Yesterday former OU offensive lineman JD Quinn said that he was unfairly treated by the Sooners because all he did was, "take some cash" and there are others on the team who did a lot worse. When pressed for information on his statement Quinn backtracked stating that he was talking about college football as a whole and not specifically the Sooners.
Today the Dallas Morning News has done their part in an effort to dig up some dirt on the Sooners and put their tarnish on the Oklahoma luster. Let's give the DMN their credit because they were able to do something that not even the mighty NCAA could. They got Brad McRae to talk!
Who knows how much they paid to get his statements but it was worth every penny just for the entertainment value. Of course being tagged as the man at the center of the entire scandal is unfair according to McRae because even though he was the man in charge at Big Red Sports and Imports he never told the players they could take money.
So according to the guy who gave the cash away its not his fault and according to the guy who took the cash its not his fault. Then blame must be put squarely on the shoulders of Bob Stoops. Get a lynch mob!
Wait, hold up on the mob for just a second because DMN isn't done. They went and found the former roommate of the third conspirator and booted football player Jermaine Hardison. According to Logan Brosky, the former roommate, Hardison often brought home dealership cars for his personal use. He also went on to say that McRae threw parties for the football players at his house.
Now this is where it gets good because the fine pieces of journalism known as the Dallas Morning News begin to have some conflicts among their paid informants. McRae says he never threw any parties for the athletes because...well... frankly that would be beneath him.
"I don't know how to put this but I'm kind of a big deal. People know me. I'm very important. I have many leather-bound books and my apartment smells of rich mahogany."
Rich mahogany and he only bought Quiznos for the kids? Wow, that McRae sure is a humble guy! The contradictions don't stop there. The third roommate, former defensive tackle Remi Ayodele, said that Hardison didn't bring home cars from the dealership.
McRae said that everyone had access to all the car keys and that he had never heard of a player taking a car home for personal use. He also stated that if Hardison had a car from the dealership for personal use he would have stolen it.
What does all this mean for Oklahoma's football program? Absolutely nothing and here's why, consider the sources.
First of all JD Quinn has been spouting his mouth off since leaving OU, or should I say forced to leave OU, and only has shown remorse for getting caught. Obviously in Montana you are not in the same spotlight as you are in Norman, Oklahoma. To make up for that he'll spout out some garbage and then fall backwards like Colt McCoy running from a Texas A&M linebacker when his bluff is called. His company line is, "I wasn't talking specifically about OU but college football in general." It's a tired act that no one is buying. If you have something to say then say it. Either crap or get off the pot!
McRae is too full of himself to admit that he did anything wrong but he did admit that he was a horrible manager by allowing his employees to do whatever they wanted and not even knowing where his merchandise (the cars) was. He has been banned from anything having to do with OU football until 2011. The man is bitter, arrogant and above all else a car salesman. Since when do we start taking car salesmen for their word.
Finally there is Logan Brosky. Here's his story. Kid was a JUCO football player but not good enough to play at the top level and chose to room with two guys who were. He wasn't liked by his roommates to the point where he moved out, despite the lease being in his name, because Hardison threatened him.
Yeah there's no personal vendetta on Brosky's part. There is a reason why the NCAA has no interest in hearing his story.
So the question is why would the DMN publish an article where the two main witnesses (McRae & Ayodele) contradict the premise of the story. Slander you say? No, not from a Texas newspaper in regards to OU.
Here's an interesting fact. OU has already received commitments from five of the top fifteen players in the state of Texas for the 2008 recruiting class. Is that enough motivation to write a story that makes not point or sheds no new light on the University of Oklahoma?
Plain and simple here it is. Negativity towards OU sells papers in Texas regardless of the fact that it makes the sports section look like amateur night at the Apollo. Does anyone really believe that the DMN released any new information that the NCAA wasn't already aware of? They have OU caught in a tight spot with infractions and only a short time to rub the university's nose in it until the whole thing passes over on the 14th.
I'll admit that I would by a newspaper if it contained the same dirt on Texas. Even if it did look like the National Inquirer.