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Manziel memorabilia 'all over the place' at national convention
August 5, 2013 6:14 pm ET

As Johnny Manziel faces potential eligibility concerns over whether he received money for signing autographs, his presence was prevalent at a Chicago-area autograph convention last week.

Several different autograph dealers were selling stacks of Manziel autographed 8x10 and 11x14 photos accompanied with a Professional Sports Authenticator, a rep with an autograph business attending a National Sports Collectors Convention told CBSSports.com.

Autographs for several high-profile college athletes are currently on eBay, not just Manziel. But the Manziel photos were packaged as if they came from scheduled signings with vendors, the rep said, with the signature in the same place on each photo. Manziel memorabilia was "all over the place" during the convention in Rosemont, Ill., that ended Sunday.

“It's rare for this quantity and quality to be out there (from a college athlete),” said the rep, who spoke on condition of anonymity and whose company has been in the autograph business for more than a decade. “At these shows if we see one or two signatures from guys still in school they could have been signed in person with no compensation. There were a number of different dealers at this show all with stacks of (Manziel) photos, all certified as if they came out of a signing. I've really never seen that from a guy still in school.”

To be sure, it's unclear whether Manziel directly has received compensation for his autographs while at A&M. On Sunday, ESPN reported Manziel agreed to sign memorabilia in exchange for a five-figure flat fee while in Miami for the national title game in January.

An autograph broker from the Southeast on Monday told ESPN that Manziel's friend/personal assistant Nate Fitch said Manziel would not be signing autographs for free after signing about 250 items during the season.

Manziel is expected to practice with A&M this month but was not available to the media as the Aggies opened camp Monday. Coach Kevin Sumlin said his staff found out about the investigation Sunday and that A&M is gathering facts.

The NCAA likely will be looking for a paper trail from a dealer to Manziel, but according to a sports attorney with knowledge of the NCAA's investigations, the enforcement staff can build a case with circumstantial evidence since the NCAA's standard of proof is not the same as a criminal standard.
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It actually makes sense somewhat for him to sign a bunch of stuff for free.
The more stuff out there, the less all the stuff is worth. So if he floods the market with valid memorabilia, those people will make less and less from what they have.

The trick with the NCAA is that they really do have to prove he accepted money. And if they rule him inelilgble for the year, he will likely immediately join the OBannion lawsuit and the NCAA would be in deep doo doo. With Manziel, they can show how much money the NCAA is making and keeping from athletes and it's a high probability they lose the lawsuit and millions if not billions of dollars.

The NCAA is probably going to tread lightly with Manziel in all likelyhood. Don't be surprised if A&M offers a 2 game suspension plus Manziel paying back the money (assuming he did it) and the NCAA accepting it.
 
http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_...johnny-manziel-took-7500-autographing-helmets

On the videos, which the broker said were recorded without Manziel's knowledge, ESPN heard Manziel say "you never did a signing with me" and that if the broker were to tell anyone, he would refuse to deal with him again in the future. Manziel, who appeared comfortable throughout the video recordings, also said if asked, he would say he had simply been approached by various autograph seekers.
At one point, ESPN heard a broker ask Manziel if he would take additional cash to sign with special inscriptions, but Manziel declined, indicating he had done that before and it led to questions. The video does not show Manziel accepting cash, which the broker alleges happened three times. The broker told ESPN Manziel said he wanted money for new rims for his vehicle.
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Now another broker has come forward saying he paid JM $7500 on 3 different occasions for signings and has video of him signing. Still no record of cash being given, but this isn't good.

Here's my problem with Manziel and his dad. They gave an interview talking about how everyone was profiting off of JM except him. But some of these incidents are alleged to have happened before Johnny even won the Heisman and the Aggies were even pushing Manziel to everyone. Selfish dude and a lying phony if he's doing all this crying about not making money while making money.

These guys are exploited somewhat, but everyone knows the rules. Just rule him ineligible and move on at this point.
 
Texn4life said:
Now another broker has come forward saying he paid JM $7500 on 3 different occasions for signings and has video of him signing. Still no record of cash being given, but this isn't good.

Here's my problem with Manziel and his dad. They gave an interview talking about how everyone was profiting off of JM except him. But some of these incidents are alleged to have happened before Johnny even won the Heisman and the Aggies were even pushing Manziel to everyone. Selfish dude and a lying phony if he's doing all this crying about not making money while making money.

These guys are exploited somewhat, but everyone knows the rules. Just rule him ineligible and move on at this point.
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Might have been him rationalizing what he was allegedly doing.
 
One other problem A&M has is that it might have to vacate wins from last year. If Johnny was getting paid during the season for signings then its not just as simple as him being ruled ineligible for this coming season. Damn I hate this for the rest of those kids at the school. Its really not fair to them at all.
 
Stemp said:
The NCAA is probably going to tread lightly with Manziel in all likelyhood. Don't be surprised if A&M offers a 2 game suspension plus Manziel paying back the money (assuming he did it) and the NCAA accepting it.
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Come on Stemp...

That's not happening. If Manziel is found to have taken money, the NCAA is not going to allow A&M to impose a meager 2 game suspension and just have him give the money back.

He likely won't be playing for A&M anymore if any of this is true.
 
The Johnny Football Saga now on DVD .

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Rey said:
Come on Stemp...

That's not happening. If Manziel is found to have taken money, the NCAA is not going to allow A&M to impose a meager 2 game suspension and just have him give the money back.

He likely won't be playing for A&M anymore if any of this is true.
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That's a big if. There is still no proof he did anything wrong (esn doesn't even have the video) and the "accusers" who are basically scum are refusing to talk to the NCAA or go on the record.

And yes, manziel joining the obannon lawsuit is a big deal. If the rule him ineligible he has nothin stopping him from joining it and the NCAA is even closer to losing a lot of their cash flow considering how proven his value is.
 
Stemp said:
That's a big if. There is still no proof he did anything wrong (esn doesn't even have the video) and the "accusers" who are basically scum are refusing to talk to the NCAA or go on the record.

And yes, manziel joining the obannon lawsuit is a big deal. If the rule him ineligible he has nothin stopping him from joining it and the NCAA is even closer to losing a lot of their cash flow considering how proven his value is.
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As dumb as Manziel has been during the last year I really think its only a matter of time before proof is provided that he was paid. Dumbest smart college player I've seen in a long, long time and I'm a fan of his on the field.
 
I have several questions regarding this Manziel situation. here's a few:

1) supposedly he signed in Miami around the national championship timeframe where he received a 5-figure fee. One source said he signed once before the game and came back after for a second round. Other source says it was just once.

2) supposedly there's a separate event with a different broker in Connecticut where he received $7,500 and signed memorabilia 3 seperate times during January 11-12th timeframe.

3) supposedly he spoke with A&M's compliance department (unknown date?) and expressed he has never signed memorabilia to anyone with the expressed interest of selling said signatures for profit. Ie regardless of any few paid to Manziel... That he didn't sign period.

So I'm wondering if it comes to light to A&M that he did in fact sign autographs with a broker (even if Manziel didn't pocket any money), then he lied to A&M University Officials. A separate potential suspensible offense from the NCAA investigation.

Also wondering if NCAA does infact find sufficient proof he got paid from the brokers if, each time he signed (4-5 occurrences) would end up potentially being accounted for as separate offenses.
 
This is Johnny Manziel's manager. A 20 year old kid who's not in college and who act's like he's, well, 20. Pictures and tweets in the article as well.

http://bustedcoverage.com/2013/08/05/this-is-johnny-manziels-manager-uncle-nate/#photo=3

If you’ve been following the Johnny Manziel saga, you know of a shadowy figure known as Uncle Nate (UncleNateFitch – Instagram). You might remember the name from last week’s Wright Thompson piece where Paul Manziel, Johnny’s father, says that the family hired Nate Fitch, a college student, to be Johnny’s manager.

It was also mentioned that Uncle Nate dropped out of college to become Manziel’s manager. It should also be noted that Uncle Nate is one of Johnny’s best bros.

That’s right, the Manziels hired one of Johnny’s best bros to be his manager and be responsible for a Heisman Trophy winner who might have a drinking problem (his father’s words) and likes to be 20. As for Uncle Nate, he drives expensive cars, wears Rolex watches & ladies love him.

So it should come as no surprise that Uncle Nate was allegedly in a hotel room with Johnny Pageviews over BCS weekend where Pageviews allegedly signed numerous autographs for a dealer, according to ESPN.
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houstonspartan said:
We need to understand something about the Manziel family. They are not merely wealthy. They are filthy, astonishing, rich. They have Texas oil money, and when we're talking Texas oil money, we are talking about billions and billions of dollars that lasts for generations, and will likely never run out. Ever.

Johnny likely doesn't care because he likely has a trust in which he'll eventually inherit $100 million or so in a few years. He he doesn't care if he makes it in the NFL because he'll still be a rich douche that can do whatever he wants. AND, he'll be able to be a multi-millionare without putting his body through a career as an athlete. The guy is a lazy, entitled douche, and doesn't care about anyone else.

It's sad, but, it's probably how he thinks.
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I coukdnt care less about silly instagram pics and tweets from a twit. thats what people do, big deal but this signing autographs for cash is just such a dumb move. i don't think jm is lazy but I do think he feels he's untouchable. That's the only way I can come up with a legit reason why he would risk so much for so little. I mean If he wasnt wealthy and if he really needed the money I'd see why he'd sign for cash. But he's well off. Good for him and his family but if he did this it is idiotic.
 
http://lubbockonline.com/stories/100...075-4584.shtml

Businessman indicted on cocaine trafficking charges
Published: Thursday, October 03, 2002

TYLER (AP) - An East Texas businessman who owns a concert hall was free on bond Thursday after he was indicted on cocaine trafficking charges.

Bobby Joe Manziel's Oil Palace in Tyler has been a venue for rock and country acts such as Don Henley, George Jones and Merle Haggard.

Manziel, 63, was arrested Wednesday by FBI agents at his downtown office after a federal grand jury handed up a two-count indictment. The businessman and Jimmy Stanton of Red Oak are charged with one count of conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute and distribution of 500 grams to 5 kilograms of cocaine.

A second count accuses the pair of aiding and abetting each other in the actual possession with intent to distribute and distribution of the drug, said U.S. Attorney Matthew Orwig.

Manziel's bond was set at $100,000 by U.S. Magistrate Judge Harry W. McKee. The businessman was later released and faced arraignment at 10 a.m. Friday. A pretrial hearing was also set for Nov. 12 before U.S. District Judge Leonard Davis.

Each defendant, if convicted, faces a prison sentence of up to 40 years and a fine up to $2 million on each count.

According to the indictment, Manziel used or intended to use his residence and surrounding property as well as his 2002 Chevrolet truck to commit or facilitate the drug offenses.
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Ok, this was 10 years ago. Something isn't right with the manziel family. Seems like for a family of wealthy people they do and say some wacky stuff.

It just seems strange for manziels dad to be complaining or even mentioning a&m exploiting his son for money. I get he is a big star now...

But if I'm rich AND my son is going to school for free, he's turned into a big star...the last thing I'm going to be worried about is the school "exploiting" him. At least I wouldn't be talking about it in the context that he did.

And then you have bobby joe manziel selling drugs. Or allegedly going to sell drugs.

And you have johnny supposedly selling autographs. Are they filthy rich or not? Because that seems like odd behavior for people with legit money unless they are really built on crime, feel supremely entitled, not very bright, or not as rich as we're lead to believe.
 
This is gonna get messy and the NCAA is going to be in a sticky spot.
That OBannon lawsuit is looming larger and larger.

SB Nation is reporting that PSA has records of 258 consecutively signed Clowney items in its database.

I’m sorry South Carolina fan.

It’s not like I wanted to drag Jadeveon Clowney’s name into the Johnny Manziel autograph mess, but your stud has 19 autographed items for sale by a dealer who is selling numerous Johnny Football autographs.

Top-rated seller the_hub_collectibles has 100% feedback and has been an eBay member since 1998. This dealer has 19 Manziel items currently for sale, including multiple helmets and footballs. Most of the 19 Clowney items are personalized with “Go Cocks.”

All of the items are certified from PSA/DNA.

...

Teddy Bridgewater is a nice guy, too (via @AggieZach10). Who wants non-personalized items?

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http://bustedcoverage.com/2013/08/07/johnny-manziel-autograph-dealer-has-19-jadeveon-clowney-items-on-ebay/
 
Oh man... this just gets stickier.

The "broker" accusing Manziel of accepting money is also a drug dealer.

There are 3 brokers now that have been involved with getting Johnny Manziel to sign autographs for them, but the main one who is accusing Johnny of accepting cash & videotaping him giving questionable answers is Drew Tieman. Go ahead & search for him on Facebook. You won’t find him. He has deleted his page, but we saved it before he did:

He lists former Miami Hurricane football players Sinorice Moss & Kenny Phillips as two of his favorite athletes. Some of his “likes” include “NBA on TNT,” the Miami Dolphins, Shaq, Drake, & “Tebow crying.” He also likes “SportsCenter,” As you will see further in this article, his favorite TV shows & movies are all mob/drug dealer related, as he mimics the likes of “The Sopranos,” “The Wire,” “Scarface,” & “Goodfellas.” We got a true cliche poser on our hands here….
[imgwidthsize=350]http://newsball.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/drew-tieman-manti-teo.jpg[/IMG]
Aside from his current role of trying to derail young Johnny Manziel’s college career by making him ineligible to defend his Heisman title, he has a knack for marijuana arrests. Not your normal little bit of weed type of arrest, rather, not only possession of over 20 grams, but distribution too making Mr Tieman a weed dealer to go along with his sports memorabilia dealing
& at least 3 car crashes involving $40,000 of damage:
[imgwidthsize=350]http://newsball.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/TiemanCriminal.jpg[/IMG][imgwidthsize=350]http://newsball.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/mugshot2tieman.jpg[/IMG]
[imgwidthsize=350]http://newsball.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/mugshot1tieman.jpg[/IMG]
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http://newsball.com/drew-tieman-is-the-broker-accusing-johnny-manziel/
 
"Report: Brokers might have ‘ax to grind’ against Manziel, family"

"The question many have wondered since ESPN revealed the NCAA is investigating Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel might now have been at least partially answered: What might prompt anonymous memorabilia brokers to come forward with stories that Manziel took money for autographs? What do they have to gain? Nothing, apparently, but some might hold a grudge toward Manziel and his family for allegedly cutting into their business."

http://blog.chron.com/sportsupdate/...to-grind-against-manziel-family-2/?cmpid=hpts
 
Rey said:
Ok, this was 10 years ago. Something isn't right with the manziel family. Seems like for a family of wealthy people they do and say some wacky stuff.

It just seems strange for manziels dad to be complaining or even mentioning a&m exploiting his son for money. I get he is a big star now...

But if I'm rich AND my son is going to school for free, he's turned into a big star...the last thing I'm going to be worried about is the school "exploiting" him. At least I wouldn't be talking about it in the context that he did.

And then you have bobby joe manziel selling drugs. Or allegedly going to sell drugs.

And you have johnny supposedly selling autographs. Are they filthy rich or not? Because that seems like odd behavior for people with legit money unless they are really built on crime, feel supremely entitled, not very bright, or not as rich as we're lead to believe.
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They're filthy rich. But let's not assume that money is the only motivation for doing strange things. A lot of very wealthy people just have strange eccentricities, and do things just for the heck of it. A lot of them simply do things because they can. When you have everything handled to you, the lines of what is "normal" and what is not is blurred.

Aaron Henandez was a multi-millionaire, and yet he could not leave his thug life behind. Why? He didn't need the money.

Let's not assume that rich people have it all together. A lot of them don't.
 
houstonspartan said:
They're filthy rich. But let's not assume that money is the only motivation for doing strange things. A lot of very wealthy people just have strange eccentricities, and do things just for the heck of it. A lot of them simply do things because they can. When you have everything handled to you, the lines of what is "normal" and what is not is blurred.

Aaron Henandez was a multi-millionaire, and yet he could not leave his thug life behind. Why? He didn't need the money.

Let's not assume that rich people have it all together. A lot of them don't.
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I rese......mble that remark
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- Lindsay Lohan
 
djohn2oo8 said:
Six sources and counting say Nate Fitch ran Manziel autograph business

http://fansided.com/2013/08/08/mult...e-nate-ran-johnny-manziel-autograph-business/
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And not a single one is willing to step forward and go on the record.
Most of these dealers are scumbags to begin with and everything to date has been from anonymous sources involved in questionable practices.

This who scandel might be true but at this point all the "reports" Are just unconfirmed accusations that frankly anyone can make anything.

I mean seriously. I could put up a bunch of fake memobilia on eBay, call one of these guys and claim some big named player accepted money from me for autographs and they would probably run with it. They've admitted they don't independently verify the accusations nor do they have any actual proof.

Espn is becoming the tmz of sports news.
 
Stemp said:
And not a single one is willing to step forward and go on the record.
Most of these dealers are scumbags to begin with and everything to date has been from anonymous sources involved in questionable practices.

This who scandel might be true but at this point all the "reports" Are just unconfirmed accusations that frankly anyone can make anything.

I mean seriously. I could put up a bunch of fake memobilia on eBay, call one of these guys and claim some big named player accepted money from me for autographs and they would probably run with it. They've admitted they don't independently verify the accusations nor do they have any actual proof.

Espn is becoming the tmz of sports news.
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Great post, but especially the bold.

I do tend to disagree slightly, as I think Johnny is dumb enough to have accepted money for autographs even though his family is loaded and he has never been in need of anything in his life. Just look at the company he keeps. If Johnny keeps hanging out with the Uncle Nates of the world, he is going nowhere but down.
 
Stemp said:
And not a single one is willing to step forward and go on the record.
Most of these dealers are scumbags to begin with and everything to date has been from anonymous sources involved in questionable practices.

This who scandel might be true but at this point all the "reports" Are just unconfirmed accusations that frankly anyone can make anything.

I mean seriously. I could put up a bunch of fake memobilia on eBay, call one of these guys and claim some big named player accepted money from me for autographs and they would probably run with it. They've admitted they don't independently verify the accusations nor do they have any actual proof.

Espn is becoming the tmz of sports news.
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Do you think Schad just made up the contents of that video?
 
You mean ESPN, who has been doing their best to tear down Manziel during the off-season is doing that again?

Wake me up when something of actual substance happens, such as a press release from the NCAA or TAMU. Darren Rovell is a piece of crap "journalist" and I have no problem with not believing his "journalism".

And as far as the actual act of getting paid to sign some autographs, I say, so ****ing what. I didn't think Tattoogate or that Cam Newton stuff were any kinds of high crimes so why would I think this Manziel **** is any different?
 
Dan B. said:
Do you think Schad just made up the contents of that video?
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Do you realize that Schad and Rovell (who are the drivers of this story) are some of the least respected members of the "media"? These guys are notorious for jumping to "report" a piece of gossip or an accusation and then when it comes out they were completely wrong just ignoring it and moving on. Even TMZ at least TRIES to get it right.

Schad has even said in interviews that he doesn't understand why people want to know his sources or whether they are trustworthy.

So yeah, I wouldn't put it past them to report things they "think" they heard and it come out later that it was not even close.
 
http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/blog/dennis-dodd/23070728/ncaa-to-exit-business-of-selling-school-related-online-items

This is a direct result of sites (i.e. Deadspin) pointing out the hypocrisy.

Note whose jersey is featured.

The NCAA will "exit" the business of selling player and school related memorabilia and apparel on its branded website, NCAA president Mark Emmert said Wednesday.

That site -- ShopNCAASports.com -- had come under fire this week for selling ... 1) jerseys identified by individual players, 2) the autograph of a player who was a central figure in NCAA case (Reggie Bush) and 3) Penn State videos of a game that had been vacated by the association in the Sandusky scandal.
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Playoffs said:
John McClain ‏@McClain_on_NFL
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I like "Johnny Cash" myself but both are pretty nice.

Stemp, I have a hard time seeing what complaining about ESPN, counting Clowney's autogaphs on EBay, or pointing out that autograph brokers are disreputable people is going to accomplish.

ESPN's "Outside the Lines" reported that the NCAA is investigating three different brokers' claims that Manziel traded thousands of autographs for at least $10,000. Was ESPN lying? Making it up? They then reported that one broker was in possession of a video in which Manziel tells the broker that if anyone asks, he was never there, that he was just signing items for individual fans, and he and the broker never met. He then said if the broker said anything he would never work with him again. Again, your explanation is "he made it all up?" Yet another reporter for ESPN is saying it's at least six different sources. He's making it up too I guess?

I don't believe you'd accept that argument for anyone else. If ESPN broke the news that the NCAA was investigating Javon Clowney would you accept the number of items from JFF on EBay as proof of innocence? Would you just say "Joe Schad and every other reporter there is a joke, nothing to see here..." Would you justify it because the NCAA's system exploits athletes?
 
Dan B. said:
I like "Johnny Cash" myself but both are pretty nice.

Stemp, I have a hard time seeing what complaining about ESPN, counting Clowney's autogaphs on EBay, or pointing out that autograph brokers are disreputable people is going to accomplish.

ESPN's "Outside the Lines" reported that the NCAA is investigating three different brokers' claims that Manziel traded thousands of autographs for at least $10,000. Was ESPN lying? Making it up? They then reported that one broker was in possession of a video in which Manziel tells the broker that if anyone asks, he was never there, that he was just signing items for individual fans, and he and the broker never met. He then said if the broker said anything he would never work with him again. Again, your explanation is "he made it all up?" Yet another reporter for ESPN is saying it's at least six different sources. He's making it up too I guess?

I don't believe you'd accept that argument for anyone else. If ESPN broke the news that the NCAA was investigating Javon Clowney would you accept the number of items from JFF on EBay as proof of innocence? Would you just say "Joe Schad and every other reporter there is a joke, nothing to see here..." Would you justify it because the NCAA's system exploits athletes?
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Let's get all the facts out there....

- In 2012 the Manziels trademark "Johnny Football" and start shutting down people who are profiting using said trademark.
- As part of this process, eBay ends all the auctions and sales of anyone who used "Johnny Football" and goes further by banning many of those sellers for 2 weeks. Obviously this hurts the cash flow of many people who are profiting from college players.
- Rovell reports NCAA is investigating Manziel for accepting a "5 figure fee" ($10,000+) to sign memorabilia.
- 2 days later, Joe Schad is contacted by a "broker" that says Manziel accepted $7,500 and says he has videos showing him signing his memorabilia as is asking for $80K for the videos. These videos were made illegally in CT.
- Schad looks at the videos but they don't show any wrongdoing by Manziel and ESPN declines to purchase the videos. The guy says he's ok with talking to ESPN,but won't talk to the NCAA.
- Schad says in the video he hears the guy offer manziel money to personalize autographs and Manziel declines. No one knows what was actually said so all the descriptions are based on Schad's recollection and interpretation.
- ESPN pushes the narrative that there is a large amount of sequentially numbered authentications by various brokers and that is unique to Manziel items being offered.
- Reports surface that "broker" who spoke with Schad has many arrests against him including dealing drugs.
- Schad now says it has numerous brokers from across the country who say Manziel (or his buddy) accepted money for signatures.
- Reports surface that this broker among others have large amounts of signed items by many big name college players.
- Pictures start to surface from the other big name players signing large amounts of items.
- USC, Louisville and Ohio State say they have investigated and they all clear their players.
- Reports surface that the there are large amounts of sequentially numbered authentications for other college players,which counter ESPN's narrative that this was unique to Manziel.
- Reports surface that the various "brokers", including the one with the video are all connected to each other and they may have placed large bets on Alabama prior to coming forward to ESPN.
- There is still no evidence whatsoever that Manziel accepted money for signing.
- Every accusation made, except by the one arrested for dealing drugs, was made anonymously to ESPN by people in a very shady business and who refuse to speak on the record to anyone.

So what does this all boil down to? Johnny, Clowney, Bridgewater and others have signed large amounts of memorabilia which is being authenticated and sold by "brokers". Were they paid? Maybe but there is no evidence of it. And the accusations are being made by shady people, who may have a motive to screw over Manziel because of what happened on eBay and whose profession it is to get college players to somehow sign a bunch of stuff so they can sell it for a profit, which is against NCAA regulations.

If this were another school's player being targeted, I probably wouldn't care much and certainly wouldn't take as much interest. But yes, I would question Schad and Rovell since they have proven they have little, if any, journalistic integrity and I would question the accusations of shady brokers who hide behind anonymity and an illegally made video that no one can see and that the one person who has seen it says nothing on it shows any wrongdoing.
 
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Ok, this is from a guy I know who is an A&M insider who runs one of the major A&M message boards (not TexAgs). What he says makes sense.

At this point, I have no idea what is fact, what is fiction, what is legal mumbo-jumbo, what is conspiracy, how many people do it, etc.

At this point, I think that's what all parties want. If the truth becomes confusing and fuzzy, all major parties have an out and win.

1) The organization on the hottest seat is the NCAA. They no more wanted to deal with this issue because of the pending lawsuits. They also don't want to see the most marketable player in college football sidelined, especially for the biggest game of the year. In addition, A&M and Manziel have lawyered up and the NCAA enforcement group have been decimated in recent months with defections. They simply don't have the resources or the expertise to deal with legal resources on the other side.

2) CBS wants Johnny to play in the Alabama game...period. They also want to see their competitor, ESPN, get negative publicity for this story.

3) ESPN's junior investigative reporter thought he was going to make his career with this story and he came out of the gates guns a-blazing. But the more this story lingers, the more the ESPN brass is wondering why they want to scuttle their biggest storyline of the year and where they will be on 9/14...the A&M-Alabama game. ESPN management doesn't seem to have the stomach to pursue this much longer.

4) A&M wants this to go away for so many obvious reasons, but it doesn't help that these questions have arisen during the Kyle Field capital campaign. Plus, from a sports standpoint, the football team and many other teams like basketball and baseball are bringing in a bunch of critical recruits for the big Alabama weekend. The weekend falls flat without manziel on the field.

5) The biggest invisible hand that we haven't talked about much is Mike Slive and the SEC Conference. If you don't think they aren't putting pressure on the NCAA and ESPN to drop this, then you under-estimate the power of Slive.

Bottomn line, whether you like what has happened or not...whether you believe Manziel is innocent or not...whether you think the college game has become too dirty and too commercial...people want to see the A&M-Alabama game with Manziel. THose that dislike Manziel want to see Alabama and Nick Saban get their revenge. Manziel fans want to see him show the naysayers and haters that he is still the magical playermaker and take down mighty Alabama again.

And thus, networks, advertisers, SEC conference officials, NFL scouts, and yes even the NCAA wants this game in all it's glory with Johnny Manziel participating.

Really, the only complication is that the NCAA needs a path to exit this investigation without looking inept and weak. They simply don't want to drop the investigation without any findings or closure. So that's why I'm assuming the lawyers in the room are discussing ways to end this saga quickly that gives Manziel back to Texas A&M and the college football industry while also making the NCAA look like an equal partner in the final resolution.

I don;t know what that is, because I'm not sure that a one game suspension solves the issues for the NCAA. I'm not sure Team Manziel will be agreeable to ANY suspension now that it looks like some of the brokers used to push this story have shown their own warts and don't look like credible "witnesses".

So for me, the only issue is what is the path of exit for the NCAA that doesn't make them look weak. I'm sure the lawyers will craft some "compromise" that is agreeable to all parties, and we will still get what we want....Alabama vs. Texas A&M with Johnny Manziel leading the Aggie offense.
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Meh........ While I believe it's all bull****, I also believe the NCAA is all about making money.

Have no mistake, Johnny Manziel will be under center for A&M this season.

When has the NCAA ever really moved fast during investigation?? (Again, money is involved).


That said, if the NCAA makes too big of a deal over this, doesn't it only turn the public's perception even more towards the fact that student athletes should be allowed to make a dollar off their likeness while the universities make millions???? This includes video games, no?

What about the customized jersey fiasco???
 
Stemp said:
Remember what I said about ESPN and Rovell?Apparently it came out today there is no active investigation by the NCAA nor any formal allegations.


http://www.kvia.com/news/el-paso-attorney-jim-darnell-has-history-of-taking-ncaa-cases-expects-johnny-manziel-to-start-in-game-1/-/391068/21396392/-/fmv2r1/-/index.html
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"I can't say much," Darnell told USA TODAY Sports, "other than we're working through the process. He's cooperating with the investigation. We think when all this comes out on the other end, he'll be the starting quarterback for the Aggies against Rice."
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http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...el-family-hires-attorney-jim-darnell/2633405/

So the lawyer the Manziels hired "weeks ago" (ie before the ESPN story broke) because they weren't being investigated is saying that Manziel is cooperating with an investigation that doesn't exist?

Or is it that USA Today sports is biased and Greg Schroeder is making it all up?
 
Johnny Football appears to = Cam Newton.

If the NCAA profits no sanctions will be forthcoming.

However if the Horns fall to 2nd tier in recruiting you can bet the NCAA will come calling. Ask the Ponies how this will turn out.
 
Texan_Bill said:
Meh........ While I believe it's all bull****, I also believe the NCAA is all about making money.

Have no mistake, Johnny Manziel will be under center for A&M this season.

When has the NCAA ever really moved fast during investigation?? (Again, money is involved).


That said, if the NCAA makes too big of a deal over this, doesn't it only turn the public's perception even more towards the fact that student athletes should be allowed to make a dollar off their likeness while the universities make millions???? This includes video games, no?

What about the customized jersey fiasco???
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Why didn't all of these A&M fans back Auburn during the Cam Newton investigation or the OSU Pryor/Posey investigation?

Homerism?
 
Stemp said:
Let's get all the facts out there....

- In 2012 the Manziels trademark "Johnny Football" and start shutting down people who are profiting using said trademark.
- As part of this process, eBay ends all the auctions and sales of anyone who used "Johnny Football" and goes further by banning many of those sellers for 2 weeks. Obviously this hurts the cash flow of many people who are profiting from college players.
- Rovell reports NCAA is investigating Manziel for accepting a "5 figure fee" ($10,000+) to sign memorabilia.
- 2 days later, Joe Schad is contacted by a "broker" that says Manziel accepted $7,500 and says he has videos showing him signing his memorabilia as is asking for $80K for the videos. These videos were made illegally in CT.
- Schad looks at the videos but they don't show any wrongdoing by Manziel and ESPN declines to purchase the videos. The guy says he's ok with talking to ESPN,but won't talk to the NCAA.
- Schad says in the video he hears the guy offer manziel money to personalize autographs and Manziel declines. No one knows what was actually said so all the descriptions are based on Schad's recollection and interpretation.
- ESPN pushes the narrative that there is a large amount of sequentially numbered authentications by various brokers and that is unique to Manziel items being offered.
- Reports surface that "broker" who spoke with Schad has many arrests against him including dealing drugs.
- Schad now says it has numerous brokers from across the country who say Manziel (or his buddy) accepted money for signatures.
- Reports surface that this broker among others have large amounts of signed items by many big name college players.
- Pictures start to surface from the other big name players signing large amounts of items.
- USC, Louisville and Ohio State say they have investigated and they all clear their players.
- Reports surface that the there are large amounts of sequentially numbered authentications for other college players,which counter ESPN's narrative that this was unique to Manziel.
- Reports surface that the various "brokers", including the one with the video are all connected to each other and they may have placed large bets on Alabama prior to coming forward to ESPN.
- There is still no evidence whatsoever that Manziel accepted money for signing.
- Every accusation made, except by the one arrested for dealing drugs, was made anonymously to ESPN by people in a very shady business and who refuse to speak on the record to anyone.

So what does this all boil down to? Johnny, Clowney, Bridgewater and others have signed large amounts of memorabilia which is being authenticated and sold by "brokers". Were they paid? Maybe but there is no evidence of it. And the accusations are being made by shady people, who may have a motive to screw over Manziel because of what happened on eBay and whose profession it is to get college players to somehow sign a bunch of stuff so they can sell it for a profit, which is against NCAA regulations.

If this were another school's player being targeted, I probably wouldn't care much and certainly wouldn't take as much interest. But yes, I would question Schad and Rovell since they have proven they have little, if any, journalistic integrity and I would question the accusations of shady brokers who hide behind anonymity and an illegally made video that no one can see and that the one person who has seen it says nothing on it shows any wrongdoing.
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Stemp, I wish I could rep you for this but, msr.

I bolded some of the key parts for those who don't like to read long posts. This story has gotten so complicated, it is hard to follow.

Here is a letter written by a texags poster that has been sent to various ESPN reporters:
Mr. XXX,
You are one of my favorite reporters. You are fair, you are honest, and you speak your mind. Your colleague Darren Rovell did an irresponsible thing. NCAA investigations are serious. They affect teams, they affect players, they can ruin careers. When the Manziel story came out I did a ton of research into past cases (Miami, Cam Newton, etc.) to see how long approximately an investigation would take. It was rumored that if the NCAA investigation wasn't complete then A&M may not play Manziel.

I researched the biggest NCAA investigations over the last several years and noticed the mention of a Notice of Inquiry (NOI). What is this? The NCAA gets tons of reports every year (ie. I call the NCAA tomorrow and say I saw X player accepting 40k). The NCAA works with the schools compliance department to look into these issues. There are 100s of these type of interactions done throughout the season. It is NEVER referred to as an NCAA investigation. If the NCAA feels that there is a reason to pursue one of these reports they will file a Notice of Inquiry (NOI) with the school identifying the allegation and list of potential interviewees.

From the NCAA site linked below:
Once the staff receives credible information that a potential major violation occurred, an investigation begins with interviews both on and off campus. A common misperception about enforcement staff interviews is that investigators try to intimidate subjects. That doesn’t happen.

Note here that the NCAA doesn't refer to an initial report (the Manziel situation) as an investigation.

A notice of inquiry has not been sent to Texas A&M. The media said Manziel was being investigated. Again, in my research using the word investigation has always been after an NOI has been received by the school.

I know investigative reporting is not your bag, but I urge you to at least pass this along. The Manziel case was made bigger than it was and the media, fans, and the entire college football world was under the impression the NCAA was investigating Texas A&M(ie. had given the school a NOI). Even the lead insider for Aggie sports (Billy Liucci) was under that impression. Please clarify on the national stage or pass along this info to someone who will.


Helpful Links for Story:

Verify no NOI has been sent?
jcook@athletics.tamu.edu

Overview of NCAA Investigation Process?
http://www.ncaa.org/wps/wcm/connect/public/NCAA/Enforcement/Process/Investigations

Clarification of Exact Steps in an NCAA investigation?
http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/young_lawyers/yld_annual_demystifying_the_ncaa_materials.authcheckdam.pdf

Past examples of Notice of Inquiry= investigation and being the media standard?
Cam Newton Case- http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/columns/story?columnist=schlabach_mark&id=5767910
Miami- http://www.miami.edu/index.php/ncaa_investigation/
Oregon- http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/24156338/32036697
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