Bill did I read that right? He failed 2 drug tests and he's going to be allowed to play because a STUDENT judiciary hearing granted him the right to play? Aren't there any team rules or is it just university policy? Are there SEC rules?
Gipper, several factors are at play here and I doubt we ever know the who story due to cofidentiality rules. But so far as I know there are no rules by the SEC or NCAA as to length of suspension for infractions, but the school does have to have a policy. Florida does and to the best of my knowledge it is stricter than most. Marcus was suspended for game one, played game two and three and now has sat out games four and five while it was under review. and it was out of the coaches hands in the hands of a university committe that was non athletic in nature and the result was him being reinstated after two games. As to failing two tests there was a qustion as to the timeline and could the second positive test have been as a result of the first offense. I doubt we will ever know everything that happened, but I am personally satisfied that the process in place was fair.
For things like this there are no rules, its what ever the school wants to do. Technically he could have played in every game, the Gators certainly would have endured a tremendous amount of public scorn if they had played him and released the fact that he had failed a drug test. Or they could have done what Erickison used to do at Miami, he'd get the results of a failed drug test and throw it away. Sapp failed a number of tests while at UM, Erickson never held him out for any game, but the test results were never released so at the time nobody outside the program even knew he failed them. I don't think he would have been treated differently at Texas or any other B12 program. Terry
I've got it now. He missed the S. Miss. Ky. and Ala. games but somehow got to play in the Tenn. and LSU games. Seems to me that the testing is a waste of time and money.
Seems to me Gipper that you are missing the point. He served a one game suspension for the first test and then played two games, after which the results of the 2nd test were in and he was then suspended again and that suspension was determined to be two games after a hearing by a non athletic department committee. And if it was not for his mother talking to the press we would probably not known what was even going on. As I said, I'm satisfied and would remind you he did miss the Alabama game which was no gimme.
Oh oh Tom, the Gators better perform. Hey I would have picked Tenneessee this weekend if they had been on the list.
Gip I think if you standard is that he would be at min be suspended for the year then yeah I guess they are a waste of money. The only school in the NCAA that would have suspended him for the year is Notre Dame. I can't think of another school that would have automatically suspended him for the year. That's just the way it is. Ramonce Taylor probably would have survived his marijuana bust at Texas if he hadn't had do damn much of it that it was a felony. Terry
Doc I doubt that Army, Navy and AF would put up with a player who failed 2 tests. Just how many strikes do you think that they get at BYU? So you think that the only school that would find a problem with this is ND? OK.
Gipper, I'm sorry but you have no idea what those other schools would have done becuase you or I or no one else here has the whole story and never will. From being familiar with the Gator program through the years, there have been suspensions longer than this one and there have been good players kicked off the team. The fact that this one was less leads me to believe there was more to the story. I know I won't convience you but that's the way I see things.
Gip you named a pretty small group of schools. I don't disagree with you as to your point, it's just that for every 1 school you can come up with like Army, Navy or Air Force I can come up with 10 who wouldn't be that tough. I'm not saying it's right, I'm just saying what's real. Hell JoePa had a QB who played the whole year while under indictment for assault on a Police Officer...now he was exhonerated at the end, but he wouldn't have played at ND. Terry
Sounds to me like you have already speculated plenty here gipper so maybe you qualify as a professional? :shock: :shock:
Terry, You have your facts wrong on 2 of 3 accounts. 1. Rashard Casey was never indicted. 2. Penn State's office of Student Judiciary Affairs not Joe Paterno , decides on a student athlete's status. Rashard did get a handsome settlement from the City of Hoboken for malicious prosecution. The police officer in question( a drunkard), is no longer is a police officer and is now divorced after several years of midnight carousing. Chief La Bruno is still there and still an loud mouth azzhole who doesn't get along with anyone in Hoboken's political circles. http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_149419.html
AJ, Sorry about the misinformation, I was just going off of fuzzy memory that he played with an assualt hanging over his head. I'll take your word for who decides things at Penn State, but my memory of that incident was that Paterno stood up for Casey and wasn't going to let him not play his Sr. year. I seem to remember Joe saying publically that he'd personally done some investigating of the incident and felt like Casey was innocent. But there is no doubt in my mind that at Notre Dame that if a player is charged with an assualt he is going to sit down till that is cleared up. Mack Brown sat down Tarrell Brown before the biggest game of the season because he was charged with possession of marijuana and a gun. Later he was exhonerated on both charges and he's back with the team. But the Longhorns sure could have used him against Troy Smith, he was/is our best CB. I personally think it is the right thing to do...but certainly others see it differently and I don't lose any sleep over it. Terry
Terry, Joe not only stood up for him, but went out on a professional limb publicly defending him which he never does for anyone else. Had Joe been wrong, his coaching career would have probably ended and his reputation permanently scarred. That he was willing to sacrifice his reputation and 50+ year legacy for one player is something that I truly admire. It says a lot about his values and his willingness to stand up for what is right. It's not like he is Bobby Bowden who defends every thug before him.
And here's one person who thinks Paterno did the right thing. It would have been a real miscarriage of justice for the player to have missed the whole year for a charge that never came about and was just plain wrong. I think judgement enters into all these decisions and it was the same for Marcus Thomas, the athletic department did not make this judgement, the wheels of justice within the University of Florida did.
Here's another article that puts a bit more light on the situation, Thomas claimed the second result was still because of one night of partying this summer. I guess the committee either agreed or at least thought it had enough merit to limit the suspension. More On Marcus Thomas