Sad Day for MAC Sports....ESPN front page!!!

[Bleeding Orange]

As for the issue at hand here...

Sorry. I couldn't resist.

And again, I don't think we really need to get down on ourselves as a conference because of UT's transgressions. They have a program which has proven, through various sources over the past few years, to have a complete lack of internal controls and accountability. If this were a bigger problem throughout the "mid-major" ranks of the "Bowl Division," I highly doubt the Feds would be giving the rest of the MAC's, MWC's, CUSA's, etc. of the world the kind of heads-up that they have by strictly going after UT.

If anything, I am glad that the betting world (which, heretofore, I have had little affection for) and the Feds are nipping this in the bud before gamblers get the idea in their heads that they can play "mid-major" players like so many fiddles. Normally I am very superstitious about making comments like this, but these allegations are such abberations and so "environmentally" specific that I really don't forsee it becoming a major problem for our conference, or any other conference. As I've said, I truly believe that the absolute worst thing that we can do, collectively, is to make excuses for UT.

[Flipper]

One of the writers of the story was on The Ticket this afternoon.

Flipper, as you eluded to, he made a comment about the unknown person associated with the UT athletic program that introduced Scooter and others to 'Gary'. He made it sound as if it was another football player. Could this be a "tradition" that has been going on for years? A junior player "recruits" someone to keep feeding 'Gary' inside info?

They didn't get into the basketball side much on the radio, same as the story. For my two cents, the fact Keith Triplett is involved is far from shocking. He already had issue with the law and had trouble in school. He would be the perfect mark for a gambler to get in bed with.

Norm was asking the interviewee about Gradkowski and he kept saying "his name keeps coming up". Like they start down one path and boom, Gradkowski is tied in. They look somewhere else, and boom, Gradkowski again. He also said there is other stuff that they have not yet verified that they couldn't print. Reading between the lines and it seems very logical to me that he was intimating that Gradkowski is going to be in serious trouble at some point.

They repeatedly mentioned that Gradkowski has not been interviewed yet by anyone regarding the case. Seems to me they haven't interviewed him because he may be the target of the investigation. Don't want to tip their hand to him until they know they have him nailed.

That was my interpretation.

Thanks for that recap...I wanted to stay tuned when Norm mentioned it right before he interviewed Musslehead (formerly of the Blade,nw with the Pittsburgh paper) but I had to go incumincado for a while.

Interesting to hear Musslehead say that BG might very well pull the upset in Minnesota though...

It is odd that so many trails lead to Brucie, but nobody's talked to him...

[San Diego Falcon]

I think Bruce's dad should have kept his mouth shut. It seems even more suspicious after what he said.

1) At gatherings with former UT football players, he says that no one talks about it. Isn't that strange? You would think it would be a hot topic of conversation. Not talking about it seems to imply being worried about it. If there's nothing there or you're not involved, why the worry?

2) He admits that Bruce was scraping by, begging his family members for $20 here and there (given he had a full-ride scholarship, you would think the family could open up the purse strings a little more). People with little/no money are more susceptible to stuff like this.

[Flipper]

I love the Triplett quote re Gary kanni..."We didn't talk about gambling, we talked about street stuff". Yeah..that's what you want, one of your star athletes talking "street stuff" with a guy under investigation by the feds.

[Redwingtom]

I think Bruce's dad should have kept his mouth shut. It seems even more suspicious after what he said.

1) At gatherings with former UT football players, he says that no one talks about it. Isn't that strange? You would think it would be a hot topic of conversation. Not talking about it seems to imply being worried about it. If there's nothing there or you're not involved, why the worry?

2) He admits that Bruce was scraping by, begging his family members for $20 here and there (given he had a full-ride scholarship, you would think the family could open up the purse strings a little more). People with little/no money are more susceptible to stuff like this.

I thought I remember seeing on MACBBS that Bruce's whole family would arrive at UT games in some huge RV thing. Not sure if it was their's or who footed the bill though. I think his mom got an account on MACBBS and posted some rant about me once before the infamous UConn debacle. His family needs to learn the phrase "no comment".

[h2oville rocket]

I'm guessing its pretty hard, as a parent, to view the stupidity and venom we all spew out on these things from time to time and not respond. I had a nice chat with a lady at one of my daughter's tennis matches a few years ago when she complained that my daughter was too aggressive (in tennis?). Hence, I understand if in fact Gradkowski's mom let loose on someone. I'm guessing Spart43, who I believe is a receiver's dad, can testify that its best for parents to avoid these things like the plague (at least other teams' boards, although if I was Anthony Turners dad, and I'm not, I would be pretty upset with MACMAN). Probably harder for moms to do-I think their skin is a bit thinner.

[h2oville rocket]

I think Bruce's dad should have kept his mouth shut. It seems even more suspicious after what he said.

1) At gatherings with former UT football players, he says that no one talks about it. Isn't that strange? You would think it would be a hot topic of conversation. Not talking about it seems to imply being worried about it. If there's nothing there or you're not involved, why the worry?

2) He admits that Bruce was scraping by, begging his family members for $20 here and there (given he had a full-ride scholarship, you would think the family could open up the purse strings a little more). People with little/no money are more susceptible to stuff like this.

What a hoot. Do you know a twenty year old who isn't begging parents for $? Think Paris Hilton doesn't hit up mommy for an xtra grand to pick up a nice outfit for her dog?

I think you can read anything you want into this. UT fans read the same comments and say "See? Nothing going on." BG fans read and say "See? He was broke and desperate". When it all comes out, IF it all comes out, nobody will be more disappointed than I if ANY UT players or staff were involved in any sort of skullduggery.

But this stuff with Gradkowski all came out early on-who else but the QB on the team could possibly control a game's point spread? Found several articles about this in April. Who knows-I'll sit back with Flipper quietly eating his popcorn, while he gloats and doesn't notice that the bowl is getting emptying without his participation, waiting for the final gun.

[Flipper]

The bowl is emptying because I'm feeding it to Midnight Blue and Gold pigeons

[San Diego Falcon]

Do you know a twenty year old who isn't begging parents for $?

Yes, myself back then. My dad would have given me good smack if I ever asked for cash. Actually, most of my friends were self-sufficient by that point. Whoever needed to work to have spending money did so.

Re: dead pit bulls - is Vick going to roll over on McDougle, or the other way around?

[h2oville rocket]

Do you know a twenty year old who isn't begging parents for $?

Yes, myself back then. My dad would have given me good smack if I ever asked for cash. Actually, most of my friends were self-sufficient by that point. Whoever needed to work to have spending money did so.

Re: dead pit bulls - is Vick going to roll over on McDougle, or the other way around?

Wow. You were a good son.

[mmisbg]

one be assured two things.
1. No toledo "news" station will repeat any of that
2. if he had played for BG he would be on the field right now..."every one deserves a second chance....there is no place for zero tolerance"

Isn't it ironic how the Blade jumped on the Bruce Bashing Bandwagon less than a day after you posted that message?

http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dl ... /708300354

Not only did it make the Blade, it was the 1st article on the frontpage. Not the frontpage of the sports section, but the front page of today's issue.



Not that I'm a Toledo fan, but this doesn't look good for our conference at all.

[Bleeding Orange]

Not that I'm a Toledo fan, but this doesn't look good for our conference at all.

I really don't understand this line of thinking. I have not seen one media outlet link any of this Toledo garbage to the MAC. At this point, I see this as people being totally paranoid, and I think that paranoia will lead the media to link Toledo's problem's to the rest of the conference, whether doing so is justified or not (the media has become adept at doing so over the past 10-20 years). Something to think about, I guess.

[Rightupinthere]

I really don't understand this line of thinking. I have not seen one media outlet link any of this Toledo garbage to the MAC.

Don't think media outlet. Think college football fans. How many times do people paint a conference the same brush as what was used for one school? You have probably done this as well.

I remember the PR challenges of the Southwest Conference when SMU was busted.

[JoeFalcon]

I really don't understand this line of thinking. I have not seen one media outlet link any of this Toledo garbage to the MAC.

Don't think media outlet. Think college football fans. How many times do people paint a conference the same brush as what was used for one school? You have probably done this as well.

I remember the PR challenges of the Southwest Conference when SMU was busted.

It's probably the minority opinion, but I see it the same way Bleeding Orange does.

If this was happening at Utah State, my reaction wouldn't be, "Uh oh, the WAC really needs to get its act together." You can seperate the offending institution from others who just happen to compete against them providing they're the only ones involved, which every piece of evidence to this point supports.

The idea of Toledo's scandals scarring the conference as a whole seems to be an issue with the hard-core regional MAC fans themselves rather than the casual national ones.

[1987alum]

I really don't understand this line of thinking. I have not seen one media outlet link any of this Toledo garbage to the MAC.

Don't think media outlet. Think college football fans. How many times do people paint a conference the same brush as what was used for one school? You have probably done this as well.

I remember the PR challenges of the Southwest Conference when SMU was busted.

It's probably the minority opinion, but I see it the same way Bleeding Orange does.

If this was happening at Utah State, my reaction wouldn't be, "Uh oh, the WAC really needs to get its act together." You can seperate the offending institution from others who just happen to compete against them providing they're the only ones involved, which every piece of evidence to this point supports.

The idea of Toledo's scandals scarring the conference as a whole seems to be an issue with the hard-core regional MAC fans themselves rather than the casual national ones.

Yeah, you're onto something there. The further folks get from the Midwest, the more direct the correlation will be, too.