Bribery Scandal - FBI Probe - Book Richardson Involved

[CatFanOneMil]

Phelps hasn't been found guilty of anything, but you put him on admin leave for one reason and that's to make Sean Miller's program and leadership look inept, so you have the grounds to fire him. It doesnt matter if Phelps is guilty or not, the optics will already make it look bad enough to where you sell the fact that you have to let him go.

This is pure garbage guys and quite honestly possibly the death of Arizona basketball as this won't sit well with any of the donors, especially with what Miller had coming in. Fucking heads will roll.

If that's correct, that is just horrifying decision making.

Is there a way to email Heeke or Robbins? That level of cowardice and incompetence is ridiculous. There is no justification for dropping over a million on an investigation of Miller, letting time elapse and building a case for his firing from some other BS.

If that's actually what it is, **** the admin.

Well... if that's what's happening (and it's hard to believe), Robbins won't be for long in his position.

What else could they be doing? This is just the most bizarre timing. It concerns me this appears indefinite too.

Why suspend early in the process like this? Hell, it's like we learned nothing from UNC's aggressiveness with the NCAA.

I think it goes back to the Pinder thing last year, the NCAA did not handle that and if they have been given the green light to start investigating the FIRST thing they look at is where we have had infractions and what we did about them...this is the only thing we have on the table so it is naturally the first thing they go to and the obvius course of action is the suspend WITH PAY the coach in question until they determine if our our own internal audit did the right thing.

[pc in NM]

Dismaying, regardless of any underlying facts....

I don’t believe that the mere fact of administrative leave could/would be used against Miller. Most likely it’s just an abundance of caution to remove any appearance of lack of institutional control. I suppose there is a remote possibility the administration knows something that the NCAA does not yet know, but in that case, I would expect some more definitive action would be likely.

I’m unclinching, for now....

However if either the (for now, paranoid) hypothesis that somehow the AD/Pres were conspiring against Miller proved to be true, OR, if Miller were proven to have been guilty (I still can’t believe that), I think I’d just be done with collegiate sports, period...

... I’m too old, and life is too short.

[Chicat]

Bruce makes it seem that this is like when Phelps was suspended prohibitively for the plane ticket while Scheer is making it seem like Heeke and Robbins are about to self-impose the death penalty.

[84Cat]

[Irish27]

[Chicat]

Fired? What happened to suspended with pay?

[Irish27]

[catgrad97]

Whoa, whoa, whoa...half an hour ago he was being announced as "suspended with pay."

Thirty minutes later, he's being canned? WTF is this bureaucratic crap?

[Spaceman Spiff]

Uh, the article didn'r change, but the headline sure did.

[CatFanOneMil]

Arizona needs to fucking sue Mark Schlabadick

[Irish27]

[PHXCATS]

Phelps has now fucked up twice when he has to be perfect. I agree with letting him go

[SabinoDrifter]

I can see him being fired because he lied about what happened and they're making him an example. Just a hunch.

There are people in the ABOR who are leaking things to Goodman and Thamel - they want Miller out. So whatever spin they put on what happened with Phelps, take it with a grain of salt.

[Spaceman Spiff]

This is a ****show. What an embarassment.

This is like setting up a lack of institutional control argument for the NCAA and how fast is this trigger being pulled?

[CalStateTempe]

Yup spiff...my thought exactly.

And unc gets away for fake classes.

[CalStateTempe]

Sucks because I don’t trust heeke to make a good basketball hire

[AZCatGirl]

Great leadership.

[CalStateTempe]

Heeke is managing perception and doing a shitty job at that.

[Lando05]

Sucks because I don’t trust heeke to make a good basketball hire

What good coach would want to work for Heeke if he succeeds in torpedoing his own basketball program. UNC and KU have way worse evidence out there and yet thier schools went to bat 100% to protect the programs and coaches at all costs. If Heeke is unable to that he needs to go!

[Spaceman Spiff]

Great leadership.

Well, it does seem like they'll find something.

[Beachcat97]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

[AZCatGirl]

Well, it does seem like they'll find something.

And when they hand down punishment, none of the coaching staff or players around will have had anything to do with it.

[phxcat23]

What if during our own internal investigation something came up with Phelps but that information was withheld because Arizona knew the FBI would be working for a while and the NCAA already said it wasn't going to do anything until FBI was done. Now that NCAA has started to investigate, Arizona admin knew they'd have to bring up the incident with Phelps and try to self report before the NCAA found out?

[phxcat23]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

Any bad media is definitely not helping. Just continues to paint the program as a place that doesn't do things the right way. Not a good image to have.

[ChooChooCat]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

[CalStateTempe]

Lmao...so I read the tea leaves correct...power play heeke v Miller.

Welcome to CMU basketball folks.

[phxcat23]

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

If that's the case, just get it over with and can him. Why play the mind games and let it be a slow bleed. If that really is the case, these people have too much time on their hands to think all of this up.

[Spaceman Spiff]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

Then I'd tell you I'm pretty much done with this university's AD and President.

[dovecanyoncat]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

So you burn the boosters/donors for all the committed $ ? How does that figure into any viable future?

[CalStateTempe]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

Then I'd tell you I'm pretty much done with this university's AD and President.

Yup.

[Longhorned]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

I'd say that's a guess on someone's part. Because there's no way the president or AD is telegraphing that motive.

[ChooChooCat]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

So you burn the boosters/donors for all the committed $ ? How does that figure into any viable future?

I didn't say it had any kind of quality logic to it.

[Irish27]

[ChooChooCat]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

I'd say that's a guess on someone's part. Because there's no way the president or AD is telegraphing that motive.

That's a very accurate take. It is an educated guess however. Playing the optics game is totally in effect.

[CalStateTempe]

God I’m so ready for vitale to take his dirt nap.

[Irish27]

[dovecanyoncat]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

So you burn the boosters/donors for all the committed $ ? How does that figure into any viable future?

I didn't say it had any kind of quality logic to it.

In the absence of logic generally greed and fear rule. This smells of fear, but I don't know shit. It just doesn't appear to set up any harvestable outcome that serves greed, unless it just about pointless control.

[Longhorned]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

I'd say that's a guess on someone's part. Because there's no way the president or AD is telegraphing that motive.

That's a very accurate take. It is an educated guess however.

Upper administrators do some very stupid things. But when they do, the media put them on blast, and the faculty get rid of them or force them to resign. We think of how the sports media treats coaches. That's nothing compared to the real media.

[phxcat23]

I really hope CSM is a witch, testifies, was in on this whole thing and helped the FBI, and just takes everyone down that made us look bad. Starting with Schlafach, vitale and all of the other haters.

[dmjcat]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

I'd say that's a guess on someone's part. Because there's no way the president or AD is telegraphing that motive.

That's a very accurate take. It is an educated guess however. Playing the optics game is totally in effect.

Just Curious Choo, do you still think the UA has nothing to worry about regarding the NCAA investigation/FBi scandal??

From where I sit we now have 2 of Millers assistants who have broken NCAA rules (Book pleaded guilty and Heeke in effect pleaded guilty for Phelps).

Add in the fact that the NCAA has clearly stated the head coach is responsible for his assistants (they actually took action in the offseason to strengthen those rules) and I really can't see a realistic path for the UA to go unscathed. If Miller/UA manage to avoid NCAA sanctions then Sean really is a witch.

Personally, I'm not counting on that #1 class making it to Tucson this fall.

[Olsondogg]

If Miller stays, that class stays.

[catgrad97]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

So you burn the boosters/donors for all the committed $ ? How does that figure into any viable future?

I didn't say it had any kind of quality logic to it.

In the absence of logic generally greed and fear rule. This smells of fear, but I don't know shit. It just doesn't appear to set up any harvestable outcome that serves greed, unless it just about pointless control.

In these times, especially, administrators are a weak, protective lot. And Heeke, at least, appears to be cut from that same cloth. This is his effort to restore his measure of control over the program he sees as too much of a headache.

And Choo, if any of your inferences about the optics of this move are close to accurate, it means that Miller's bosses are giving him about as much backup as a jellyfish. And they're listening to idiots on the ABOR over him or any of the other people in our actual program.

This is how you kill the goose that has laid 35 years of golden eggs, folks. One power play at a time.

[CalStateTempe]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

I'd say that's a guess on someone's part. Because there's no way the president or AD is telegraphing that motive.

That's a very accurate take. It is an educated guess however.

Upper administrators do some very stupid things. But when they do, the media put them on blast, and the faculty get rid of them or force them to resign. We think of how the sports media treats coaches. That's nothing compared to the real media.

Tucson media with this whole shit show since last year regarding miller has been “here hold my lighter, I have some duraflame logs out back, lemme bring ‘em”

[CalStateTempe]

I don’t like your use of the word “if” odogg...

[ChooChooCat]

Anyone feeling good about Nico and JG not asking out of their LOIs?

What if I told you you make this Phelps move to make the recruits uneasy and want to pull out that way the boosters are less likely to want to keep Miller because that #1 class is gone. Fucking morons playing checkers when they think they're playing chess....

I'd say that's a guess on someone's part. Because there's no way the president or AD is telegraphing that motive.

That's a very accurate take. It is an educated guess however. Playing the optics game is totally in effect.

Just Curious Choo, do you still think the UA has nothing to worry about regarding the NCAA investigation/FBi scandal??

From where I sit we now have 2 of Millers assistants who have broken NCAA rules (Book pleaded guilty and Heeke in effect pleaded guilty for Phelps).

Add in the fact that the NCAA has clearly stated the head coach is responsible for his assistants (they actually took action in the offseason to strengthen those rules) and I really can't see a realistic path for the UA to go unscathed. If Miller/UA manage to avoid NCAA sanctions then Sean really is a witch.

Personally, I'm not counting on that #1 class making it to Tucson this fall.

Phelps isn't guilty of a God damn thing. Dave Heeke being a colossal pussy doesn't change that until the NCAA says otherwise.

[CalStateTempe]

So you fire Phelps, paint miller into a corner, and expect everything to be a-ok.

Shit man, heeke just bravehearted-climax scene Arizona basketball. Fuck that guy.

[CalStateTempe]

Millers gonna walk. We all know how he responds to disloyalty.

Man, fuck heeke.

[dmjcat]

If Miller stays, that class stays.

Ummm, No.

If Miller stays, AND the UA doesn't get hit with sanctions, then the #1 class stays.

I can't see Nico and Josh wanting to play on a team not eligible for the tourney.....especially since they may be one and done.

[Olsondogg]

If Miller stays, that class stays.

Ummm, No.

If Miller stays, AND the UA doesn't get hit with sanctions, then the #1 class stays.

I can't see Nico and Josh wanting to play on a team not eligible for the tourney.....especially since they may be one and done.

Sanctions are coming when exactly?

Someday?

Who the fuck knows what the ncaa will do. Next year starts in 8 months

[dovecanyoncat]

In these times, especially, administrators are a weak, protective lot. And Heeke, at least, appears to be cut from that same cloth. This is his effort to restore his measure of control over the program he sees as too much of a headache.

And Choo, if any of your inferences about the optics of this move are close to accurate, it means that Miller's bosses are giving him about as much backup as a jellyfish. And they're listening to idiots on the ABOR over him or any of the other people in our actual program.

This is how you kill the goose that has laid 35 years of golden eggs, folks. One power play at a time.

Pardon my naivete, but my question is: too much of a headache compared to what? A basketball program struggling through years of backwater recovery? Is that something to include on an AD's CV? Is his reputation better served by going the Kill Miller's Program route? Perhaps it's just a dick measuring contest, but if that's the case then, damn. What a waste.