One of the many agents involved in the UNC-Chapel Hill athletic impropriety and academic fraud case has been suspended by the NFL Player’s Association. Gary Wichard, the agent who paid UNC Associate Head Coach and Recruiting Coordinator John Blake thousands of still unaccounted for dollars will not be able represent potential clients for the 2011 NFL Draft.
This entry discusses the national media’s curiosity of the
According to Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports, the NFLPA will suspend agent Gary Wichard for nine months for his improper involvement with former North Carolina defensive tackle Marvin Austin. In other words, Wichard will not be able represent potential clients for the 2011 NFL Draft class and current clients are up in the air.
Robinson also notes that there is "a great deal of frustration" from the NFLPA and NCAA on total lack of communication from North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall. Sources told Robinson the office was "M.I.A." from a morning conference call and has been "silent."
It will be fascinating to see how Marshall reacts to the suspension, if she reacts at all. The university, the NCAA and the NFLPA have all found improper contact between an agent and a player in the the state of North Carolina. Marshall did some saber-rattling over agents not certified in this state contacting player during election season.
The greatest message that can be sent is in this ongoing saga of NCAA scandals would be tangible, lawful punishment. Marshall has an opportunity to send that message. Will she prosecute, or was it just politics as usual?
To be honest, what do these people expect? Marhsall has been very clear that she either doesn’t have the capabilities, competence, or political will to attack this politically sensitive issue. In one of the most corrupt political systems in the country – the North Carolina Democrat Party machine – who would really expect Marshall to open any doors that could potential reveal even more damn evidence for the state’s most powerful political institution – the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
As agent-gate started to evolve this summer, Marshall proved both her incompetence and disinterest in uncovering the truth when she pre-ordained the direction of her supposed ‘investigation’. Before one moment of work was done, Marshall was ‘honest’ enough to share with the public that regardless of where the evidence may or may not lead:
“We’ll be investigating the agents,†Marshall said said. “We will not be investigating the school.â€
How can any investigation be designed to genuinely seek the comprehensive truth about an issue if potential parties to the investigation are deemed off limits before the first piece of evidence is collected? How can Marshall or her investigation have one ounce of credibility if it is rigged before it begins that potential parties to the problem won’t be investigated?
With this said, the NFLPA and NCAA should have known what they were up against from the beginning. At least another component of the ‘rest of the country’ get to experience the incompetent incestuous nature of North Carolina politics.
I encourage you to check out the helpful hints that we supplied Marshall this summer (in this entry) after Marshall touted her office’s “expertise†and ability to investigate agents. (Can’t you tell by all of the results she has delivered!)
All Marshall is doing is following the ‘lead’ of the the UNC Board of Governors in turning away from pursuing any truth that isn’t conveniently revealed in nice, tidy, scripted letters that they choose when to release to the public. And, who is out there to corroborate or dispute the contents of those letters? The local media can’t get their hands on any information. So, whatever Bob Winston, Holden Thorp and Dick Baddour says is what the truth ‘is’.
