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Florida Players Received Attorney Fees, NCAA Violation?

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CandyCane

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The Hernandez case has opened another can of worms for the University of Florida and that was revealed in today's Wall Street Journal.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323823004578594142608224534.html

excerpt:

"In addition to donating at least $4,500 to Florida's athletic fund since 2011, according to booster-club records, Johnson, a 66-year-old graduate of Florida's law school, has become the go-to attorney for Florida athletes who get into trouble with the law. Over the past two decades, the Gainesville lawyer has represented dozens of Gators players in criminal cases ranging from allegations of misdemeanor assault to felony burglary. So prevalent is Johnson at the side of accused Gators that in a 2009 article, the Orlando Sentinel described him as the football program's "defensive MVP."

"The NCAA does not expressly forbid athletes from accepting free legal representation in criminal cases. NCAA spokesman Erik Christianson said that in its interpretation of the rules, the association had determined "that outside agencies can provide pro bono legal services to student-athletes" under two conditions: that those agencies had represented other needy individuals in the past "not based on athletics criteria," and if the athlete initiated contact with the lawyer.

Johnson didn't respond to several interview requests from the Journal about his work with Florida athletes. Hernandez's current attorney, Michael Fee, declined to comment."

Seems to me that it's clear representation was based on an athletics criteria (you were on the football team), where is the NCAA?
 
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It a shame these guys can get away with almost anything
 
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Some jock-sniffer gives a few innocent kids free entry into a club; the NCAA endeavors to destroy Miami. Some Gator booster provides free legal work to a laundry list of degenerate athletes who shoot guns, beat women, and run roughshod over the campus in order to keep them eligible; the NCAA says no big deal. Seems legit.
 
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I know not much will come of this, but I told you the national media is going to keep digging into this. Local and state media are scared to touch it. UF has a stronghold on sports journalism in the state. I hope they keep finding more stuff and keep putting more of it in print.

Something tells me this attorney was doing plenty of pro-bono work for regular students too (more like pro-boner work he got from weiner grazing athletes)
 
I wouldn't be so sure the NCAA won't look into this in effect the accusations could be more sensational than Jerry Sandusky and Penn State. Mark Emmert has to be consistent and investigate, allegedly there are too many Florida players involved to ignore it. Believe me the other SEC schools want it investigated as well, there is no love lost with Florida and particularly LSU who specifically has a policy prohibiting free legal representation.

When you consider there could be hundreds of thousands of dollars involved here it is something that should, and I believe will, catch the attention of the NCAA. This does have the potential to be a major case against Florida.
 
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CandyCane said:
I wouldn't be so sure the NCAA won't look into this in effect the accusations could be more sensational than Jerry Sandusky and Penn State. Mark Emmert has to be consistent and investigate, allegedly there are too many Florida players involved to ignore it. Believe me the other SEC schools want it investigated as well, there is no love lost with Florida and particularly LSU who specifically has a policy prohibiting free legal representation.

When you consider there could be hundreds of thousands of dollars involved here it is something that should, and I believe will, catch the attention of the NCAA. This does have the potential to be a major case against Florida.
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The problem with your theory is that UF will probably start blowing the whistle on other SEC programs. It always works that way.
 
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NCAA staff meeting minutes

Unidentified NCAA staffer #1: "SEC felony allegations?...nothing to see here"
Unidentified NCAA staffer #2: "Nevin Shapiro said something about free meals and boat rides at Miami, must be true....we should consider the death penalty"
 
The problem Florida has is that this attorney isn't a "separate" entity. He's a booster.
 
CandyCane said:
I wouldn't be so sure the NCAA won't look into this in effect the accusations could be more sensational than Jerry Sandusky and Penn State. Mark Emmert has to be consistent and investigate, allegedly there are too many Florida players involved to ignore it. Believe me the other SEC schools want it investigated as well, there is no love lost with Florida and particularly LSU who specifically has a policy prohibiting free legal representation.

When you consider there could be hundreds of thousands of dollars involved here it is something that should, and I believe will, catch the attention of the NCAA. This does have the potential to be a major case against Florida.
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Couple things wrong with these assertions. 1: Mark Emmert has not shown, and let me say it twice so everyone believes me, has not shown the capacity to be consistent when it comes to investigating programs, particularly SEC programs. 2nd: The only money and SEC related factors that have caught the NCAA's attention are revenue related. No major case will come of this and this will be brushed under the rug similar to other "major allegations/evidence" of SEC member schools.

NCAA only focuses on real violations that give schools a competetive advantage over other schools (boat rides, free meals, lap dances etc). NCAA does not consider murder, assault, intimidation, bribery, and other criminal activities as real violations because they do not give a competitetive advantage.
 
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This is actually fairly commonplace at all universities. Not saying its right, but it certainly isn't unique to UF. One of the unwritten and unspoken practices.
 
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HurricaneU said:
This is actually fairly commonplace at all universities. Not saying its right, but it certainly isn't unique to UF. One of the unwritten and unspoken practices.
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UiF players get free admission to bars and free drinks and free boat....well, I guess airboat...use as well. DEATH PENALTY.
 
I was only referring to the matter of select attorneys, typically alumni, handling issues with athletes. Not any double standard by the NCAA.
 
HurricaneU said:
This is actually fairly commonplace at all universities. Not saying its right, but it certainly isn't unique to UF. One of the unwritten and unspoken practices.
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No offense to you HurricaneU, but this sounds like an excuse Emmert would use to not pursue the issue.
 
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