re: The Most Awesome Thread about CamGate

The only scenario under which Auburn could lose its accreditation is if Auburn trustees could actually be tied to money that went to pay the Newtons.

Is it so far-fetched to believe that university trustees could actually be involved?

Probably.

But remember these points:

Auburn trustee Bobby Lowder sent the Colonial Bank jet to Louisville in the ill-fated attempt to hire Petrino. Lowder went on to run Colonial Bank into the ground and cost all of us taxpayers $3.7 billion in the sixth largest bank failure in US history. He's still a trustee and still very powerful in Auburn football behind scenes.

In addition, Byron Franklin, another trustee who was actually on the flight to Louisville, is still on the board of trustees as well.

Here is one media report of Auburn's smackdown from SACS:

Auburn University Placed on Probation

"It is a major slap in the face and a loss of prestige for Auburn University's Board of Trustees. Tuesday, the group that Southern Association of Colleges and Schools(SACS), which certifies southern universities for academics and administration put the school on probation. The agency regularly checks schools and colleges and awards accreditation to institutions that earn its seal of approval.

Auburn is still fully accredited, but the sanction imposed by the association is one step short of SACS' most serious punishment -- revoking a college's accreditation. A loss of accreditation would have meant the loss of hundreds of (M) millions of dollars in federal aid for Auburn and its students.

The SACS report noted five problems, most of them related to its board of trustees. The agency does NOT make specific details of its report public -- it only lists the requirements a school has fallen short of.

The problems listed by the report include institutional commitment and responsibility in the accreditation process; conditions of eligibility; administrative oversight and financial control in the athletics department; and alumni affairs.

Auburn released a short statement saying the following:

"Although we are disappointed and surprised by SACS' action and will continue to work earnestly to address any legitimate concerns, it should be noted that Auburn remains a fully accredited institution. The action taken today -- which relates to the past -- does not impair Auburn's or its students' eligibility for federal aid. Auburn University will continue its strong pattern of progress and growth witnessed in recent years."

A university spokesman was quoted by the Auburn Plainsman as saying, "What they(SACS) will do at a later date is provide us with details about where they feel we are in noncompliance and then we'll have to address those."

President William Walker declined comment. The university said there would be no other comments from university officials at this time.

Trustee and state legislator Jack Venable said he had not seen the SACS ruling and declined comment. Trustee Jimmy Rane did not immediately return a phone call from AP seeking comment.

Gov. Bob Riley said his administration would work to ensure Auburn keeps its accreditation.

"As an official recognition of a university's commitment to integrity and quality education, nothing is more important than its accreditation. Therefore, my administration is going to do everything it possibly can to make sure Auburn University retains its accreditation.

I look forward to having the opportunity to review the full report from SACS explaining the basis for its decision to place Auburn on academic probation for 12 months. To this point, I have seen only a brief synopsis, so I will reserve further comment until I have read the report in its entirety."

In April 2001, SACS was asked to investigate the Auburn Board of Trustees. An ad hoc faculty committee asked SACS for "an external, objective, and independent assessment of Auburn University--with special attention to the performance of the Board of Trustees..and shared governance."

Three accusations in particular gained momentum; among the allegations:

* Trustee Bobby Lowder had so much money and clout he could effectively control Auburn's board.
* Trustees Lowder and Lowell Barron had conflicts of interest because they did big business with the university.
* Illegal meetings were held during which big decisions were supposedly made.

Lowder did not return phone calls from WSFA requesting comments.

A judge appointed Richard Bradley to investigate in August 2002. In December 2002, Bradley found the trustees in compliance at the time, but that there were violations in 1999.

SACS asked Bradley to return to the university in 2003 and file a more detailed report. It is the second report which was discussed by SACS at their meeting in Nashville. Auburn officials appeared before the Committee on Criteria and Reports.

A 10-year accreditation review will be conducted by SACS in February 2004. The review was initially scheduled for October.

In June 2004, the school must provide a progress report on the sanctions to SACS for the group's meeting.

In the fall of 2004, a SACS special committee will visit Auburn to examine how the school is addressing the governance issues cited in Tuesday's report.

SACS can decide in December to remove sanctions, continue sanctions, or drop Auburn from membership in the association - in effect, losing accreditation. If the school were to lose accreditation, the school could lose federal funding, could play a factor in whether or not current students get into graduate school, and could make students ineligible for federal financial aid."

Auburn's previous accreditation problems

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They would need to put in a condition that Lowder has to go. He was the one who got them on probation in the first place, yet he's still around.

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its never that simple. he could easily get his cronies put on the board and pull the strings from behind the curtain. the dude is plain evil. he thinks he is doing things in auburns best interest, when, in fact, he is destroying the university slowly.

yep

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Posted by glassman
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They are forcing the NCAA hand.


This would be the dumbest move ever made by an NCAA member institution. This will reverberate into many other schools and be a cloud on the SEC for a long time. Auburn due to their ties with Lowder and his cronies are royally fricked for thumbing their noses to the NCAA/FBI.

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If this is true it can only mean AU is dirty from the top on down.

gotcha...thanks

Another interesting read about Lowder and Bowden's dismissal from AU.

About Lowder's influence

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(Terry )Bowden refused to be interviewed for this story, citing a confidentiality agreement he signed as part of a contract settlement that forbids him from making "negative or derogatory" comments "toward Auburn, the Auburn athletic department or its employees, or the Auburn Board of Trustees, or each other." By keeping quiet, Bowden protected a $620,000 payment, as well as an $825,000 lakeside home and two cars. "Do you know of any other coaches in America who had to sign a contract saying you couldn't say what happened when you were there?" asked Clemson coach Tommy Bowden, a former Auburn assistant under his brother and also Dye.

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Wanting to have a public record in case anything happened to him, Bowden agreed to a lengthy tape-recorded interview with Paul Davis of the Opelika-Auburn News in 2001. In transcripts reviewed by ESPN.com, Bowden said he was so stressed about Lowder during his last year at Auburn that he told Davis, "I'm having my house checked for bugs."

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Is this the same Paul Davis that owns/writes for the Tuskegee news that reported of the wiretaps and federal charges that is linked above? He mentioned the "Pay for play" allegations in October.

if auburn continues to ride cam all the way to the NC and ends up making a mockery of the SEC I'd be all for giving them the boot honestly

Based on what I was told by my very connected State source back in December, Tennessee's name will probably surface in this eventually, but UT will be cleared of wrongdoing. From what I was told close to a year ago, Cecil Newton was claiming that UT had offered cash and wanted State to match the offer. State coaches said no and believed that Cecil was lying about the UT offer in hopes of luring State into paying.

Contrary to popular opinion, my source confidently told me that State pulled Cam's offer the minute the request for money was made and there was little to no communication between Newton and State after the request.

My source has zero knowledge of what Cam/Cecil did or did not do once ties with State were cut with him.

In fact, (and as much as this would disappoint all of us),it is entirely possible that no University, including Auburn, ever offered money nor paid any money. We know for a fact that Cecil was shopping Cam, but there is still little to no evidence at this point that Auburn paid a dime.

It could be that by the time Cecil had burned his bridges at MS St and other schools, Auburn was the only remaining option for Cam. This would potentially explain how Auburn came onto the scene so late.

I hope Auburn burns, but I am warning you, this story may not become as big of a scandal as we want it to be.