SmashMouth

Nick Saban says Alabama looking into possible NCAA rules violation, ESPN.com reports | NOLA.com

Bajeebus .... this is nuts!

strato

Ha...roll tide roll...

saintsfan1976

It happens at every university in America. Not a Bama fan here but c'mon, let's get real.

Saint_LB

Speaking of NCAA and rules and Alabama...here's my true story.

After I graduated high school, I was offered a partial scholarship to SE La. in Hammond, along with my best friend...only he was on a full scholarship. I was told by Coach Roland Dale, a former Ole Miss assistant who had just accepted the AD and Head Coach job at SE, that I would receive my full scholarship after the first season if everything went well.

Coach Dale had recruited me and my friend for Ole Miss, but when he left and went to SE, he brought us with him.

After two weeks of 2-a-days, we were allowed to leave campus and go home for the weekend, and the 1st game would be the following week-end.

When I got home, my parents showed me a letter from the Navy telling me that I had been moved-up from alternate to principal scholarship, and was being assigned to Ole Miss. Yes...a full-paid 4 year NROTC scholarship.

I went back to SE and explained the situation to Coach Dale, and he said he couldn't do anything further at this point for me at SE, so I made the switch right before school started. I was reluctant at first, but when my father reminded me that I could go try-out for kicker at Ole Miss, and knowing that their kicker had just graduated and the job was wide open, it was enough for me to take a shot.

When I arrived at Ole Miss, I went out for the football team the next day, and was assigned to the freshmen team. At Ole Miss at that time the freshmen practice field was elevated from the varsity practice field, and I could see the 2 new freshmen kicking candidates kicking-off and practicing FG's and PAT's. I thought I was better, so the next day I went to the varsity coaches' locker room and introduced myself to the kicking coach and he gave me my shot.

He was impressed with my kicking and notified me that I was to practice with the varsity from now on. After a couple of weeks, I was allowed to practice with the first string kick-off team, and I thought I had made it.

It was then that the head coach, Billy Kinard, asked me to meet with him in his office the next day. At that meeting he explained to me that I was ineligible to play because I was on a NROTC scholarship. He said that if a player walks-on and is receiving any type of scholarship other than football, that they have to count him as a football scholarship.

For them, it wasn't about the money...it was about the numbers of scholarships. He explained to me that they were allowed 45 scholarships in a two year period, and he has just used 23 and only had 22 left. He went on to explain that he had just used one of those on a freshmen who only kicked...so the chances of him using another scholarship on just a kicker were slim to none.

He explained to me that several years back, Bear Bryant at Alabama had used several swim team and other non-football scholarships to recruit football players with, so they felt the need to put the rule in place.

So it turned out that even though I had walked-on and beat the other two guys out, I couldn't play unless I gave my scholarship up. I don't think I've gotten over that to this day.

The story goes on from there, and it involves a 2nd meeting with the head coach, a head-on car accident I was involved in after the 1st game against Memphis State, and so-on, but I've wasted enough space already. If you want me to tell the rest of the story...just ask.

Whether you think you can or think you can't...you're right!

SmashMouth

It's interesting ... tell us the rest of the story!!!

saintfan

Tell the rest. I'm already hacked off about it now so you might as well finish making me angry

Saint_LB

OK...here goes.

I'll start back to when I went to the first meeting with Coach Kinard. While I sat there in his office, he called the commissioner of the SEC and asked if he could get me eligible some sort of way, and that's when he was told that the only way was to either count me as a scholarship, or I could give up my ROTC scholarship and play as a walk-on. The commissioner, I think his last name was Kramer, told him that he might try calling the commissioner of the NCAA.

So, the he asked me to return the next day and meet with his brother, Bruiser Kinard, who was the AD, and he would call the commissioner of the NCAA. I came back the next day, and he made the call. The commissioner did allow me to practice with the team, but no way could I be involved in a game under the present circumstances.

So, that was pretty much it for the coaches, and they said that they wished that they could find a way, but unless I gave up the scholarship and paid my way, I could not play.

I decided to go to the first game, and it was in Memphis. I went with a friend from high school who also had a ROTC scholarship, and we hitch-hiked to the game.

Ole Miss was playing well, if my memory serves me correct...but the new kicker, Steve Lavinghouse, a freshmen out of Jackson, had a horrible, horrible start. He missed a field goal and an extra point, and kicked two consecutive KO's out of bounds. At half time, I was listening closely to
the PA system, because I seriously thought there was a chance that the coaches would make an announcement for me to report to the locker-room, they would give me a scholarship on the spot, and I would kick in the second half.

Well, obviously that didn't happen, so when the game was over, we now had the task of hitch-hiking back to the campus. I found out later that my friend could have borrowed his brother's car, but he told me later that he had never hitched before and thought it would be exciting.

He got his wish. We caught a ride with a nurse just getting off her shift in Memphis, and she drove us to Hernando, MS. We were on the interstate now, and our next ride was 3 guys in a 56 black and white Chevy.

There was one guy in the back seat along with a huge ice chest. He jumped into the front seat when we got in, and we occupied the back seat.

The driver was driving fast down the interstate, but not too terribly reckless. They all appeared to be drunk, and the ice chest in the back seat was full of beer. When we got to the Sardis Lake exit, he exited and pulled into a gas station. He circled the pumps about 3 times hollering out the window, and then it was off down the road to the lake.

They told us that they had to make a stop there, but they would take us on to the campus afterwords. We had no other ride, so we agreed. It was then that the alcohol kicked in. The driver started driving fast and dangerously, often riding halfway in the opposite lane. We came up on a car, and the driver then turned his headlights off. He was following the tail lights of the guy in front of us. It was at this time that I had a real premonition. I didn't think he was going to have an accident...I knew it. I can't explain how strong the wave that came across me was, and I began telling my friend that we should get out of the car. He said we were in the middle of nowhere, but I said I would rather be stranded than to be in this car right now.

It was at this point that I leaned forward and was about to tell the guy to let us out. When I did, though, I noticed a car coming towards us and we were mostly in his lane. The driver of the other car...or truck, I should say because that's what it was...probably never saw us because our headlights were off. I told the driver that he was in the wrong lane, and he said, "I know what I'm doing!" Those were his last words.

I'm getting weary now, so I will rest and pick up the story from here later.

Whether you think you can or think you can't...you're right!

Saint_LB

The rest of the story...

So, as you have probably figured out, we collided head-on with the truck, the driver of our car died, and my friend was badly injured. They were all taken to Memphis in an ambulance, and I found a ride back to the campus with a news reporter who was covering the accident for the local paper.

Anyway, I came back to my dorm after classes the following Monday and as I entered my room, I heard the phone ringing. It was Coach Poole, the kicking coach, and he said that Coach Kinard wanted to meet with me in the locker room today. I told him I was on my way.

I thought he was going to offer me a scholarship as I sat there in front of my locker waiting for the coach to come by and talk to me. He chatted with many of the varsity guys before he finally came over to talk to me in front of my locker in the freshmen locker room. I was full of excitement, curiosity, and anxiousness as he approached. He said, "We are leaving on a plane Thursday for South Carolina, and if you get free of your scholarship before Thursday, you can be on that plane."

Well, I didn't have the money for that. I told him I'd let him know, but I never returned. I told my parents what happened, and they were sympathetic but didn't have the funds to pull it off.

When I look back today, I wonder if they had tried, or even if I had tried, that maybe someone of the alumnus in town would help-out if they knew the situation, but I nor my parents didn't think of that at the time...or if my parents tried, they never let me know.

I went on to try-out for baseball in the spring, and had a meeting with the head coach, Jake Gibbs. We talked for a few minutes about my high school and American Legion experience, and then he said, "Aren't you that guy that tried out for kicker for the football team?" I said, "Yes, I am."
He replied, "Well, the rules for baseball are the same as they are for football, and I don't have any scholarships to offer right now."

Well, that was just about it for me at Ole Miss, because I still wanted to play ball. So, after one year there, I transferred to MGCJC at Perkinston, MS, and played football and baseball there. I had to go to JuCo and not another university, because of NCAA rules for transfers. 1 year if you transfer to a university outside of the conference, and 2 if you transfer to a university within the conference. If you go to JuCo, then you don't have to sit out at all, so that's what I did.

The story has a happy ending, though, because I met my wife at Perk, and we have been married for 34 year on July 31, and we have 4 wonderful children.(grown-up now)

So...that's about it. Questions?

Whether you think you can or think you can't...you're right!

saintfan

You should get ahold of somebody at the biggest Newspaper you can find and get that story published man. Everybody is so one-sided when they bash everything but the rule that creates the whole mess. Yours is really a story that needs to be told.

st thomas

saint lb, it is horrible what you've been thru bro.like saintfan said someone needs to write that story up big time. its gutwrenching i can back u up when you said not if there was, u knew there was going to be accident. the premonition holds truth. been there done that. and i were the lucky one also.now on the scholarship. just to think of what may have changed your history if they grant you that scholarship. sounds to me you had that job for 4 years. like you said if only the word would have spread to alumi. would you have done what it took to kick nomatter how it came about. anyway great story and seems you have a wonderful life to boot.

thats the fact jack!!!!!