Will the NCAA probe of Miami "Hurtt" Louisville? Will the Cam Newton case blow up today?
By Paul Jordan
I realize that this is not traditional Kentucky Wildcat athletics fare leading the “5 for Wednesday” today, but regardless, there are a couple of huge stories brewing in college athletics today, and they involve some of our favorite Nemesis: the NCAA and possibly Louisville.
While most of us were absorbed with the Pros vs Dominicans game at the Yum! Center, Yahoo! Sports was releasing their investigation in the University of Miami football program. I have to admit, I have been a fan of “the U” for many years and it is hard not to imagine serious repercussions from this story and while it is my opinion, feel you may hear the dreaded phrase “death penalty” floating around the next few months. Take the time to read the entire article. It is an amazing read. And when you read it, note the name Clint Hurtt, who is now the head of Charlie Strong’s recruiting staff at Louisville.
In February, Clint Hurtt was named recruiter of the year in college football by ESPN. Today, he is getting these accolades on the Yahoo! article:
Among the specific incidents, Shapiro or other sources say Hurtt, Hill, Stoutland, Pannunzio and Allen all delivered top-tier recruits to Shapiro’s home or luxury suite so the booster could make recruiting pitches to them. Among the players who were ushered to Shapiro while they were still in high school: Eventual Miami commitments Ray-Ray Armstrong, Dyron Dye and Olivier Vernon (prompted by Hurtt); eventual Florida commitments Andre Debose (Hurtt) and Matt Patchan (prompted by Stoutland and Pannunzio); eventual Georgia commitment Orson Charles (Pannunzio); and eventual Central Florida commitment Jeffrey Godfrey (Allen).
Considering that Hurtt delivered 10 recruits from the Miami High School hotbed to the Cardinals, it’s natural that eyebrows will be raised in Louisville. And it will be interesting to see how many Hurricane recruits now attempt to make the exodus to the Ville …. if Hurtt is still at Louisville. I’m never advocating someone be fired, but let’s recall the fuss that Cardnial fans raised hen former UK assistant Bilal Batley committed secondary violations (far less than what Hurtt is accused of) and you have to wonder how much the heat will be turned on around Hurtt in the Ville. It does not look good to have these type of allegations heading your recruiting staff.
While the college football world is talking “Miami”, Danny Sheridan is preparing to drop his own bomb on the Paul Finebaum radio show today. Sheridan has been twittering for a week that he will release the name of the person who allegedly paid Cameron Newton to play for Auburn today on Finebaum’s show. Now that the Miami story has broken, this does not seem like as big a story, but Matt Hayes notes the scandals rocking Ohio State, Miami, and Auburn, could eventually lead to the downfall of the NCAA.
Last night, of course was the second game in the “Pros versus Dominicans” series and while it was a closer game, the UK Legends fell 91-86. Glenn Logan from A Sea of Blue was at the game and shared his thoughts. I know that some will harp on the score and see the two losses as a downer for the Kentucky pros, but I don’t see it that way. As John Calipari said, the fact that 40,000 basketball fans would get together in the middle of August for an exhibition is a testament to the loyalty and the passion of the Big Blue Nation.
In case you missed it, all eight of the former Kentucky players talked about “coming home” after Monday’s game in Rupp. here are the videos:
Finally. Joker Phillips landed a big commitment last night. Jordan Swindle, a huge, 6’8, 308 offensive tackle from St. John,s Florida. Swindle is the sixth offensive line pick up for the Wildcats this year and I am starting to see a real solid line for the next 3-4 years in Lexington. It’s a double treat as Swindle visited Louisville only a month ago and was considered on of the Cardinal’s top targets.
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