Conquest Chronicles

How the NCAA probation helped USC | Heisman Pundit

2012-05-16T02:00:04Z

How the NCAA probation helped USC | Heisman Pundit

Good read here...

Ivan Maisel reminices about the late Paul Dee

2012-05-16T01:00:10Z

I didn't know Paul Dee.

I would venture to guess that many outside the upper echelons of the NCAA didn't know Paul Dee either.

At least not the Paul Dee that Ivan Maisel describes here...

Former Miami athletic director Paul Dee, who died Saturday night at age 65, was a gentle man and a gentleman who loved his university and served it in various roles for three decades. Dee, an attorney by trade, shunned the spotlight and valued loyalty. He brought back former ‘Canes assistant Butch Davis as head coach. He promoted assistants Larry Coker and Randy Shannon as his next two hires. USC fans never forgave him for his role as chair of the NCAA Committee on Infractions when it ruled on the Reggie Bush scandal. Yet those who knew him knew a man of integrity and a good guy.

I vehemently disagree about Dee being a man of integrity.

His famous quote of "high-profile players demand high-profile compliance" will live on forever...especially when a mere fifteen months later, the very university that Maisel claims that Dee loved so much was caught in a scandal that was far greater than the one that Dee hammered USC for.

Dee feigned ignorance in saying the following...

"We didn't have any suspicion that he was doing anything like this," Mr. Dee said last August while referring to Shapiro.

Really?

After all the money Shapiro gave the university, with all the unsupervised access he had and with all the time Shapiro spent with UM players off campus. Are we supposed to believe that Dee was really on top of things?

Hurricane football was really the only game in town for many years. Even when Marino was with the Dolphins. Miami has been in the same type of spotlight that USC has been in, so why wouldn't there be high-profile compliance of the city's most high-profile sports program?

The Paul Dee that Ivan Maisel describes is significantly different than the public face that many people remember Paul Dee for.

Dee hired Butch Davis? The same Butch Davis who was one of the main players in UNC football scandal?

Dee may have been a great husband and father. He may have been loyal to his school but a number of moves he made while he was the chair of the COI will remembered as heavy handed and hardly respected.

I met Ivan Maisel last year at the Pac-12 Media days in NYC. He was cordial enough and was pleasant to this peasant blogger but he is way off base here. Maisel might want to refer to his fellow ESPN colleague Ted Miller on the Paul Dee that many of in the CFB world remember.

USC was hardly blameless, but when stood up against Ohio State, UNC certainly Miami, what USC "should have known" is hardly all that.

Dee was not a man of integrity, Dee was not a gentle man in his position on the COI. Dee was hypocrite and an opportunist who desecrated the very oath he took when he became a lawyer when he threw due process out the window and allowed his investigators to fabricate and use hearsay evidence to nail a program that was winning and having a lot of fun doing it.

Dee is hardly the example of integrity that I would ever point to.

I wanted to see Dee humiliated in a deposition. I wanted him embarrassed by the NCAA investigation of Miami.

I won't get to see that.....His soon to be turned over emails will live on long and should expose him for exactly what he was.

That is good enough.

Player Development 2012: Grading the Journey from High-school Recruit to the NFL - Black Heart Gold Pants

2012-05-16T00:59:38Z

Player Development 2012: Grading the Journey from High-school Recruit to the NFL - Black Heart Gold Pants

This is an interesting take...

USC Men's tennis moves into Sweet 16 after blanking A&M

2012-05-15T20:47:00Z

Facing Texas A&M in the second round the Trojans won 4-0 to move to the third round at Athens Georgia, playing on friday at 9:00. USC took the doubles point with two 8-4 victories at #1 & #2 doubles, then Senior Steve Johnson got the first singles point with a 6-2, 6-1 win. Then super sophomore Ray Sarmiento winning at #2 singles with a 6-1, 6-4 showing, finally freshman Robert Quiroz clinching the match with a 6-1, 6-3 win at #6 singles. Next up for the 29-1 Trojans is the #16 seed Illinois a 4-3 winner over Auburn, winner to match up with Baylor (unseed sleeper) or #8 Duke. 2012 NCAA BRACKET and women's 2012 NCAA BRACKET

[1] USC 4, Texas A&M 0

Marks Tennis Stadium - May 13, 2012

DOUBLES

(1) #2 S. Johnson-Quiroz (USC) def. #37 Ore-Withrow (Texas A&M) - 8-4

(2) #35 Nguyen-Sarmiento (USC) def. Klegou-Hoover (Texas A&M) - 8-4

(3) Gomez-Hanfmann (USC) vs. Angus-Lewis (Texas A&M) - 6-5 susp.

USC wins doubles point.

Order of finish: 1, 2

SINGLES

(1) #1 Steve Johnson (USC) def. #33 Alexis Klegou (Texas A&M) - 6-2, 6-1

(2) #25 Ray Sarmiento (USC) def. Junior Ore (Texas A&M) - 6-1, 6-4

(3) #21 Daniel Nguyen (USC) vs. Colin Hoover (Texas A&M) - 6-2, 4-3 susp.

(4) #57 Emilio Gomez (USC) vs. Jeremy Efferding (Texas A&M) - 5-7, 2-2 susp.

(5) #51 Yannick Hanfmann (USC) vs. John Lewis (Texas A&M) - 7-5, 2-4 susp.

(6) Roberto Quiroz (USC) def. Jackson Withrow (Texas A&M) - 6-1, 6-3

Isaac commits to USC

2012-05-15T18:02:03Z

Isaac commits to USC

Got a running back

USC women lose to Stanford, 6-4, in water polo championship

2012-05-14T22:20:53Z

USC women lose to Stanford, 6-4, in water polo championship

Bummer for the ladies

USC Tennis: Women win 1st & 2nd rounds, Men win 1st round

2012-05-13T19:49:00Z

The USC women's team beat Fairfield 4-0 in the 1st round, then take down Vanderbilt 4-1 in there 2nd round match to advance to the round of 16 at Athen's Georgia starting May 17. It has been awhile since they have made it to the final rounds site, this as the #5 seed and #4 ranked team in the nation with a 22-3 overall record. After working hard to take the doubles point from Vandi, Valeria Pulido started things off at #6 singles with a 6-0, 6-0 bageling of Megan Gornet, the next point went to Vandi at #3 singles, Sabrina Santamaria a 6-2, 6-3 loser to Marie Casares. Now ahead 2-1 the Trojans took #2 singles when Danielle Lao beat #94 Lauren Mira 6-2, 6-3 to go ahead 3-1 and USC need just one point with 3 matches remaining. So here comes USC's #4 player Kaitlyn Christian to finish off the Commodores with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 win over Ashleigh Antal to take the match and move to the round of 16 against 25-7 Baylor.

The men beat Fairfield 4-0 in their first round match on saturday and play Texas A&M today at Marks stadium on the USC campus at noon, sorry but maybe you can still catch singles action since this will be a contested match. The men won the doubles quickly with 8-2 and 8-1 victories at #1 & 2, getting the first point. Then it was on to the singles where #1 Steven Johnson with 6-0, 6-1 win over Dan Sauter, next was Ray Sarmiento at #2 single with a 6-1, 6-0 win over Ian Testamond putting the trojans ahead 3-0. Then it was freshman Yannick Hanfmann winning at #4 singles 6-2, 6-2 over Dennis Zlobinsky to clinch the match.

USC 4, Vanderbilt 1

Marks Tennis Stadium - May 12, 2012

DOUBLES

(1) #3 Christian-Santamaria (USC) def. #30 Wu-Mira (Vanderbilt) - 8-6

(2) Antal-Casares (Vanderbilt) def. #42 Pulido-Scandalis (USC) - 8-6

(3) #75 Lao-Ramos (USC) def. Radeva-Gornet (Vanderbilt) - 8-2

USC wins doubles point.

Order of finish: 3,2,1

SINGLES

(1) #14 Zoe Scandalis (USC) vs. #42 Jackie Wu (V) - 7-6 (5), 4-1, susp.

(2) #19 Danielle Lao (USC) def. #94 Lauren Mira (V) - 6-2, 6-3

(3) Marie Casares (V) def. #26 Sabrina Santamaria (USC) - 6-2, 6-3

(4) #89 Kaitlyn Christian (USC) def. Ashleigh Antal (V) - 3-6, 6-3, 6-1

(5) Gabriella DeSimone (USC) vs. Nelly Radeva (V) - 6-2, 4-6, 0-3, susp.

(6) Valeria Pulido (USC) def. Megan Gornet (V) - 6-0, 6-0

Order of finish: 6,3,2,4

[1] USC 4, Fairfield 0

Marks Tennis Stadium - May 12, 2012

DOUBLES

(1) #2 S. Johnson-Quiroz (USC) def. Sauter-Zlobinsky (Fairfield) - 8-2

(2) #35 Nguyen-Sarmiento (USC) def. Michalisin-Kremheller (Fairfield) - 8-1

(3) Gomez-Hanfmann (USC) vs. Amyot-Tesmond (Fairfield) - 6-3 susp.

USC wins doubles point.

Order of finish: 1, 2

SINGLES

(1) #1 Steve Johnson (USC) def. Dan Sauter (Fairfield) - 6-0, 6-1

(2) #25 Ray Sarmiento (USC) def. Ian Tesmond (Fairfield) - 6-1, 6-0

(3) #57 Emilio Gomez (USC) vs. Joe Michalisin (Fairfield) - 6-1, 1-1 susp.

(4) #51 Yannick Hanfmann (USC) def. Dennis Zlobinsky (Fairfield) - 6-2, 6-2*

(5) Roberto Quiroz (USC) vs. Erik Kremheller (Fairfield) - 6-1, 4-1 susp.

(6) Eric Johnson (USC) vs. Cameron Amyot (Fairfield) - 6-0, 5-1 susp.

Order of finish: 1, 2, 4

Paul Dee passes away aged 65

2012-05-13T19:09:37Z

Paul Dee passes away aged 65

The University of Miami has announced that Paul Dee has passed away today at the age of 65.