[Updated w/ WWL Video] Mayo Received Benefits?
by bucknellbruin on May 11, 2008 8:03 AM PDT
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PrintBumped (w video from WWL). GO BRUINS. -N
A formerly close friend of OJ Mayo said that Mayo accepted thousands of dollars in cash and gifts while at USC.
Former USC basketball player O.J. Mayo, a projected lottery pick in this year's NBA draft, received thousands of dollars in cash, clothes and other benefits in apparent violation of NCAA rules while he was still in high school and during his one year in college, a former Mayo associate told ESPN's "Outside the Lines."
Mayo accepted around $30,000 in cash and gifts during the past four years from Rodney Guillory, a 43-year-old Los Angeles event promoter. In addition to cash, the gifts included a flat-screen television for Mayo's dorm room, cell phone service, a hotel room, clothes, meals and airline tickets for Mayo's friends
Read the whole story here .
First Bush, now this. How much more has to happen before the NCAA does something?
This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of BruinsNation's (BN) editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of BN's editors.
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NCAA plays favorites
And they play the media game. As soon as U$C has a down year (every team does), everything will implode, and more of this will come out. Until that point, though, they’ll keep it low-profile because college sports finds U$C so valuable.
Here’s to hoping CRN can bring that day closer!!
Why is justsc valuable?
What makes justsc more valuable to the ncaa than some other school? If the ncaa gets its revenue from TV appearances by member schools, and from bowl games, etc., if justsc were to get what it so richly deserves (and be blinked into the cornfield by that spooky little kid on the Twilight Zone), why would the ncaa suffer a decrease in revenue? I have never understood this argument. (I am not talking about the bribe money the justsc alumni are giving the ncaa investigators to look not too closely at things.)
At least they're consistent.
Of the schools that are habitually in trouble with the NCAA, it’s usually in one sport, i.e Miami, ‘Bama, OU in football. However, $UC’s cavalier attitude of dismissing the rules that most other schools abide by (or are clever enough to conceal) seems to be across the board in all their programs. It’s like the say about criminals. if they put forth a fraction of the effort towards doing the right thing, they’d be successful.
Any time now
I am waiting for Plaschke to write a column on how Timmeh just like Pom Pom likes to “play by the rules.”
PS: Bucknell … added some tags to your post.
i was waiting for this one
i think at one point throughout the school year he was sitting courtside at a Lakers game with a couple of friends. don’t know if the tickets were a gift or not, but come on.
Mayogate
What?? Don’t all freshmen at the jc in south central have a flat screen in their dorm rooms?
I watched the piece this am and ESPN sure has a lot of evidence – store receipts, Western Union transactions, credit card receipts, eyewitness testimony (though that guy wasn’t too savory himself), and the best, the bogus sickle cell charity that they were funneling the money through in the end. Sure looks pretty obvious that OJ2 was getting paid. There was, however, no evidence that $cjc knew about or participated in any of the illegal payments. Probably a case of the $c compliance officers looking the other way – hahahahaha….
(Sorry, I laughed for a minute after saying “compliance officers” and $c in the same sentence).
Anyway, does anyone know if the NCAA can punish $c if there is no proof that the school -hahahaha (sorry, again) knew about any illegal activities. But can anyone really believe that OJ himself didn’t know that all this was illegal?. Well, outside of any $c alumni?
Oh, and the NBA tickets were a “gift” from Carmelo Anthony, who coincidentally is represented by the same marketing agency that OJ just hired and that is the alleged source of his illegal income.
greg in denver
Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilty?
So wait, some guy who fell out of Mayo’s favor decided to go to the press with a over the top story? He probably has no bias* or ulterior motives whatsoever. Although the situation may have been shady, they can’t really pin anything on Mayo if money was being funneled to his friends. Moreover, USC, the Pac-10, and the NCAA have been keeping close watch on him (anybody remember the ticket incident) and I doubt something of this magnitude would have gotten by all of these groups. Add to that the fact that Mayo’s stock has been rising as of late because NBA team’s background checks have been coming up green, and basically you’re grasping at straws to actually get anybody on anything.
There’s a reason this stuff appeared on OTL and not the front page as soon as it broke, the story has no substance. Why wasn’t it on SI, CBS sportsline, or Sporting News? It may end up on these sites because of this ESPN piece, but a news item this big would not have gone under the radar this long. Mark my words, nothing will be pinned on USC or Mayo.
*In all fairness, if I’m going to talk about bias I should say that I am an SC fan
by Laughing Stock on May 11, 2008 12:54 PM PDT reply actions 1 recs
Seriously
When I first read this gem I thought you were a UCLA fan posing as a Trojan to provide us pure comedy. But you are an actual TrOJan. rofl
We will leave your comment up because it is so perfect. Thanks for this. It’s priceless comedy.
by Nestor on May 11, 2008 1:04 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
Did you watch the piece? Did you read the article?
They had receipts showing what the guy was buying SC. They had interviews with store clerks who said that the guy was there with Mayo and picked up the tab. There is proof there and do you think it’s just a coincidence that a talent like OJ wasn’t offered a scholarship by over half of the major schools? Everyone knew he wasn’t an amateur, USC just didn’t care. I’m going to assume you just can’t read because I’ve had SC fans who aren’t so blind to obvious evidence.
by Ryan Rosenblatt on May 11, 2008 1:06 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
Denial is the first step
in the 12 step program. Just remember that.
What’s damning to me is the fact that all this occurred after the Reggie Bush fiasco over at USC. The compliance office is either too stupid or too lazy to vet athletes prior to their arrival on campus. There’s a point at which willful ignorance becomes complicity. USC is rapidly approaching that threshold.
And here’s a news-flash for you: everyone involved in sports marketing and their agents are goombas. So, the guy’s shady. I would be less inclined to believe him if there weren’t already all these issues surrounding Reggie Bush.
Another thing to consider
May be it’s not stupid or lazy compliance office. May be it’s the top admin. staff at Southern Cal who do not have the political will or ‘testicular fortitude’ to take on athletic programs supported by their boosters?
Are we sure there is a compliance office?
Has anyone actually tried to find such an office at USC? And if you have, are you sure there were actual people working there and not just cardboard cutouts?
There is one for sure
And they earn their money by finding loopholes in every provision and help their PR machine figure out how to spin one scandal after another (for i.e. note how they recently spun the loss of their two hoops scholie per APR scores). Losing scholarships due to bad APR? No problem. Hire one of the player’s Dad into the staff and free up a scholarship. No problem.
Very Polite of you
“Testicular Fortitude”
Nestor, I have never heard it quite worded that way. Probably in the same book as “Rectal Craneal Inversion.
That’s just way too funny.
You may be thinking of the 5 stages one goes through when confronted with death...
These are the 12 steps adapted from the AA 12 steps:
Step 1 – We admitted we were powerless over our addiction – that our lives had become unmanageable
Step 2 – Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity
Step 3 – Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood God
Step 4 – Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves
Step 5 – Admitted to God, to ourselves and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs
Step 6 – Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character
Step 7 – Humbly asked God to remove our shortcomings
Step 8 – Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all
Step 9 – Made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others
Step 10 – Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it
Step 11 – Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood God, praying only for knowledge of God’s will for us and the power to carry that out
Step 12 – Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to other addicts, and to practice these principles in all our affairs
If you replace God with NCAA and shortcomings with Pete Carroll/Tim Floyd you have a pretty good step by step manual for USC to follow in order to fix their athletic department.
Whatever happened to reading comprehension?
Listen up, Junior.
You are part of the problem. In a sense, you are just as guilty and dirty as the corrupt trOJan administration that turns a blind eye to all of this, because you do not speak up. Furthermore, you are even worse because you actually enable this behavior by making excuses for it. And not just any excuses, lame unfounded excuses that show that you either did not watch the video or read the accompanying article, thereby invalidating any opinion you would have on the issue.
There’s a reason why we call you cheaters. It is because it’s TRUE. There are schools and fanbases that care about integrity. UCLA is one of them. SUC clearly is not. Pull your head out of your ass, because your username is incredibly appropriate.
It's hard to use words of only one sill a bell
But I guess that is what you real smart just sc guys need.
The truth is plain to see, but not if your eyes are shut. “To Cheat” and “SC” are one and the same. It has been that way for a long time, ‘cause guys like you do not care for the truth. (It is real hard to use words like this. I give up.)
It’s called being in denial. You wouldn’t believe it if OJ2 and bu$h confessed. That’s why you’re a trOJan and always will be. Now go find a UCLA grad to translate these polysyllabic words for you.
One sound at a time
Fox’s monosyllabic trojan condemnation perfectly represented thoughtful analysis: relevant accusations accompanying accurate data, presented intelligbly, assuming basic comprehension abilities.
greg in denver
In All Fairness..
...you do have a point, but only to a point. A clearly disgruntled former “associate,” if you will, is apparently the main source of preliminary information for this story. However, what is happening now shows that there is much, much more than just this individual’s “word” for much of what he is saying occured.
I think that you’d have to agree that If a young up-and-coming star who was presented to your NCAA school’s atheletic program as being from an impoverished home and family starts sporting expensive clothes & jewlery, driving a nice new car, flying his friends places, etc., there are some immediate questions that need to be not only asked, but fully and completely answered. Suspicion is expected and profound when the obvious questions were neither asked nor answered by the right people—the coach, the A.D., the “compliance officer.” That is the front door of responsibility here.
The NBA doesn’t care because, frankly, they have absolutely nothing to lose…and really, neither does Mayo. It is U.S.C. that could stand to lose due to this, and that is precisely why they should have asked the questions in the first place.
Thank you for your candor about being a USC fan, it is appreciated. I am curious about something: if this same series of facts and events involved a UCLA basketball player--honestly now—what would your reaction be, and what would you write on a USC fan blog?
Love My Bruins
by Bruingirl83 on May 12, 2008 10:19 AM PDT up reply actions
We have seen how SUCsters react, two years ago....
SUCsters were out in full force talking about how Farmar would have to go pro and couldn’t come back to UCLA for his junior year because he was taken to a Laker game. Fast forward to the present, and it is OK for OJ2 to go to Laker games and for the coaching staffs to turn a blind eye to thousands in gifts when it is on their side of the fence.
The lack of institutional control over there is an embarrassment to collegiate sports, and the level of hypocricy by their fans is astonishing.
by bornagainbruin on May 12, 2008 10:32 AM PDT up reply actions
Hmmm...
I don’t remember the Farmar incident – what came of it?
Nothing
because the Laker game took place AFTER we had lost to Florida and 1 week BEFORE Farmar declared for the draft.
by bornagainbruin on May 12, 2008 12:06 PM PDT up reply actions
did u see his face
did see ojs expression on his face when asked about receiving benefits from Rodney Guillory
I thought it was more telling
When he was asked at the press conference if he had signed with an agent.
by bruinbabe2000 on May 11, 2008 4:31 PM PDT up reply actions
U$C and the Sergeant Schultz Defense
Fellow geezers and younger viewers of TV Land will remember Sergeant Schultz on the old t.v. program Hogan’s Heroes who used to always say “I know nothing, I see nothing, I hear nothing” whenever Hogan and his pals were pulling a fast one on the Nazis. I think Mike Garrett and Timmeh are rehearsing that defense right now. It seems very clear to anyone who reads the ESPN story on the internets and/or watches it on t.v. that Juice Deuce received improper benefits. The written story is more detailed than the program. The whistleblower may be shady and may have an axe to grind, but what about the store clerks who witnessed all of the purchases? The whistleblower’s story is very detailed and is corroborated in many different ways. Even the street agent, Mr. Guillory, didn’t deny it when given the opportunity to do so, he just said “no comment” a bunch of times. The question is what did $C know, and when did they know it (fellow geezers know that as the “Watergate question”).
I think the problem for $C in using the Schultz defense is that they have a history with Guillory. He was apparently involved in giving improper benefits to former TrOJie Jeff Trepagnier, who wound up being suspended for receiving them. Now, if $C were really concerned about this sort of thing, Mr. Guillory and any player he “represents” would be persona non grata around the $C athletic department. Nevertheless, he was the one who made the contact with Timmeh and who was present when the letter of intent was received from Juice Deuce. Timmeh apparently dealt with Guillory directly regarding matters relevant to Juice Deuce. This sounds like a “lack of institutional control” to me. In the immortal words of our President, “Fool me once, shame on you! Fool me twice…., well, I won’t get fooled again!”
But I’m not holding my breath regarding any punishment. The NCAA seems to be a toothless tiger these days, more concerned about illegal phone calls to recruits than folks getting paid.
by bruin7982 on May 11, 2008 6:27 PM PDT reply actions 1 recs
Wow but what difference does it make?
A good article from Pat Forde on ESPN:
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=forde_pat&id=3390757&sportCat=ncb
Anyway, no one can be surprised by this. USC Compliance is nonexistent. The thing is, right now USC has suffered exactly nothing from the Reggie Bush scandal and Reggie still has his Heisman. I am sure football analysts are getting ready to praise Pete Carroll for what an amazing job he has done or what a “tight ship” he runs at USC like they have every.single.year.
Reggie Bush got to keep all that stuff he got from his benefactors, he’s now making millions in the NFL as a mediocre RB and has flavor-of-the-month arm candy as a girlfriend. Does anyone doubt it will be any different with OJ Mayo?
They should be nailed to the wall, and hey they might one of these days – but it will be long after the program has declined because the NCAA is not going to risk sanctions on these teams in their good years. They will lose the chance to go to the playoffs in years where they weren’t going to anyway. But there will be nothing of consequence for these programs. Thats just how the NCAA works.
well
the only argument might be that SC doesn’t treat their basketball program with nearly the same care as they do their precious football program. but like someone touched on earlier, even though this dude seems shady and obviously has it out for this Guillory rolling with Mayo, he’s got an obscene amount of evidence, and yeah, that Sickle Cell nonprofit is both shameful and incriminating, even if it has nothing to do with this case at hand. did anyone else see the deer in the headlights look on Guillory’s face when they confronted him? priceless.
geez
as i’m re-watching it, Rodney Guillory just looks like BAD NEWS. he just looks like one of those shysters in bad movies, who always have a look of bad intention on their face. and THIS is the dude OJ Mayo put all his trust in? his mom kinda figured it out, but ultimately stuck with an unknowing 18 year old’s intuition. i know people knock our school for having too high a bar academically for athletes (whatever that means), but this is the reason why. if our athletes are smart enough to play ball at UCLA, they’re smart enough to realize what a bottom-feeding leech a guy like Guillory is. i just want to see him in one bit of footage where he doesnt have that stupid conniving look on his face.
I FINALLY get it
I just watched the video, and now I understand why it was OK for OJ2 to get lots of money to play basketball at justsc. It was his “circumstances.” He was poor, so it was OK for him to violate the “guidelines.” (Hmm. I thought they were rules, but I digress.) He wasn’t as complicit as the others because of his circumstances.
I now understand how the justsc compliance department works. If the “student athlete” has “circumstances,” or I suppose if he just wants some money or other benefits, then it’s OK. It’s apparently only a violation if the “student athlete” doesn’t want the money but takes it anyway, or if he has “circumstances.”
But I still don’t know how much a guy with “circumstances” has to be paid before he no longer has “circumstances.”
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