NCAA Investigating Cam Newton’s Recruitment

The NCAA is investigating Heisman frontrunner and QB of the #2 team in the nation Auburn is having his recruitment investigated by the NCAA.

The NCAA has opened an investigation of Cameron Newton's recruitment.

 This has been a story that has been rumored for a few weeks right now, but it has now been confirmed by nearly every media outlet.

 Former Mississippi State QB John Bond said that his teammate during his playing days in Starkville contacted him after Cameron Newton’s official visit to let Bond know that he was representing Newton and that it would “take some cash” to get Newton’s signature on a national letter of intent.

 According to sources, Bond’s teammate was former WR Kenny Rogers who played alongside Bond in the 1980’s at Mississippi State. Rogers is the operator of a company called Elite Football Preparation that is based in Chicago.

 Allegedly, Rogers was seeking a six-figure payment in exchange for Cameron Newton’s commitment to the school.

 Obviously, Cameron Newton was interested in playing for Mississippi State, because it was an offense that he learned during his stay in Gainesville with Florida and his relationship with former Florida offensive coordinator and current Bulldog head coach Dan Mullen.

 According to Bond, Rogers told him that other schools had already offered $200,000, but Newton would probably go to Mississippi State for a bit less due to his high interest in playing in Starkville.

 John Bond said he told the school’s AD Greg Byrne and shortly after, Byrne let the NCAA know.

 NCAA investigations on the amateur status of college football players have been well documented this season. It all started in the offseason with the agent party in Miami that was attended by players such as North Carolina DT Marvin Austin and Alabama DL Marcell Dareus.

 It’s been a major topic discussed all season long and it is rearing its head once again with the news that the top Heisman candidate may not have been eligible all season long if it is found out that money was exchanged in order to earn his signature.

 This is a really ugly situation for Auburn and Cameron Newton. It has been a dream season in the Plains and for Newton and everything could come crashing down.

 To be fair, Newton may not have done anything wrong and there may not be that much truth to these allegations, but if there is, then this has the potential to be another Reggie Bush situation.

 Cameron Newton’s father, Cecil who is a pastor in Georgia, has denied the reports. It was well known before Newton committed to Auburn in December that he preferred Mississippi State, but left the decision up to his father and his father preferred Auburn.

 It turns out it was the right decision has Cam and Auburn have enjoyed a magical run this season with a 9-0 record and a #2 ranking in the BCS Standings.

 The fact that Newton’s father made the decision for Cam is a little fishy in my opinion. It would be bad taste to accuse Newton’s father of possibly taking money on Cam’s behalf, but something about it just doesn’t sit right with me.

Former Mississippi State QB John Bond told the NCAA of the possible violations.

 Could the reason Cameron Newton didn’t attend Mississippi State be because they weren’t willing to offer money like other schools? It’s possible.

 Is it really surprising that the top JUCO transfer would have accepted money in order for said school to attain his services? I think what is surprising is that the NCAA found out about it.

 In my opinion, this story seems to have too much information for it to be false. Also, why would Bond lie about all this at this point in the season? I believe that the story is true, but the real story is whether or not money was exchanged for Newton to come to Auburn.

 The sad part is, even if Cameron Newton had no idea that any of this was going on, it would make him an ineligible player because of what others did. It’s not fair, but that’s the way it is.

 If money was accepted by anybody from Newton’s camp from Auburn, then he would have been ineligible all season long and Auburn would be forced to forfeit every game they played so far this season and any game Newton plays in the future before the investigation comes to a close.

 Auburn has no plans of benching Newton, and really why would they? They are already in this too deep anyway, so they might as well ride Newton even if they know they are in the wrong and hope that the NCAA is unable to uncover any wrongdoing on the universities part.

 Truthfully, it could be a couple weeks, months, or even years of investigating before we ever find out if anything actually happened. It’s entirely possible that Auburn plays out the rest of the season with Newton before anything is uncovered.

 That means that it is possible for Newton to win the Heisman Trophy, Auburn to run the table and win the National Title only to be stripped of everything at a later date.

 With this investigation and with Reggie Bush recently giving back his Heisman Trophy after being found to be an ineligible player during his days at USC, would the Heisman voters want to take the risk of giving the award to Newton only to find out he was ineligible and have a second vacated trophy in the last six years?

 In any case, it’s going to be an even more interesting finish to what has been a great college football season.

 Auburn and Cameron Newton have been at the center stage of college football for all the right reasons this year and with the recent turn of events, they are now at the center of college football for all the wrong reasons.