UNC in hot water again
The University of North Carolina once again finds themselves in hot water with the NCAA, after one of their assistant coaches was exposed for having received large sums of money from a Los Angeles based agent.
The University has been under investigation by the college governing body since August, after it was revealed that several members of their football team were breaking NCAA rules.
The problems started for the Tar Heels in late August when the NCAA began to inquire about student athletes on the school’s football team receiving improper benefits from agents. The NCAA states that a student must make it known to the university’s athletic
director that he has signed with an agent before he is allowed to receive any money or gifts from that individual. Unfortunately for UNC they had several students getting free trips and money from agents they had yet to sign with. It was revealed on 31 August
that assistant coach John Blake had a relationship with a sports agent by the name of Gary Wichard and was thought to be helping him recruit students.
As the story grew Blake elected to resign from his post at UNC, because he believed him being there had become a distraction. Nevertheless, a recent inquiry revealed that Blake had received loans from Wichard. Many are saying that these loans were in fact
payments made to the coach in exchange for his help signing players coming out of the Tar Heels program.
Blake’s lawyer Wade Smith responded to these allegations, stating. “Every time I look at the entire landscape here, it seems to me that there’s an enormous amount of smoke and the university could be excused for looking at that smoke and being concerned
about it. But when you get beyond the smoke, there’s not any fire.”
Nevertheless, the university is happy to have cut ties with Blake and maintains they knew nothing about the loans before he was hired.
Meanwhile the Tar Heels sit at 1-2 and still have nine players suspended from the team.
Tags: