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Thanks to you taxpayers, Stallworth can pay back agent
Commentary by DAVID CLIMER
Senior Writer
Your tax dollars at work:
• $980 for a Sacramento-to-Knoxville airline ticket;
• $151.92 for car rental for one day;
• $82 in cell phone calls;
• $48.60 for dinner for two;
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• $13.60 to ship a FedEx package; and
• $6 for transportation to the airport.
All told, a check for $1,282.12 was written recently by Donte' Stallworth to reimburse a sports agent for expenses incurred during a one-day flight of fancy. Stallworth, a football player at Tennessee, ran up the tab after initially deciding to skip his senior season and enter the NFL draft.
Stallworth has since changed his mind and is attempting to reclaim his eligibility. That's why he made full restitution to agent Jimmy Sexton via certified check.
But back to the point: Where did Stallworth get almost $1,300 to pay back the agent?
From a Pell Grant, according to UT Athletic Director Doug Dickey.
Where did the Pell Grant come from?
It is a federal program.
How is this federal program funded?
Uh, I think you know that.
You've heard of robbing from Peter to pay Paul. Well, this smacks of robbing from John and Jane Doe to pay a sports agent. I'm still looking at my Form 1040 to see where I claim the deduction.
If this gives you pause, you're not alone. Something tells me this wasn't what Congress had in mind when it created the Pell Grant in 1972 to aid children of low-income families who otherwise might not be able to attend college.
For the record, there is nothing illegal about what Stallworth did. He, like approximately 4 million other students in the U.S., including many athletes, have qualified for a Pell Grant. Stallworth, who is on full athletic scholarship and is still enrolled at UT, is eligible for $1,800 per semester from the Pell Grant pool. The money is his to do with as he pleases.
But an athlete's use of Pell Grant money to repay an agent hits us where we live. And this isn't the first time in recent months that a Vols football player has used Pell Grant money for something other than the essentials of college life.
When eyebrows were raised in November after UT offensive lineman Fred Weary wrecked a 1998 Lincoln Navigator, he explained that he was able to make the $500-a-month car payments on the SUV in part with Pell Grant funds.
If the term free ride comes to mind, you're not alone.
In most situations, a college football program like the one at Tennessee can explain away its conspicuous consumption because it operates off an autonomous budget where tax dollars are not used. Ticket sales, TV contracts, donations and other revenue streams cover the costs.
When Vols Coach Phillip Fulmer recently got a $350,000 salary increase to an annual package worth $1.65 million at a time when the state is in a budget crunch and the university is tightening its belt, UT officials duly noted that taxpayer dollars were not involved.
Likewise, the scholarships given athletes at the UT's of the world come from donations, not university funds. Unless you write a check to the Volunteer Athletic Scholarship Fund, you're not paying for Casey Clausen to go to school.
This may be of some comfort while you're contemplating how you helped pay for a college football player's $151.92-a-day rental car.
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This stuff goes on everywhere didn't you know that? This is the biggest crock of shit I've heard of in a long time, be it at UT or any other school. Stallworth, Weary, and any other clown that is ABUSING (and don't lie to yourself this is abuse) the system should be forced to pay it back.
I had a good friend in school on a Pell Grant. He used his money to buy shoes, clothes, and some food. What a novel concept, using government handouts for something you actually need.
Let's hear the sheep's spin on this one. There's no excuse for this garbage.
I don't care where something like this happened, it is a total abuse of the system. I wish I could pay my debts with money siphoned from others. Well, actually, I don't. I'll pay my own way.
you 3 bozos trying to run TENNESSEE down as if your schools don't do the exact same thing with their pell grant money !! that's a joke and you know it !! btw dawggy style, i'd rather my players be taking money legally within the system , than RAPING young coeds !! maybe your pathetic school should be banned
to post a link? This copy and paste BS is just a waste of bandwidth.
Watch for #4 next year Snoop. He'll catch 10 passes on your ass!
_____________________________________________
UT 82
OP 76
Well, Ole Piss basketball is stinky and rotten; Championships and rings are long forgotten; We kicked that ass, kicked that ass, kicked that ass, in BuzzyLand; Well, I'm glad I'm not in Oxfraud; Hooray! Hooray! Cause Rebels fans are Redneck flagwavers, who live and die without rings; Hooray! Hooray! I'm glad I'm uuuuuuuuuuup in Knoxville!
Another example of how federal programs run amuck!
And we have great statesmen such as Teddy Kennedy, Tom Daschle, and Dicky Gephardt wanting more & more & more $$$ to pay for corrupt programs from those of us that actually PAY TAXES!! Bastards!
Re: Nice article concerning Donte in the Tennessean>>
January 28 2002, 10:31 PM
To my knowledge ther has never been an article that spoke of any other school in the SEC that had a player pay back a debt to an agent with a Pell Grant. This shows how pathetic our government really is. All the hand out programs to the so called poor kids in school. Lets see; one pays off a debt to a loan shark and the other finances a damn Lincoln Navigator(Weary). The Pell Grant is nothing more than for blacks to get their hands on more government money. This is absolute bullshit! I am tired of these free loaders getting every damn thing handed to them on a silver platter! Any one that defends this practice is a piece of trash!
mouthpiece??? dawggy can fight his own fights . dawggy was trying to run down UT for our guys using something that everyone uses (pell grant).whether it's right or wrong doesn't matter , it's legal and UT is not the only school who has athletes taking advantage of the system. in other words dawggy was attacking TENNESSEE by grasping for straws in your words. if he wants to get a soap box and preach morality , he better start preaching at rape U. (GAWGA) . if you couldn't figure out why and what i was doing i'm sorry , i'll talk a little slower next time
The moment you come up with some credible evidence of athletes at other schools using Pell Grant money to fund a car or repay an agent I will give you credit. Until then you are just using the standard sheep defense "Well it goes on everywhere." Open your wooly eyes and see that your boys are ripping you off (I assume you do pay taxes?).
As for UGA, I haven't been keeping up with the story, though I do know that Cole has been given a permanent boot. Have charges actually been filed?
ok you're right , TENNESSEE is the only school in america who allows their athletes to use pell money !! you and all your buddies crack me up , you hate TENNESSEE so much ,you try your best to find any cracks in the armour , no matter how small. my question to you is : are you really so naive as to think that TENNESSEE is the only school in the country where their student athletes are using pell money for something other than books , food ,clothing ? yes in a perfect world there would be no waste in government and our taxes , but i find it funny that you and your other wolf buddies are trying so hard to make TENNESSEE look corrupt with this issue when you know good and well the university has broken no laws . you are totally biased against TENNESSEE that much is obvious , because i've never seen you be critical of another school no matter how justified those actions would be .
ok you're right , TENNESSEE is the only school in america who allows their athletes to use pell money !! you and all your buddies crack me up , you hate TENNESSEE so much ,you try your best to find any cracks in the armour , no matter how small. my question to you is : are you really so naive as to think that TENNESSEE is the only school in the country where their student athletes are using pell money for something other than books , food ,clothing ? yes in a perfect world there would be no waste in government and our taxes , but i find it funny that you and your other wolf buddies are trying so hard to make TENNESSEE look corrupt with this issue when you know good and well the university has broken no laws . you are totally biased against TENNESSEE that much is obvious , because i've never seen you be critical of another school no matter how justified those actions would be .
Like I said, "it goes on everywhere." Believe me, I'm sure this crap happens at a lot of places (reread my first post) and no matter the place it's a crock of shit. Do you or do you not agree?
BTW, Stallworth was breaking the rules of the NCAA, it might not be the law but as far as the NCAA goes it's still corrupt. Of course the sheep think the rules shouldn't apply in this case because it's their school. I guarantee you that if this were going on at UGA, UF, or another school you sheep would be crying that the player should never play again. You are such a joke.
DS didn't break any NCAA rule, per se. At the time he accepted the agents offerings, he was a "declared" athelete. There was absolutely NOTHING illegal, immoral or improper that went on during that time period from when he declared until the time he changed his mind. You're acting like he committed a friggin' crime, which he didn't. He did break a rule for a CURRENT athelete, which, during that time frame, he was not. Now, whether he should be allowed to repay and reclaim that status, that's a different argument, but I'm sick of you guys acting like he was a damn thug for what he did.
no i'm not the joke , you're sorry ass loser of a team sickacuse is the joke !!! i agree that the pell grant should be only for the needy and not a navigator and so forth , but change the rules to make it illegal first before you call these guys criminals for using the system that is available to them !! and as far as other players for other teams and me crying foul , bullshit !! i think that the ncaa should work with ALL the schools to do everything possible to keep a kid in school !! if a player for syracuse or gawga has a change of heart and wants to stay in school , then baring any huge violation that can't be reimbursed , the player should be reinstated . why should the ncaa treat football players any differently than baseball or basketball players?? no i'm not the joke you are ,because you base all decisions on how will it hurt TENNESSEE the worst , you can't even form a valid opinion on a subject because you're so blinded by your hatred for TENNESSEE !!!!!
Re: Nice article concerning Donte in the Tennessean>>
January 29 2002, 8:38 PM
Carter, once again you are making a fool of yourself.
The NCAA rules state that a players is delared ineligible when he a.) submits his name on the draft list or b.) when he enters into ANY type of an agreement with an agent.
$1300 is entering into an agreement. I don't give a damn how you slice it he broke NCAA eligibility rules by submitting his name and taking the money. You people are pathetic. Carter, you have turned into the biggest sheep on this board outside of VH! Your posts have NO logic whatsoever! Go drink a damn beer! On second thought, don't. The excuses would really flow then!
I realize you're not the smartest puppy in the dog house...
January 29 2002, 9:19 PM
but try and understand this, at the time he took the goodies, he WAS NOT BREAKING A RULE/LAW/WHATEVER. It's like a 20 year old turning 21. When he was 20, it was against the rules/law to drink, soon as he hit 21 (declared) that rule was out the window. Again, whether you let him return the beer and become 20 again, that's a different question. But the bottom line is, when he took the stuff, he WAS NOT doing anything wrong. Unlike rape which, if you want to really get into that, is ALWAYS illegal. Now get your ass back in the doghouse before I have to roll that newspaper up and spank that ass again!!!!
Re: Nice article concerning Donte in the Tennessean>>
January 29 2002, 9:53 PM
Carter, you obviously have not taken the time to read the rules. As far as UT's concerned he did not commit a violation that would hurt the school. However, he did make his name available for the draft and entered into to an agreement with an agent. Not many people throw around 1300 bucks without getting something in return. You're not that stupid. Then again, you're a UT fan! LMAO! You have no shame! Give it up. Once again, I own your ass in a debate. You come with BS and I come with facts. Nice try!
Someone said something about another school being caught misusing Pell grant funds. Wasn`t that part of the reason Miami (FL) was put on probation before? Im not sure of this. But, I seem to remember that for some reason. Im not saying its right or wrong, but it goes on at most bigtime schools.
What exactly did this agent get in return? Go on give us the FACTS!! I think an agent would eat $1300 to get a chance for a huge return on his little investment there SFB`s!!
Let's just say it's safe to say Top Dawggy wouldn't have any particular reason to know much about dealing with an agent, except maybe a Travel Agent. Let's not be too harsh on the lad.
As far as the NCAA is concerned, the minute you enter into an agreement with an agent or accept gifts you are done in college athletics. It doesn't matter if you're 5 when you do it or if you think you're not in school anymore. Give me ONE example of a basketball player that has returned after dealing with an agent. I'll save you the time because they don't exist. The only players that have returned (like Prince at UK) have declared but not dealt with an agent, thus preserving their amateur status with the NCAA. You can think that Stallworth did nothing wrong (and I understand the argument) but past NCAA rulings and their rules state that he lost his amateur status the minute he accepted $1300 fromt an agent. It's cut and dry. If DS should be able to return, then why are many European hoops players never allowed to play NCAA ball after they accept gifts from a European pro team?
Should the rule be changed? IMO no, but there should be a rule for football similar to basketball where you can declare and return IF you haven't dealt with an agent. DS and Weary and any other clown that ABUSES the government system is a damn thugh IMO because they are ripping you, me, and every other honest taxpayer off. This system should be reformed but that won't happen because as soon as you touch it Jesse Jackson will be screaming about all of the poor little black kids that are being kept down by the man.
Pepvol, at least you can admit that this is abuse, but just because it's going on everywhere that doesn't make it alright.
1)If it is so cut and dried, the NCAA would have already returned all of UT's paperwork and said, "sorry, the rules are the rules". It may still come back that way, but I don't think they've dealt with a case exactly like this before. You asked me to tell you who had returned previously and I couldn't tell you one way or the other if anyone has because I don't keep that close of tabs on it, but from what I gather, DS's exact circumstances have never been ruled on before. A rule is a rule is a rule may very well be their answer, but I just have a feeling your fixing to see "the Stallworth rule" established and he'll be allowed back with a minor (2 game) penalty.
2) Hell, I forgot what I was going to write, so I'll have to go back and look at your post again.
but anyway, 44, might other issue on the "once you've dealt with an agent" argument is the total hypocricy regarding these agents when you can have pro players in a different sport still eligible to play anything in the NCAA. There's no question Kelly Washington HAD dealings with an agent. Someone is going to eventually sue the hell out of the NCAA for the inequities on the whole eligibility issue and win easily.
I've said my piece until the ruling is handed down.
Current Topic - Nice article concerning Donte in the Tennessean>>
