and both Auburn and Alabama fans have decided that you'll be one of the conduits for each fan base to attack the other. This time it's the Alabama Crimson Tide on the dais taking their turn in the borderline infractions limelight courtesy of sleuthing by Auburn fans. It seems that the folks at T-Town Menswear have made part of their business plan attracting Alabama fans to their fine establishment in the Tuscaloosa Mall. Based on their television advertising which is linked below courtesy of @warblogle on Twitter, Terrence Cody and Javier Arenas, among other players have had autograph sessions with fans after their college careers end.

There's nothing wrong with these men selling their autographs then. But is there something wrong with any college kid appearing in a television commercial with someone named Louie Linguini? I think so. Although, let's be fair, this Terrence Cody block sequence is Academy Award winning. Perhaps the greatest single athlette acting performance since Cody's own shirtless forty yard dash. You must watch this video here.

But given the current environment where schools like Ohio State can lose their coach because of tattoo hook-ups, should a Tuscaloosa establishment really be advertising its store with autographed jerseys of Julio Jones, Mark Ingram, and Trent Richardson during the 2010 season? (The date stamp on the T-Town Menswear Facebook album, which you can view for the moment right here -- before it is inevitably pulled early this morning -- is November 1,2010 but the date on the camera is October 19, 2010). Julio Jones and Mark Ingram have since gone pro, although they weren't pros at the time that their autographed helmets and jerseys were inside the store windows. But two of the jerseys in the window Nico Johnson, a rising junior, and Trent Richardson, one of the top Heisman candidates in the country, are back for 2011.

And no matter what Trent Richardson surely shouldn't be posing for photos as he signs helmets in the store.



It's possible that Richardson is merely signing one helmet and one jersey and he had no idea that the store was then going to put his signed jersey and helmet in the display case. After all, thanks to NCAA rules the only person not able to capitalize off the value of his signature is the athlete. But remember that Terrelle Pryor was ultimately forced out at Ohio State over allegations about payment for autographs while he was at Ohio State. So allowing a business to put up pictures of you and your teammates signing memorabilia on the Internet is just plain stupid. You gain nothing and everyone's eyebrows are raised. So a guy in a wife-beater walks into a suit store, signs a helmet and jersey, and walks out with nothing at all? What's the incentive for Bama players to provide autographs to T-Town Menswear? And how in the world did a suit store owner end up with what looks like national championship rings?



Those are interesting questions that it's probably better not to ask if you're a Bama fan.

But when T-Town Menswear placed the jerseys and helmets of current players in its window, according to @bylawblog who is a must follow on Twitter, they committed an NCAA violation. Since using a student's likeness to profit is an NCAA violation. But so long as that student doesn't actually receive anything in return then there is no significant punishment. A school must, however, monitor situations such as these and send a cease and desist letter to attempt to keep that business from profiting off the student athlete's likeness. Because remember kids, the only companies that can profit off a student athlete's likeness are those that partner with the NCAA.

Aren't monopolies grand?

I've got an email in to Alabama to see if this situation was remedied back in November and will update y'all with what the University says about this incident when they reply to me. 



Given that this was a public mall it's hard to believe that someone didn't tip off Alabama to the NCAA violation pretty quickly. As to why T-Town Menswear and the spectacularly named Louie Linguini is still advertising images like these on Facebook, I have no idea. But this is just the latest peril of social media.

If only there was a friendly police officer to protect us from all these darn NCAA crimes. Oh, wait, he's posing with Richardson in the store. Damn.

 

In case you're wondering this is what Scott Van Pelt would look like if he'd grown up in Tuscaloosa and become a police officer instead of an ESPN anchor.

[Pell City Tiger]

note to self: Buy stock in the ACME Hammer Manufacturing Company.

[RWS]

That article makes no sense. At all. It's basically saying that if you get something signed by a player, you can never sell it or display it in a business, in your office, etc.

As long as none of the players were paid for the autographed items, it's all good.

[Kaos]

Tip of the iceberg, goatfucker. 

Hold on to your nutsack.  There will be more. 

[Townhallsavoy]

As long as none of the players were paid for the autographed items, it's all good.

12.5 PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES 12.5.2 Nonpermissible. 12.5.2.1 Advertisements and Promotions After Becoming a Student-Athlete. After becoming a student-athlete, an individual shall not be eligible for participation in intercollegiate athletics if the individual: (a) Accepts any remuneration for or permits the use of his or her name or picture to advertise, recommend or promote directly the sale or use of a commercial product or service of any kind; or (b) Receives remuneration for endorsing a commercial product or service through the individual’s use of such product or service.

They're at the store signing autographs, and those autographs are subsequently placed in the windows as advertisements. 

Unless this guy has some kind of special permit with the NCAA I've never heard of, he's breaking a rule.

[War Eagle!!!]

That article makes no sense. At all. It's basically saying that if you get something signed by a player, you can never sell it or display it in a business, in your office, etc.

As long as none of the players were paid for the autographed items, it's all good.

You're a dumb ass...

[AUChizad]

http://outkickthecoverage.com/alabama-notifies-oktc-of-cease-and-desist-letter-sent-to-t-town-menswear-in-december-2010.php

and Desist Letter Sent to T-Town Menswear In December 2010

Published on: July 22, 2011 | Written by: Clay Travis Written by: David Wasson
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Hoover, AL



In the wake of Outkickthecoverage.com's report early this morning that multiple Alabama players had their autographed jerseys and helmets used to advertise T-Town Men's Wear, a men's suit store in Tuscaloosa, Alabama has notified OKTC's David Wasson that the program sent a cease and desist letter to T-Town's Men's Wear in December of 2010. That would be about six weeks after the October 19th date stamp on the jersey picture from the display window linked below. That display window featured current Crimson Tide players Trent Richardson and Nico Johnson and at the time of the photo Mark Ingram and Julio Jones, now drafted, were playing in the NFL.



The use of the autographed jerseys and helmets, first reported on this site, constitutes a clear violation of NCAA rule 12.5, excerpted below.

12.5 PROMOTIONAL ACTIVITIES

12.5.2 Nonpermissible.
12.5.2.1 Advertisements and Promotions After Becoming a Student-Athlete.
After becoming a student-athlete, an individual shall not be eligible for participation in intercollegiate athletics if the individual:
(a) Accepts any remuneration for or permits the use of his or her name or picture to advertise, recommend or promote directly the sale or use of a commercial product or service of any kind; or
(b) Receives remuneration for endorsing a commercial product or service through the individual’s use of such
product or service.

But just as Alabama works to put out this fire, OKTC has received multiple other pictures that provide evidence of substantial connections between the owner of the store, Tom Albetar, pictured above with Nick Saban, and current Alabama athletes. Indeed, it appears that the owner of the store, Albetar, has even used another current Alabama athlete Marquis Maze in advertisements for his business. Maze, a junior wide receiver for the Crimson Tide, is pictured idn the third picture below, posing in the men's store holding a helmet.



Acccording to multiple tippers, Albetar even advertises his business on social media with the slogan "We dress Alabama football."



Whatever may be the full extent of the relationship between Albetar and Crimson Tide athletes, it's clear that Alabama has a battle on its hands to keep Albetar from endangering the eligibility of current Crimson Tide athletes. And it's also clear that Albetar's connection to the program, he appears to own two championship rings, may be much deeper than previously realized.

We'll keep you updated on this evolving story here. In fact, curses, we're missing Les Miles right now.

OKTC has requested comment from Albetar, but has received no comment thus far.

[Kaos]

Alabama has notified OKTC's David Wasson

Wasson.  Former editor of the Tuscaloosa News.  Lives in Tuscaloosa.

I have obtained a copy of the notification.   See below.

Look, motherfucker.  You better get a cap on that shit PRON-FUCKING-TO, aight?  Your job, you son of a bitch, is to make sure that shit like this DOES NOT FUCKING SEE THE LIGHT OF FUCKING DAY, aight?

We know where you fucking live.  We know where your fucking daughter goes to school. 

Now GET fucking CONTROL of that fucking motherfucking shit, aight?

Sincerely,
NS
(not Saban, aight?)

PS:
Dre K will be by to pick up our suits on Thursday as usual.  We'll need 80 of them.  Mostly straight ties, five bow ties. You have the size list.  Do NOT let him in the front door any more.  He'll come to the back.  He'll park the Charger by the outside door and honk the horn three times, aight?

[Townhallsavoy]

I've heard Alabama has a contract with this guy to provide the suits for travel as long as they are returned.

16.8.2.1

16.8.2.1 Travel Apparel. Except as permitted in Bylaw 16.8.1.9, an institution may
not provide to student-athletes team travel outfits, blazers or other items of clothing
that are not sports-related practice or competition apparel.

http://grfx.cstv.com/schools/alab/datadump/fls_files/files/files/11977.pdf

Something isn't right about this, but yada yada nothing will come of it. 

[AUChizad]

NCAA just approved of OSU's empty "internal investigation" in December.

 

[AUChizad]

Finebaum saying repeatedly that he "doesn't understand" Clay Travis's article.

His simple mind can't make sense of it. Might as well be Chinese arithmetics.

Funny how he always has comprehension trouble with negative BMa stories.

[Townhallsavoy]

Interesting enough, Alabama fans are using Joe Schad's tweets as their best defense for this situation.

schadjoe Bama did not get NCAA or SEC involved in T-Town inquiry

Also from Schad's article, Bama didn't get them involved because they didn't think it was a big deal.

That doesn't mean the NCAA or SEC wouldn't want to be involved now that it's been reported.

[John Fragglerock]

I saw the pic of the guy with the rings on yesterday on Never to Yield. Is NtY the ones that dropped the story to someone or was it someone else?

BTW why when I click change profile after uploading a profile pic, do I get a blank page plus it never saves my changes?

[RWS]

They're at the store signing autographs, and those autographs are subsequently placed in the windows as advertisements. 

Unless this guy has some kind of special permit with the NCAA I've never heard of, he's breaking a rule.

Unless he told the players "Hey, I'm gonna use these autographed items to advertise/endorse my store!" when they autographed the stuff, I really don't see how Alabama will get in one bit of trouble. A cease and desist letter was apparently sent shortly after the stuff was put up. I wasn't aware of that particular rule, but I suppose it makes sense.

[AWK]

I saw the pic of the guy with the rings on yesterday on Never to Yield. Is NtY the ones that dropped the story to someone or was it someone else?

BTW why when I click change profile after uploading a profile pic, do I get a blank page plus it never saves my changes?

[John Fragglerock]

I get it. You all want me to stop posting. Thats fine I will, But before I do know this. Most of you are some of the bigest dicks I have ever met as far as Auburn fans go. One would think that a fellow AU fan could at least ask questions, but apparently thats too much to ask. I can tell you all pretty much just like playing with yourselves. Have fun with your lil circle jerk you have going on.

[Saniflush]

I saw the pic of the guy with the rings on yesterday on Never to Yield. Is NtY the ones that dropped the story to someone or was it someone else?

BTW why when I click change profile after uploading a profile pic, do I get a blank page plus it never saves my changes?

I don't know who dropped it.  Scout was the first board I saw it on.

[Saniflush]

I'm not sure why you all want to make such a big deal about this?  These are fine upstanding young men  in this program. 
What other division I athletes would take so much time out of their schedule to take old men fishing and help work in their stores.  They continually give to teh community and ask ask in return only to be left alone with the community that they have grown so close to.

[The Prowler]

Unless he told the players "Hey, I'm gonna use these autographed items to advertise/endorse my store!" when they autographed the stuff, I really don't see how Alabama will get in one bit of trouble. A cease and desist letter was apparently sent shortly after the stuff was put up. I wasn't aware of that particular rule, but I suppose it makes sense.

Yeah, that's why the TTown Menswear Facebook page still has all of the photos as of yesterday on it promoting the business.  Also, Tom, whatever his last name is, is a booster to boot.

[djsimp]

I get it. You all want me to stop posting. Thats fine I will, But before I do know this. Most of you are some of the bigest dicks I have ever met as far as Auburn fans go. One would think that a fellow AU fan could at least ask questions, but apparently thats too much to ask. I can tell you all pretty much just like playing with yourselves. Have fun with your lil circle jerk you have going on.

Its called freshman hazing. Get with it or get over it. Our circle jerks are the best of its kind.