BY Brandon Marcello
22 April 2013
AUBURN, Alabama -- Former Auburn coachGene Chizik believes assumptions led to his program being unfairly scrutinized in the media during the Tigers' run to a national championship in 2010.
Chizik, after a fiery and passionate in-studio interview with WJOX in Birmingham, spoke to local reporters in Auburn on Monday evening. Speaking at length, but never lacking emotion, the out-of-work coach came to the defense of his former teams and the university that fired him in December.
"It’s really just hard to operate day by day with what I consider to be the most scrutinized, and sometimes villainized, program in the country," Chizik said.
The allegations, ranging from wrongdoing, grade changes and pay-for-play, to widespread use of synthetic marijuana, were discussed at length by the coach, who said he was on a mission of truth.
The cloud of allegations and what he calls assumptions, he says, stemmed from an NCAA investigation at a rival school in the SEC West: Mississippi State.
"What is somewhat of an enigma to me is how back in 2010 what started out as a Mississippi State problem, all of a sudden became an Auburn problem," Chizik said. "It never ended. It went on for 13 or 14 months and then there seemed to be a trail that kept following a lot of accusations, a lot of allegations but I'm looking for facts. It's very difficult for the Auburn people, and it's not fair."
The recruitment of quarterback Cam Newton while he was at Blinn (Texas) Junior College in 2009 caught the eyes of the SEC and NCAA, when key figures involved in his recruitment at MSU alerted investigators that his father, Cecil, attempted to solicit money from the Bulldogs. MSU would go on to disassociate itself from booster Kenny Rogers and clear itself of any wrongdoing.
The ensuing scandal cast a cloud over the Auburn program, but the NCAA found that Auburn committed no violations following a 13-month investigation.
"So, how that became a Mississippi State issue, and then all the sudden it was assumed – and there were accusations out there – well, if something happened there, it had to have happened here, I don’t see the logic in it," Chizik said. "Because obviously they left and found that there was nothing there."
What has followed in the years since is a deluge of allegations and accusations from former players -- from an HBO Sports special alleging pay-for-play, to recent reports penned by Selena Roberts of Roopstigo.com and another ESPN story concerning synthetic marijuana use at Auburn.
Chizik also finds it hard to believe that the alleged events, which the reports say occurred when the NCAA set up shop in Auburn to investigate Newton, were not discussed or brought to light earlier.
The NCAA found no major violations in that 13-month probe, which included interviews of 80 people and was under way when most of the allegations made by Mike McNeil in the Roopstigo.com report would have taken place.
"I’m going to go one step further for all the people that are educated and have common sense," Chizik said. "If you don’t know how the NCAA works, they’re very thorough in their investigations. Let me make that clear: they’re very thorough in their investigations. You want me to back that up with fact? I’ll name ‘em: Miami, Ohio State, North Carolina. Most recently, Oregon. USC. So how could they come into Auburn and leave and find nothing, and that becomes a one-sentence statement after getting drug through the mud for 13 months? How is that right? It’s not right."
Chizik said he has no plans to pursue legal action against Roberts or other media entities, including ESPN, which briefly employed him as a guest analyst on National Signing Day (Feb. 6).
"If everybody in journalism was measured 12 times on a Saturday by what they wrote, what they put out, what was on TV, it would be really interesting to see what their record would be, like coaches," said Chizik, who fired after in November after a 3-9 season. "I'm not going to point the finger at anybody, I'm only going to address that I think were false, unsubstantiated allegations."
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
The Final Roll: Auburn Family Bids Farewell to the Tradition of Rolling Toomer's Corner
BY Julie Bennett
22 April 2013
AUBURN, Alabama – New Yorkers pack Times Square to celebrate beginnings and ends – New Years and major triumphs. In New Orleans, revelers pack into the French Quarter for Mardi Gras, just to stroll down Bourbon Street.
In Auburn, they go to Toomer's Corner. It's a place to gather, celebrate and throw toilet paper at a pair of large oak trees.
Auburn fans have been assembling there for years. It's where everyone goes to celebrate any major victory: Iron Bowl victories, national championships, Presidential and state elections. Auburn gathers around the Toomer's oaks, where rolling the trees anchored many memories for the faithful.
In 2011, Harvey Updyke poisoned the oaks. The trees that supported a tradition four decades old began to wither.
The community tried to save them, but the poison consumed the oaks at the intersection of College Street and Magnolia Avenue. Weakened branches were pruned. Limbs were cut down to stumps. The trees still sprouted leaves, but fewer and fewer each month.
New Yorkers could celebrate New Year's without the crystal ball. New Orleans might adapt to a Mardi Gras without Bourbon Street. And Auburn fans will still gather at the front gates of Auburn University.
But the familiar shade of the landmark oak trees will be gone.
On Saturday, a record 83,401 Auburn fans packed Jordan-Hare stadium to watch their Tigers scrimmage during the A-Day spring football game. Before, during and after game, most headed over to Toomer's Corner and rolled the famous oak trees one last time.
Not to celebrate a big win -- not because their favorite candidate was elected president -- but to celebrate the trees themselves and the memories they hold for so many.
It was the best way to say farewell to a beloved tradition, in the best place to celebrate Auburn.
22 April 2013
AUBURN, Alabama – New Yorkers pack Times Square to celebrate beginnings and ends – New Years and major triumphs. In New Orleans, revelers pack into the French Quarter for Mardi Gras, just to stroll down Bourbon Street.
In Auburn, they go to Toomer's Corner. It's a place to gather, celebrate and throw toilet paper at a pair of large oak trees.
Auburn fans have been assembling there for years. It's where everyone goes to celebrate any major victory: Iron Bowl victories, national championships, Presidential and state elections. Auburn gathers around the Toomer's oaks, where rolling the trees anchored many memories for the faithful.
In 2011, Harvey Updyke poisoned the oaks. The trees that supported a tradition four decades old began to wither.
The community tried to save them, but the poison consumed the oaks at the intersection of College Street and Magnolia Avenue. Weakened branches were pruned. Limbs were cut down to stumps. The trees still sprouted leaves, but fewer and fewer each month.
New Yorkers could celebrate New Year's without the crystal ball. New Orleans might adapt to a Mardi Gras without Bourbon Street. And Auburn fans will still gather at the front gates of Auburn University.
But the familiar shade of the landmark oak trees will be gone.
On Saturday, a record 83,401 Auburn fans packed Jordan-Hare stadium to watch their Tigers scrimmage during the A-Day spring football game. Before, during and after game, most headed over to Toomer's Corner and rolled the famous oak trees one last time.
Not to celebrate a big win -- not because their favorite candidate was elected president -- but to celebrate the trees themselves and the memories they hold for so many.
It was the best way to say farewell to a beloved tradition, in the best place to celebrate Auburn.
Sunday, April 21, 2013
A-Day
I wasn't able to see the game because we don't get CSS. I did listen to some of it. Arttis-Payne sounds good. We can always use another good running back. I think we have 2 good QBs but neither is a great one. I'm thinking this Nick Marshall will come in and be the starter. We need better than good at that position. Glad to see that we set a record with an attendance of 83, 401. This was the last rolling of Toomer's Corner. I never was big on that personally but it was great to see the pictures of the last time at least for the time being.
Tuesday, April 9, 2013
The Gorilla in the Room
BY Phillip Marshall
AuburnUndercover
Is ESPN good for college football?
On face value, the answer would obviously be that it is. It gives college football more exposure than it’s ever had and puts millions of dollars into the coffers of college football programs every year.
But it’s not that simple.
If you are one of the handful of programs that ESPN has anointed as the bastions of the game, then ESPN is definitely good for you. The positive attention is a boon for recruiting. The network keeps your name in the public eye, hires your coach to do advertisements and more.
If you are one of the programs that ESPN has anointed as a loveable underdog, it’s good for you, too. How many people would really be aware of Boise State were it not for ESPN?
But if you’re one of the other guys, especially if you’re one that doesn’t stay in its perceived place, ESPN isn’t always so good for you. When the network decides to do indepth stories on the supposed ills of college football, it will look at you first. And when it does a report that is filled with holes, its own commentators and radio show hosts spring to its defense.
Never was there a better example than in 2010. ESPN broke the story that the NCAA was looking into the recruitment of Auburn quarterback Cam Newton. No problem there. It was news. Then ESPN proceeded, as is its way, to try to prove its own theory of the case. It turned every postseason awards show that included Newton, even the Heisman Trophy announcement, into a grilling session.
When Newton and Auburn were cleared, ESPN shrugged its proverbial shoulders. To this day, some ESPN commentators refuse to accept reality. They still hint or say outright that Auburn’s national championship was tainted.
When, instead of an unbiased search for the truth, the effort is to prove your own theory and call it news, you lose all credibility. Even in this day when the line between commentary and news reporting has blurred, that’s as true as it ever was.
And now comes the latest: last week’s long story on former Auburn players and synthetic marijuana. The author and others from ESPN have taken to the airwaves to defend a story that was so full of holes it’s already been blown to pieces. Will ESPN admit that? No chance. Instead we hear a national radio show host spend days trashing Auburn as if he has a clue of what he’s talking about. We see a television commentator who also has no clue do the same.
ESPN isn’t alone, of course. But it’s the gorilla in the room.
There are lots of good reporters at ESPN. Chris Low, who covers the SEC for ESPN.com, is as good and fair as you’ll find. The same can be said for columnist Ivan Maisel and others. It’s not guys like Low and Maisel that are the problem. When we started AuburnUndercover.com in July 2008, we were affiliated with ESPN. I discovered quickly that it’s a behemoth of an organization in which one hand frequently doesn’t know what the other is doing.
What can Auburn do? Nothing, really. ESPN’s billions give it unprecedented influence over college football. I don’t know many people, if any, outside of Bristol, Conn., who believe that influence is healthy. ESPN's cash buys power, and ESPN is the ultimate opinion-maker. All the while, as an organization, ESPN is about ratings, not fairness.
And there is no sign that will change anytime soon, if ever.
AuburnUndercover
Is ESPN good for college football?
On face value, the answer would obviously be that it is. It gives college football more exposure than it’s ever had and puts millions of dollars into the coffers of college football programs every year.
But it’s not that simple.
If you are one of the handful of programs that ESPN has anointed as the bastions of the game, then ESPN is definitely good for you. The positive attention is a boon for recruiting. The network keeps your name in the public eye, hires your coach to do advertisements and more.
If you are one of the programs that ESPN has anointed as a loveable underdog, it’s good for you, too. How many people would really be aware of Boise State were it not for ESPN?
But if you’re one of the other guys, especially if you’re one that doesn’t stay in its perceived place, ESPN isn’t always so good for you. When the network decides to do indepth stories on the supposed ills of college football, it will look at you first. And when it does a report that is filled with holes, its own commentators and radio show hosts spring to its defense.
Never was there a better example than in 2010. ESPN broke the story that the NCAA was looking into the recruitment of Auburn quarterback Cam Newton. No problem there. It was news. Then ESPN proceeded, as is its way, to try to prove its own theory of the case. It turned every postseason awards show that included Newton, even the Heisman Trophy announcement, into a grilling session.
When Newton and Auburn were cleared, ESPN shrugged its proverbial shoulders. To this day, some ESPN commentators refuse to accept reality. They still hint or say outright that Auburn’s national championship was tainted.
When, instead of an unbiased search for the truth, the effort is to prove your own theory and call it news, you lose all credibility. Even in this day when the line between commentary and news reporting has blurred, that’s as true as it ever was.
And now comes the latest: last week’s long story on former Auburn players and synthetic marijuana. The author and others from ESPN have taken to the airwaves to defend a story that was so full of holes it’s already been blown to pieces. Will ESPN admit that? No chance. Instead we hear a national radio show host spend days trashing Auburn as if he has a clue of what he’s talking about. We see a television commentator who also has no clue do the same.
ESPN isn’t alone, of course. But it’s the gorilla in the room.
There are lots of good reporters at ESPN. Chris Low, who covers the SEC for ESPN.com, is as good and fair as you’ll find. The same can be said for columnist Ivan Maisel and others. It’s not guys like Low and Maisel that are the problem. When we started AuburnUndercover.com in July 2008, we were affiliated with ESPN. I discovered quickly that it’s a behemoth of an organization in which one hand frequently doesn’t know what the other is doing.
What can Auburn do? Nothing, really. ESPN’s billions give it unprecedented influence over college football. I don’t know many people, if any, outside of Bristol, Conn., who believe that influence is healthy. ESPN's cash buys power, and ESPN is the ultimate opinion-maker. All the while, as an organization, ESPN is about ratings, not fairness.
And there is no sign that will change anytime soon, if ever.
Secure in the Truth
BY Phillip Marshall
AuburnUndercover
The question has been put to me numerous times in the last three days. Why Auburn? The truthful answer is I don’t know.
I don’t know why Auburn is such a target. But I did know what to expect after Selena Roberts did a disservice to herself and her profession with one of the worst hatchet jobs I have seen in all my years in this business. ESPN followed with a long story about Auburn players and synthetic marijuana that still has me scratching my head.
And what I expected to happen is what has happened.
ESPN paid little attention to Auburn’s response, which basically obliterated the story. Roberts responded defensively to anyone who questioned her.
And the usual suspects piled on. Even Pulitzer Prize winner Sara Ganim, who broke the Jerry Sandusky story wide open at Penn State and now work as for CNN, offered a hand-wringing tweet about a “black eye” for college athletics. A national radio talk show host derided the Auburn campus as one of the least attractive in the SEC. Yes, things got that silly.
Synthetic marijuana was legal and available at convenience stores? Auburn was one of the first in the SEC to test for synthetic marijuana? Auburn has one of the tougher drug testing programs in college athletics? The players “quoted” by Roberts rose up immediately in protest? Who cares? Why let facts like that get in the way of a good tale?
Much of what was said in both stories is ridiculously easy to disprove. But you can forget about any kind of fair shake from ESPN. It plans to make the story a TV show, so it will do what it does. It will do all it can to drive ratings.
Some national outlets have come to Auburn’s defense and have pointed to the massive holes in both stories. But they have been largely overlooked and drowned out. Good for them for trying to be fair.
Auburn athletics director Jay Jacobs has had his say. Former head coach Gene Chizik has had his say. Parents of players have disputed both reports. To those who want to believe differently, it doesn’t matter. Three players await trial on armed robbery charges stemming from the well-documented incident of March 2011. They and their families, understandably, are doing all they can to mitigate their situations. The common thread: It was Auburn’s fault.
Auburn has been given a full exam by the NCAA three times since November of 2010. It has come out clean every time. Maybe that’s happened before, but I’m not aware of it. Does anyone really believe Auburn is so good it can not only trick the NCAA time and time again, but commit major violations right under the NCAA’s nose? Really?
Though Auburn stands accused of nothing illegal by anyone that matters, its reputation has taken a terrible and hit. It’s sad. No one expects college football fans to look beyond the headlines. A large number of those folks are convinced Auburn is dirty, and nothing Jacobs or anyone else can say or do is going to change that. You’d like to think professional news people would be determined to look beyond the headlines. Some are. Many aren’t.
So what can Auburn and Auburn people do now? My suggestion: Speak the truth and be secure in the truth. What is the truth?
* Auburn’s football program has not been sanctioned by the NCAA in 21 years. In that same period, 10 SEC teams have been.
* The NCAA has looked hard at Auburn three times since 2010. Auburn has emerged clean every time.
* Auburn has had more perfect records in the last 10 seasons than any team in the SEC.
* Auburn has had more perfect records in the last 20 seasons than any team in the SEC.
* Despite being beaten the past two seasons, Auburn has won seven of its last 11 against Alabama.
* Auburn has won six SEC championships in the past 30 years, one less than Florida, the same as LSU and one more than Alabama.
None of that means Auburn football is today where Auburn people want it to be.
There is no question that Alabama is the dominant program in the SEC. With three national championships in four seasons, that can’t be argued. And Alabama, historically, is the strongest program in the SEC. That’s makes Auburn’s historic success even more impressive.
The notion that Auburn somehow doesn’t belong, that it is an interloper among the top programs in the SEC and in college football is simply not supported by facts or by history..
AuburnUndercover
The question has been put to me numerous times in the last three days. Why Auburn? The truthful answer is I don’t know.
I don’t know why Auburn is such a target. But I did know what to expect after Selena Roberts did a disservice to herself and her profession with one of the worst hatchet jobs I have seen in all my years in this business. ESPN followed with a long story about Auburn players and synthetic marijuana that still has me scratching my head.
And what I expected to happen is what has happened.
ESPN paid little attention to Auburn’s response, which basically obliterated the story. Roberts responded defensively to anyone who questioned her.
And the usual suspects piled on. Even Pulitzer Prize winner Sara Ganim, who broke the Jerry Sandusky story wide open at Penn State and now work as for CNN, offered a hand-wringing tweet about a “black eye” for college athletics. A national radio talk show host derided the Auburn campus as one of the least attractive in the SEC. Yes, things got that silly.
Synthetic marijuana was legal and available at convenience stores? Auburn was one of the first in the SEC to test for synthetic marijuana? Auburn has one of the tougher drug testing programs in college athletics? The players “quoted” by Roberts rose up immediately in protest? Who cares? Why let facts like that get in the way of a good tale?
Much of what was said in both stories is ridiculously easy to disprove. But you can forget about any kind of fair shake from ESPN. It plans to make the story a TV show, so it will do what it does. It will do all it can to drive ratings.
Some national outlets have come to Auburn’s defense and have pointed to the massive holes in both stories. But they have been largely overlooked and drowned out. Good for them for trying to be fair.
Auburn athletics director Jay Jacobs has had his say. Former head coach Gene Chizik has had his say. Parents of players have disputed both reports. To those who want to believe differently, it doesn’t matter. Three players await trial on armed robbery charges stemming from the well-documented incident of March 2011. They and their families, understandably, are doing all they can to mitigate their situations. The common thread: It was Auburn’s fault.
Auburn has been given a full exam by the NCAA three times since November of 2010. It has come out clean every time. Maybe that’s happened before, but I’m not aware of it. Does anyone really believe Auburn is so good it can not only trick the NCAA time and time again, but commit major violations right under the NCAA’s nose? Really?
Though Auburn stands accused of nothing illegal by anyone that matters, its reputation has taken a terrible and hit. It’s sad. No one expects college football fans to look beyond the headlines. A large number of those folks are convinced Auburn is dirty, and nothing Jacobs or anyone else can say or do is going to change that. You’d like to think professional news people would be determined to look beyond the headlines. Some are. Many aren’t.
So what can Auburn and Auburn people do now? My suggestion: Speak the truth and be secure in the truth. What is the truth?
* Auburn’s football program has not been sanctioned by the NCAA in 21 years. In that same period, 10 SEC teams have been.
* The NCAA has looked hard at Auburn three times since 2010. Auburn has emerged clean every time.
* Auburn has had more perfect records in the last 10 seasons than any team in the SEC.
* Auburn has had more perfect records in the last 20 seasons than any team in the SEC.
* Despite being beaten the past two seasons, Auburn has won seven of its last 11 against Alabama.
* Auburn has won six SEC championships in the past 30 years, one less than Florida, the same as LSU and one more than Alabama.
None of that means Auburn football is today where Auburn people want it to be.
There is no question that Alabama is the dominant program in the SEC. With three national championships in four seasons, that can’t be argued. And Alabama, historically, is the strongest program in the SEC. That’s makes Auburn’s historic success even more impressive.
The notion that Auburn somehow doesn’t belong, that it is an interloper among the top programs in the SEC and in college football is simply not supported by facts or by history..
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