Many of you have probably run into discussions of “Agentpalooza”, “Agentgate” or “Agent Orange” as 11W prefers to think of it. For those that haven’t, the NCAA uncovered activities of players from Alabama, UNC, Georgia and South Carolina that suggested they had made illicit contact with sports agents. The premise is that an agent, or several agents, hosted a party in Miami, FL that these student athletes were invited to. Roll Bama Roll has a fairly good article regarding Alabama’s Marcell Dareus’ involvement and why they believe he’s not at fault for the situation. The Bylaw Blog also has a solid piece discussing the nature of student-athlete benefits and the penalties that can result particularly in relation to this situation.
However, an as yet unconfirmed source suggests that Agentpalooza is much bigger than originally imagined. As many as 30 student athletes – most from SEC schools – are reported to be involved in this fiasco. With how many players are reported to have been involved, and the fact that it is spread over several institutions already makes it very likely that other SEC programs could be involved. If true, this kind of involvement from what could turn out to be a majority of schools in the SEC would be an unprecedented example of agent influence on the college ranks. Given the sanctions the NCAA handed down to USC, this could cost several major SEC schools dearly in the long run. We’re not talking about Vanderbilt here, folks. We’re talking “top of the line” SEC football programs here.
Florida is currently looking at a serious problem of their own with former offensive lineman Maurkice Pouncey’s rumored $100,000 benefit. If any Gators were discovered wrapped up in Agentpalooza it could seriously jeopardize Urban Meyer’s program for the next several years as the NCAA may decide to view that as a lack of control by the institution.
We will continue to watch the situation as it unfolds and post updates as soon as information becomes available.
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